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Autism spectrum disorders news

Autism spectrum disorders

Scientists grow mini brains to uncover cells behind autism-related brain overgrowth

A new study in the lab of Jason Stein, Ph.D., modeled brain development in a dish to identify cells and genes that influence infant brain growth, a trait associated with autism.

Neuroscience

Molecular difference in autistic brains may explain signaling imbalance

Yale School of Medicine (YSM) scientists have discovered a molecular difference in the brains of autistic people compared to their neurotypical counterparts.

Autism spectrum disorders

AI-assisted device may improve autism care access

Access to autism evaluations through specialty health care is notorious for long wait times across the United States. In Missouri, many families wait nearly a year for a diagnostic appointment. AI might be a solution to cutting ...

Neuroscience

Protein abnormality illuminates communication struggles in autism

A DGIST research team identified that the mutation of the collybistin protein found in autistic patients weakens the brain's inhibitory synaptic function and leads to communication deficiencies. The results of this research ...

Neuroscience

Study maps brain wiring differences in youth with autism

Researchers at the Mark and Mary Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute (Stevens INI) at the Keck School of Medicine of USC have uncovered new insights into how brain wiring differs in children and young adults with ...

Autism spectrum disorders

What to know about the CDC's baseless new guidance on autism

The rewriting of a page on the CDC's website to assert the false claim that vaccines may cause autism sparked a torrent of anger and anguish from doctors, scientists, and parents who say Health and Human Services Secretary ...

Autism spectrum disorders

Vaccines 'don't cause autism': How scientists figured that out

In the late 1990s, a theory gripped parents around the world: What if childhood vaccines—particularly the combined measles-mumps-rubella vaccine—cause autism? Nearly three decades later, the debunked theory has gained ...

Autism spectrum disorders

Minimal race, sex bias identified in the ADOS-2 autism measure

Differential item functioning (DIF) is minimal across race and sex in the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, Second Edition (ADOS-2), according to a study published online April 26 in JAMA Network Open.

Neuroscience

Some autism spectrum disorder symptoms linked to astrocytes

Abnormalities in a type of brain cell called astrocytes may play a pivotal role in causing some behavioral symptoms of autism spectrum disorders, according to a preclinical study by Weill Cornell Medicine investigators.

Genetics

A 'social' gene in fish could contain new clues to autism

Zebrafish are social creatures. When they see another member of their species, they'll orient towards them and swim closer, much like a human at a cocktail party turning to face someone who's telling a joke over a plate of ...

Autism spectrum disorders

New review finds autistic mothers face extra barriers to breastfeed

A new review by Swansea University, working with the University of Kent and non-profit organization, Autistic UK, has found that breastfeeding support from midwives and health visitors is often not well suited to meet the ...

Autism spectrum disorders

New AI-driven algorithm can detect autism in brain 'fingerprints'

Stanford researchers have developed an algorithm that may help discern if someone has autism by looking at brain scans. The novel algorithm, driven by recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI), also successfully predicts ...

Neuroscience

Miniature brain models help our understanding of autism

To better understand the causes of autism spectrum disorders (ASD), it is crucial to look at what is happening in the brain during development. The closest we come to observing human brains this early is by using organoids—miniature ...

Neuroscience

Autism-associated brain differences can be observed in the womb

A new study using prenatal brain scans revealed significant differences in brain structures at around 25 weeks' gestation between children who were later diagnosed with ASD and those who were not. The study adds to mounting ...

Neuroscience

Social interactions divert the established motivational system

Social interactions are regulated by the neuronal circuits underlying motivated behaviors. These reward circuits involve the brain's ventral tegmental area and its dopaminergic neurons. However, which brain areas convey information ...

Autism spectrum disorders

Autistic defendants are being failed by the criminal justice system

The criminal justice system (CJS) is failing autistic people, argue researchers at the Autism Research Centre, University of Cambridge, after a survey of lawyers found that an overwhelming majority of their clients were not ...

Autism spectrum disorders

Study examines timing abilities of drivers with ADHD and ASD

Time perception plays a key role in safety while driving on the road. When traveling at high speeds, decisions made in a matter of seconds could help avoid a potentially fatal accident. A recent University of Alabama at Birmingham ...