An asocial inbred mouse strain called BTBR may show behaviors associated with autism, such as avoiding eye gaze and forming an attachment to objects, researchers reported Monday at the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in San Diego.
In a study published last week, Huda Zoghbi’s team showed that neurons that produce a neurotransmitter called gamma-aminobutyric acid, or GABA, play a crucial role in the development of Rett syndrome. Zoghbi caught up with SFARI at the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in San Diego to discuss the study’s implications for understanding autism.
Better performance on intelligence tests that measure spatial rather than verbal ability is inherited in people with autism, according to a paper published online in October in Human Genetics.
The brains of children with autism show differences in gene expression compared with those of healthy controls, especially in genes that control cell growth. Adults with autism also have aberrant gene expression, but in different pathways, researchers reported Sunday at the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in San Diego.
A new model system allows scientists to watch human neurons develop outside of the brain, researchers reported Sunday at the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in San Diego.
UBE3A, a protein mutated in Angelman syndrome and autism, regulates communication between neurons in the brain, according to a study published 29 October in Cell.
A drug already in clinical trials as a tanning compound raises brain levels of oxytocin — a hormone and neurotransmitter involved in social bonding — researchers reported Sunday at the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in San Diego. Higher levels of oxytocin can help animals recognize their mates and turn to a friend for help, according to two posters presented at the meeting.
A variety of animal models can help researchers better address human-specific questions in neurological disorders such as autism, says Theresa Lee, who has used exotic animal models to study circadian rhythms.
Researchers have narrowed down a genetic region associated with autism to one protein, cadherin 8, that helps bind cells together, according to a study published online in October in the Journal of Medical Genetics. This is the first time CDH8, the gene that encodes this protein, has been associated with autism.
Siblings of children with autism who show no signs of the disorder may be compensating with increased activity in two brain regions that detect social cues, according to results presented yesterday at the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in San Diego.