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Spectrum: Autism Research News

Author

Lydia Denworth

Freelance Writer, Spectrum

Lydia Denworth is a New York-based science writer and author of I Can Hear You Whisper: An Intimate Journey through the Science of Sound and Language

Contact Info

[email protected]

February 2023
Coraline with her family at home in Pennsylvania.

The promise of telehealth in autism diagnoses

by  /  15 February 2023

The COVID-19 pandemic forced a reckoning, in which autism clinicians had to redefine best practices and expand how children are evaluated. The remote assessments they developed may help solve a persistent problem: the long wait families endure to get a diagnosis in the United States.

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July 2022

The most personalized medicine: Studying your own child’s rare condition

by  /  7 July 2022

A handful of scientists are committed to advancing research on the autism-related genetic conditions their own children have.

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November 2020
Owen leaving his home for a bike ride, followed by his therapists and teachers.

Owen’s odyssey: A year and a half after an autism diagnosis

by  /  25 November 2020

This is part 2 of Owen’s story. It tracks his early progress in treatment for autism. Part 1 described his difficult path to a diagnosis.

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October 2020
Ralf Schmid, the research director in Neurodevelopmental diseases at the Gene Therapy Program Orphan Disease Center, loads replicated mouse dna into wells in the gel before applying electric current to test the viability of the dna.

A quest for Quincy: Gene therapies come of age for some forms of autism

by ,  /  14 October 2020

A gene therapy for Angelman syndrome stands at the forefront of efforts to treat autism-linked conditions that stem from single genes.

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April 2020
Two young women who met in the Action Play theater group and became friends. Lines between the women show their connection.

How people with autism forge friendships

by  /  1 April 2020

Most autistic people want to and can make friends, though their relationships often have a distinctive air.

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May 2019
Man and woman portraits on a 'family tree'

What the ‘broad spectrum’ can teach us about autism

by  /  15 May 2019

The relatives of autistic people often have mild traits of the condition. Studying these family members could broaden our understanding of autism.

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April 2018
silhouette of head with illustrated text

Social communication in autism, explained

by  /  19 April 2018

Communication problems have always been considered a core feature of autism. Yet there are substantial and wide-ranging differences in how people with autism communicate.

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animation: a child sits between two parents who are talking to each other. The child looks confused or worried.

Where communication breaks down for people with autism

by  /  18 April 2018

People on the spectrum often have subtle problems using language or making facial expressions. Pinpointing where those difficulties originate may help ease their social communication.

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March 2016

The enemy within

by  /  9 March 2016

The possibility that autism is caused by a maternal immune system gone awry is no longer a fringe idea — but proposals to identify or fix these glitches are still controversial.

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September 2015

Magnetic promise: Can brain stimulation treat autism?

by  /  23 September 2015

There are hints that transcranial magnetic stimulation, which uses electricity to change how brain cells function, might improve the symptoms of autism. But hopes are running way ahead of the facts.

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