Brain cells communicate across complex junctions called synapses, filled with proteins working to bind neurons together. Kurt Haas of the University of British Columbia in Vancouver has developed a method to watch neuron development in the growing tadpole brain.
Lowering the levels of proteins associated with Alzheimer’s disease can improve symptoms of fragile X syndrome in mice, according to a poster presented Wednesday at the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in San Diego.
Sharing stories about his own family’s struggles with neurological disease, Patrick J. Kennedy, a Democratic Congressman, on Monday called for a focused national program to uncover the causes and treatments for brain disorders. The challenge today, he told SFARI, is to devote enough resources for research on disorders such as autism.
Ricardo Dolmetsch is making neurons from induced pluripotent stem cells derived from people with Timothy syndrome, a rare single-gene disorder that causes heart arrhythmias and autism. On Wednesday morning at the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in San Diego, Dolmetsch talked to SFARI about how this approach could help autism research.
Young children with autism have high urine levels of a compound that is likely to be a product of gut bacteria, according to a poster presented Tuesday at the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in San Diego.
Pregnant mice injected with the immune protein interleukin-6 give birth to pups that are less social than normal, an effect that results from the over-activation of two pathways critical in neurodevelopment, researchers reported Tuesday at the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in San Diego.
Rapid advances in DNA sequencing technology are enabling researchers to comb quickly — and ever more cheaply — through whole genomes. At the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in San Diego, Evan Eichler talked to SFARI about what the rapid accumulation of genetic sequence information means for autism research.
What makes a good candidate gene for autism? At the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in San Diego, John Rubenstein discussed two complementary ways to identify genes involved in autism: start with the DNA, or start with a hypothesis.
Children with autism show more activity in a brain region important for making decisions under changing circumstances, according to a poster presented Monday at the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in San Diego.
Researchers have designed an automated cage assay to minimize the anxiety mice feel as they are being tested for social behavior. The new technique was presented at the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in San Diego.