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Spectrum: Autism Research News

News Archive

June 2012

Imaging studies question connectivity theory of autism

by  /  11 June 2012

Three independent studies presented in May at the International Meeting for Autism Research (IMFAR) in Toronto suggest that much of the brain in people with autism looks the same as that of controls.  The results contradict the so-called connectivity theory of autism, which holds that the brains of people with the disorder have weak long-range functional connections compared with controls.

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Genetics: 2q21.1 variations link autism, attention deficit

by  /  8 June 2012

Researchers have found deletions and duplications of a small piece of chromosome 2 in individuals with autism, developmental delay, epilepsy or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

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‘Baby sibs’ struggle to integrate audio, visual speech cues

by  /  7 June 2012

Infants at high risk for autism have difficulty integrating information from different senses, such as vision and hearing, a new study suggests.

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Clinical research: Long-term studies track autism’s trajectory

by  /  6 June 2012

Two studies published over the past month followed individuals with autism at various ages and showed that they gain developmental skills differently than controls do.

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Molecular mechanisms: Microglia abnormal in autism brains

by  /  5 June 2012

Two new postmortem studies show that microglia, which protect the brain from invaders, are denser and more concentrated around neurons in the brains of individuals with autism than in those of controls.

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Immune cells sculpt brain by pruning neuronal connections

by  /  4 June 2012

Immune cells called microglia may play a central role in trimming synapses, the connections between neurons, according to research published 24 May in Neuron. These modifications are part of a normal developmental process by which excess synapses in the brain are destroyed.

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Brain trust

by  /  1 June 2012

Preliminary research shows that in people with autism, oxytocin enhances activity in brain areas that process social information.

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Cognition and behavior: Rare syndrome distinct from autism

by  /  1 June 2012

Individuals with Cornelia de Lange syndrome, a rare genetic disorder often accompanied by autism, have subtle differences in the nature of their social deficits compared with those who have autism alone, according to a report published 10 April in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry.

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May 2012

Autism gene PTEN plays vital role in neural stem cells

by  /  31 May 2012

Knocking out an autism-linked gene called PTEN only in neural stem cells of the hippocampus, a brain region central to learning and memory, throws the development of new neurons off course in adult mice, according to research published last month in the Journal of Neuroscience.

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3d Chromosome with DNA visible inside

Genetics: Search for recessive mutations reveals autism genes

by  /  30 May 2012

By screening for recessive mutations, which are present in both copies of a gene, researchers have identified four autism candidates that may be involved in neuronal signaling, according to a study published 12 April in PLoS Genetics.

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