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Spectrum: Autism Research News

News Archive

September 2022
A doctor talks with his patient in an office.

Community Newsletter: Helping autistic adults thrive, grant funding for people with profound autism

by  /  11 September 2022

Two overlooked groups in autism research — autistic adults and people with profound autism — dominated this week’s talk on Twitter.

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A group of people in business attire is seated and having a conversation.

Autistic academics seek inclusivity to combat burnout

by  /  8 September 2022

Many autistic researchers say that academia could be the perfect place for them — but a number of obstacles stand in the way.

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A hand holds a compass against a blue background.

Spectrum Launch: Fostering neurodiversity, promotions, grad school placements

by  /  8 September 2022

Autistic researchers describe the challenges they’ve faced in academia and how their non-autistic colleagues can make the workplace more inclusive.

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An illustration of two scientists carrying a larger-than-life DNA strand on their shoulders.

Community Newsletter: Autism gene lists, genetic diversity in mouse models, an autism biomarker

by  /  4 September 2022

This week, we’re bringing you some labors of love: a thread lamenting the autism field’s focus on gene lists, a study introducing genetic diversity in mouse models, and long-awaited results from a biomarker study.

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An adult administers a medication to an infant.

Experimental drug shows promise for autism-linked syndromes

by  /  2 September 2022

The drug quells seizures in children with Dravet syndrome or Lennox-Gastaut syndrome.

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August 2022
A pregnant woman and a doctor, both masked, have a conversation in an examination room.

U.K. health authority investigates epilepsy drug’s link to autism

by  /  30 August 2022

Prenatal exposure to topiramate increases a child’s autism odds, according to the study that prompted the inquiry, but experts caution that pregnant people with epilepsy have few other options for controlling seizures.

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Illustration of screenlight projecting shadows on the wall of distracted parents: one is on their phone and the other is leaving the room.

Studies investigating link between screen time and autism must improve

by  /  29 August 2022

Showing an association is not enough to determine causation.

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Illustration of a signal transmitting neuron.

Community Newsletter: Novel biosensor, mental health needs, autism research’s sex bias

by  /  28 August 2022

A short time ago on Twitter feeds not so far, far away, a new voltage sensor called JEDI-2P (no, it’s not a lightsaber) had users jawing like Jawas, while other threads featured talk of mental health interventions and sex biases in autism research.

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Promising preclinical results prompt Angelman therapy trial

by  /  25 August 2022

Roche’s gene therapy drug Rugonersen boosts expression of the protein missing in the syndrome in mice and monkeys, but whether it works in people remains to be seen.

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A large MRI scan of a human brain, with a grid of 15 smaller MRI scans to its left

Chromosome 22 mutations leave telltale marks on brain development in autistic people

by  /  24 August 2022

Many brain regions develop differently between people with 22q11.2 duplications and deletions, and those trajectories also vary with a person’s diagnosis.

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