This month, a commonly used emotion-recognition test doesn’t perform as expected — nor does a survey of past efforts to train autism specialists or a hunt for the sources of the sleep problems that often accompany the condition.

What these genes do and how they affect autism depends on when in development they’re studied, despite what classic ‘gene ontology’ analyses say.

Takeaways from two team-ups titillated Twitter this week — one on the effects of mutations in the PAX5 gene and one linking rare genetic mutations to a large number of diseases and traits. Plus a primer on dopamine with facts about dopamine fasting.

Troves of sequencing data reveal genes tied to autism through different variant types, providing a more complete picture of the condition’s genetic roots and new clues to its heterogeneity.

Interview techniques that cater to a range of communication abilities can elicit the perspectives of autistic youth with cognitive and verbal challenges.

A delayed brain response to viewing faces may predict lags in social-skill development in autistic people.

Interventions that moderate a need for ‘sameness’ may prevent anxiety traits.

Scientists took to Twitter to talk shop this week about how the software used to process electroencephalography signals can influence results, Neuropixels probes can record from human brain cells, and prenatal exposure to pollution and stress might affect autism risk.

Some clinicians say the term describes a subtype of autism, but others dispute its validity and say it is harmful to the autistic community.

Government-convened experts laid out 84 recommendations, with a particular focus on affirming neurodiversity and embracing human rights.