In the past few years, studies have linked various chromosomal regions, candidate genes and copy number variations to a higher risk of autism. But none of those findings explain why the condition is four times more common in boys than in girls.

Autism and fragile X syndrome are characterized by very different brain processes, even though the two disorders show similar social deficits, say authors of the first functional imaging study to compare the two disorders.

The absence of a protein involved in a prominent cancer pathway leads to repetitive behaviors and learning deficits in mice, creating a viable model for autism research, according to a study published last week in Neuron.

Variants in contactin-associated protein-like 2 or CNTNAP2 ― a gene thought to be involved in nerve cell communication ― are associated with language deficits in families affected by specific language impairment (SLI), a developmental disorder that affects roughly seven percent of kindergarten-age children, according to a study published in late November.

Children with autism process sounds a split second slower than typically developing children, according to a new study that measured the magnetic fields emitted from the children’s brains.

The first postmortem study to examine the effects of chromosome 15 duplication on gene expression shows completely divergent results, suggesting that the effect of genetic duplications is far from predictable, according to a study published last month in the Journal of Medical Genetics.

Some small fragments of RNA are expressed differently in people with autism than in controls, according to two new studies. The findings unveil another layer of complexity in the genetics of autism.

A child’s language ability correlates with the volume of his or her amygdala ― the small, deep brain region that is strongly associated with emotion processing ― according to an unpublished five-year longitudinal study presented Wednesday afternoon at the Society for Neuroscience meeting.

High-functioning children with autism may understand another personʼs intention when, for example, that person reaches for a glass of water ― a simple, goal-directed task ― without help from the mirror neuron system, according to research reported Tuesday at the Society for Neuroscience meeting.

Researchers are narrowing in on a pool of genes that may be involved in helping neurons find their targets, according to unpublished work presented today in a poster session at the Society for Neuroscience meeting.