Spectrum: Autism Research News

Research roundup

• Whole-genome sequencing captures a wide range of genetic variation underlying intellectual disability. Genome Medicine
• Researchers have discovered what makes us human by analyzing the genetics of cognitive networks in the brain. Nature Communications
• Mice lacking the gene for fragile X syndrome show alterations in bone and muscle composition. Frontiers in Endocrinology
• Nine adults who received an autism diagnosis after age 50 found relief in re-evaluating their lives in this new context. Health Psychology and Behavioral Medicine
• Researchers have described a range of traits in children with dup15q syndrome, a condition linked to autism. American Journal of Medical Genetics
• The use of simple syllables to communicate appears to predict expressive language skills in preverbal or minimally verbal children with autism. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research
• Difficulties with executive functioning — planning, mental flexibility and self-control — are correlated with autism traits in young children. Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health

Science and society

• Health insurer UnitedHealthcare paid a $1 million fine to Pennsylvania for denying customers’ mental health claims, in violation of a law that assures parity with other medical claims. Disability Scoop
• Researchers are recognizing that the brain monitors body movement, even tiny twitches, in sensory regions. Quanta Magazine
• Stem-cell therapies are oversold, underregulated and often harmful. Texas Monthly
• The biomedical news site STAT has announced its latest class of ‘Wunderkinds’ — physicians and researchers expected to be trailblazers. STAT
• Three in four employees at a New York-based engineering startup have autism. University Herald
• Police departments around the United States have started various initiatives to improve interactions with autistic community members. Ozy
• An inclusive preschool in New York state has marked 50 years of putting children of all abilities together in one classroom. Spectrum News
• Kalin Bennett, a first-year student at Kent State University in Ohio, has become the first known autistic athlete to score points in a Division I basketball game. Sports Illustrated 

Autism and the arts

• A new exhibit at a Hull, England, art gallery features Nnena Kalu, an autistic artist who creates sculptures with repurposed materials such as old VHS tapes and discarded fabric. The Guardian

Job moves

• Neuroscientist and autism researcher Jonathan Kipnis is moving his laboratory to Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. Twitter