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Emerging tools and techniques that may advance autism research.

Images from structural, functional and diffusion MRI scans.

Dataset maps connectivity in 40,000 brains

by  /  15 May 2023

The new resource aims to aid reproducibility in imaging research.

Previous articles
April 2023
Research diagram of gene clusters.

Atlas of gene activity in prenatal brain holds clues to autism

by  /  24 April 2023

Genes exert their strongest influence on the brain in the first half of gestation — a key window for autism and other neurodevelopmental conditions.

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Illustration of a diverse group of bodies floating in space.

New measure characterizes gender diversity in study participants

by  /  12 April 2023

The Gender Self-Report could help autism researchers include more gender-diverse people across a range of ages and neurotypes in their work.

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Six cross-sections of mouse brains.

Landmark atlases flag 5,000 cell types across mouse brain

by  /  6 April 2023

The work identifies new varieties and may help researchers develop tools to genetically target specific classes of cells.

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March 2023

Wearable device records, stimulates single neurons in people on the go

by  /  17 March 2023

The tool connects to electrodes implanted in people with epilepsy or other brain conditions and can monitor and regulate neurons during everyday activities.

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February 2023
Brain scans displaying activity in areas linked with social behavior.

People’s perceptions of ‘social’ animations don’t always square with researchers’ labels

by  /  22 February 2023

The finding calls into question differences between autistic and non-autistic people on a decades-old theory-of-mind test involving interacting geometric shapes.

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January 2023
A photograph of a person preparing for an fMRI scan

Head motion mars most fMRI results, even after correction

by  /  30 January 2023

A new measure shows how greatly movement influences associations between traits and brain activity, revealing abundant false positives and false negatives.

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A woman sits and works at a laptop while her daughter sits next to her and looks out of a glass door.

New tool aims to capture full breadth of repetitive behaviors

by  /  13 January 2023

The measure breaks the behaviors down into eight distinct subdomains — categorization that could prove useful for clinical trials, its creator says.

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Figure shows cultured human kidney cells and cultured rat cortical neurons responding to light exposure.

Unconventional optogenetics technique spurs long-lasting changes in neuronal activity

by  /  9 January 2023

Conventional optogenetic manipulations to excite or inhibit neurons stop when the light switches off. A new approach makes the changes last.

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December 2022
Image from an open-source programming tool that overlays microscopy images in 3D and pinpoints where neurons connect.

Microscopy mash-up quantifies, maps neural circuits

by  /  7 December 2022

A new method that merges tissue expansion, light-sheet microscopy and automated image segmentation can reconstruct neural circuits in about a week.

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Composite image of inhibitory and excitatory neurons.

One-rosette technique grows well-organized organoids

by  /  2 December 2022

The method yields complex organoids that more closely mimic embryonic brain development than do those cultured in other ways.

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