Dried spots of blood taken from infants at birth can help clinicians screen for fragile X syndrome in countries with limited resources, according to a study published 11 October in Genetic Testing and Molecular Biomarkers.

Researchers have designed a light, mobile and wireless device that allows them to track infants’ gaze as they explore their environment, according to a study published in November in Child Development.

A new technique efficiently screens for compounds that enhance or inhibit the formation of synapses, the junctions between neurons, according to a study published 25 October in Nature Communications.

Regions of the genome that contain the same genetic variants on both copies of a chromosome are more likely to contain autism-associated genes than other parts of the genome, according to a study published 14 October in Human Genetics.

Researchers have derived neurons from stem cells to investigate mutations that lead to Rett and fragile X syndromes.

Researchers have engineered 20 mouse lines that allow them to manipulate genes in specific neuronal circuits. The resource, reported 22 September in Neuron, will allow researchers to better explore the role of interneurons, which dampen signals in the brain, in mouse models of autism. 

Researchers have sequenced 17 laboratory mice and mapped 56.7 million single-base DNA variants in their genomes, according to a study published 15 September in Nature. A companion paper in the same issue identifies more than 700,000 structural variants, which are insertions, deletions or other modifications of DNA.

A technique for detecting gene expression that detects short RNA messages is better suited than traditional methods for analyzing postmortem brain tissue, according to a study published 10 September in BMC Genomics.

Researchers have defined anatomical boundaries that minimize errors in brain-imaging measures of the amygdala, a region involved in emotion processing.

Stem cells reprogrammed to become neurons can provide a picture of gene expression in neurons that is traditionally available only from brain tissue.