Catherine Lord’s career has been defined by relationships: with mentors, protegees and, above all, with autistic people and their families.

Studies of the brain’s sensory system may provide unique insight into the brain mechanisms that underlie autism and could point to possible treatments.

Autism is unusually common among people with congenital blindness, in part because the ability to see drives much of brain development.

Misinformation about autistic women and sex is common in the scientific community. A study published this year is a case in point.

Studying Smith-Magenis and Potocki-Lupski syndromes — two single-gene conditions in which people have trouble reading social cues — may boost our understanding of autism.

Not much is known about the connection between autism and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a condition that affects collagen. But preliminary work provides tantalizing clues.

Advances in research and help from families have brought scientists to the brink of an effective therapy for Angelman syndrome.

New data linking autism to steroid levels in pregnant women are inconsistent with basic facts about the biochemistry of steroids.

Tuberous sclerosis provides a unique opportunity to understand autism because about half of people with that single-gene condition also have autism.

Sleep problems may contribute to autism’s underlying biology — a connection that scientists can study in animal models.