The results of two new studies support recommendations against the use of brain scans to diagnose autism.

Analyzing the organization of whole-brain structural networks could reveal differences in the way brains of children with autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders are wired.

Intellectual disability is more likely to be associated with multiple, large or non-inherited duplications and deletions of DNA than is autism, according to a study published 7 November in PLoS Genetics.

People with autism have structural changes in parts of the cerebellum that are distinct from those seen in individuals with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or dyslexia, according to an unpublished meta-analysis presented at the 2011 Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in Washington, D.C.

Two studies published in the past month highlight the challenges in balancing the accuracy of autism diagnosis with cost-effectiveness and speed.

A gene that changed rapidly after the human genome diverged from that of Neanderthals plays a critical role in brain development, according to unpublished results presented Thursday at the International Congress of Human Genetics in Montreal, Canada.

The offspring of older male mice are 16 times more likely to harbor a spontaneous copy number variation — a deletion or duplication of genetic material — than are the offspring of young males, according to a new study.

Researchers can use the Manchester Inventory for Playground Observation, a questionnaire that rates children’s interactions with their peers, to reliably measure social skills in children with autism.