The Human Phenotype Ontology project has assembled more than 10,000 standardized terms for human diseases and the symptoms that accompany them, researchers reported 1 January in Nucleic Acids Research.

Results from four studies published in the past year point to a role for the cerebellum in autism-related behaviors.

Researchers have created software that can design customized molecular scissors to edit the genomes of living cells. The program, called TALENSeek, was presented in a poster Saturday afternoon at the 2013 Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in San Diego.

Just as search engines comb through the vast expanse of the Internet for information, several online resources are helping scientists browse massive collections of data on the brain. Researchers showcased several of these resources Saturday afternoon at the 2013 Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in San Diego.

A new analysis strikes down a widely reported study from last year, which claimed that a panel of 237 genetic markers predicts autism.

A new database pools health registry data from seven countries, dramatically boosting sample sizes for epidemiological studies of autism.

A new software tool detects chromosomal alterations present in only a subset of cells in the body. This method, described 31 May in BMC Genomics, may help reveal mosaicism’s contribution to neurological disorders.

A new network analysis of autism genes, published 11 June in Translational Psychiatry, highlights both the pitfalls and the promise of the approach, says Alan Packer.
 

Electronic health records may help researchers assemble information about autism, such as its full range of symptoms, from thousands of individuals, says Isaac Kohane.

By combining bioinformatics techniques with an analysis of gene expression, researchers have identified 30 candidate genes for autism, according to a study published 28 May in Translational Psychiatry.