Long bundles of neurons that connect key regions in the brain develop abnormally in the first year of life in children with autism, according to new findings presented Friday at the International Meeting for Autism Research in San Diego.
No matter which of the numerous genetic and environmental risk factors has caused autism, the part of the system that is always affected is most likely to be found at the cognitive level, argues Uta Frith, a leader in the field of cognitive neuroscience.
Mice missing the autism candidate gene MET have connections in the cortex that are twice as strong as those in controls, according to a new study.
People with autism are better able to visualize objects rotating in space — perhaps because their brains are wired differently than healthy controls.
Researchers have mapped the architecture of a brain circuit active during vision in the cerebral cortex — a region involved in memory and planning — they reported 10 March in Nature.
Mutations in a gene that organizes synapses — the junctions between neurons — may increase the risk of autism, according to a study published in February in Autism Research. The study bolsters evidence linking a pathway involved in cell-to-cell communication to autism.
It’s too soon to call it a diagnostic test for autism, but an algorithm that detects patterns in brain waves shows promise as one component of a screening battery for the disorder, say researchers familiar with the work.
In addition to having trouble connecting with others, individuals with autism also struggle with their sense of self, according to a review published in January in Neurocase.
Genetic risk factors for specific language impairment and autism affect the timing of language learning in the general population, according to a study published in February in Genes, Brain and Behavior.
Several new studies challenge the ‘broken mirror’ hypothesis of autism, which suggests that defects in specialized brain cells called mirror neurons explain why people with the disorder find social interaction difficult.