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Spectrum: Autism Research News

Tag: cortex

May 2023
Still image taken from research video of three human microglia surveying their surroundings in a new experimental setup for studying the cells.

Grafted organoids reveal how microglia adapt to shifting brain environments

by  /  11 May 2023

The chimeric mouse model could provide a more realistic way to study microglia’s roles in brain conditions such as autism.

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Illustration of a brain.

Cortical differences in autism vary by sex

by  /  4 May 2023

Compared with their non-autistic peers, young autistic girls have a thicker cortex that thins more quickly with age.

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April 2023
Research image of cortical structures in mice.

Autism-linked mutations scramble nascent cortical circuits

by  /  17 April 2023

By imaging and recording synaptic activity in living mouse embryos for the first time, new research reveals previously unknown patterns of development and hints at how those patterns are disrupted in autism.

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March 2023

Wearable device records, stimulates single neurons in people on the go

by  /  17 March 2023

The tool connects to electrodes implanted in people with epilepsy or other brain conditions and can monitor and regulate neurons during everyday activities.

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MRI scan with a section enlarged to display the scan's grey-white boundary.

Brain imaging do-over offers clues to field’s replication problem

by  /  13 March 2023

Methodological choices and study-site artifacts confounded an attempt to replicate findings in support of an autism brain-imaging biomarker, according to new unpublished work.

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February 2023
an image of a neuron

Neurons struggle to spike without fragile X gene

by  /  17 February 2023

FMR1 loss impairs sodium channels, hindering mouse neurons from generating the electrical signals needed to transmit information.

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January 2023
Lab images of cilia.

Autism and the cell’s antennae

by  /  4 January 2023

Many autism-linked genes are somehow tied to cilia, the tiny hair-like sensors that stud a cell’s surface. But the question remains whether, and how, cilia differences contribute to the condition.

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November 2022
Light micrograph of microglia cells stained with Rio Hortega’s silver carbonate method.

Autism’s sex bias tied to glial, immune cell gene expression

by  /  22 November 2022

The function of microglia and astrocytes in the brain may mediate the intersection of sex-differential biology and autism biology.

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Image of organoids modeling CDKL5 deficiency disorder.

Organoids identify potential therapies, circuit flaws for autism-linked syndromes

by  /  21 November 2022

Brain cell clusters serve as drug screens and reveal connectivity differences for autism-linked conditions, two new models show.

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Pink geometric brain against a blue background.

Autism brain signature most pronounced in sensory areas

by  /  2 November 2022

An analysis of 11 cortical regions shows anterior-to-posterior shifts in gene expression linked to autism.

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