Children with autism show different patterns of brain activity during everyday gestures and movements than controls do, suggest unpublished results presented today at the 2014 Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in Washington, D.C.

Mice with mutations in the autism-linked gene WDFY3 have enlarged brains reminiscent of those seen in some children with autism, according to a study published 8 September in Nature Communications.

Bioengineers have built a donut-shaped scaffold that supports the growth of brain-like tissue, they reported 11 August.

Methyl tags on DNA are distributed differently in postmortem brains from people with autism than in control brains, and mouse pups can inherit altered methylation from their older fathers, report two new studies.

Researchers debuted a three-dimensional model of an average synapse, the point of connection between neurons, in the 30 May issue of Science.

Male and female preschoolers with autism have distinct sets of brain regions that distinguish them from typically developing controls, according to unpublished research presented Saturday at the 2014 International Meeting for Autism Research in Atlanta.

The genes in 16p11.2, the autism-linked region on chromosome 16, may directly affect brain size early in development, according to unpublished research presented Thursday at the 2014 International Meeting for Autism Research in Atlanta.

Proteins that help guide neurons to their correct destination in the brain may be involved in autism, says Christopher Cowan.

FMRP, the protein absent or mutated in fragile X syndrome, aids in strategic elimination of neuronal connections during brain development in mice, according to a study published 26 February in The Journal of Neuroscience.

Disorganized patches found in the brains of children with autism prompt debate about their significance for the disorder. Three experts give their perspectives.