Two different autism-linked mutations in the same gene implicate the endocannabinoid system, which regulates appetite, mood and memory, in autism, according to a study published 8 May in Neuron.
Children who carry an extra copy of the 15q11-13 region of the genome usually have autism and sleep troubles, as well as distinctive brain-wave patterns and facial features, according to a report published 14 March in Autism Research.
An imbalance in the excitatory and inhibitory signaling between neurons seems to play a critical role in autism. What can we do with that information?
Loss of one copy of 22q11.2 — a chromosomal region linked to schizophrenia and autism — shifts the location of neurons that inhibit brain signals, according to a study published 6 November in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
In 2003, John Rubenstein and Michael Merzenich first described the theory, now popular in autism, that the disorder reflects an imbalance between excitation and inhibition in the brain. Takao K. Hensch and Parizad M. Bilimoria review the paper and its impact on the field.
Bumetanide, a drug that’s long been used to treat high blood pressure, modestly improves social behaviors in children with mild forms of autism, according to the results of a small trial published in December in Translational Psychiatry.
A net decrease in inhibitory signals in the cerebellum may underlie the movement problems seen in the autism-related disorder Angelman syndrome, according to mouse research published 5 December in Science Translational Medicine.
Two new case studies highlight how complex rearrangements of chromosome 15 can lead to different disorders, including autism and the related Prader-Willi syndrome.
A compound called baclofen restores the balance between different types of brain signals and alleviates autism-like behaviors in mice, according to a study published 17 July in Translational Psychiatry. A similar drug called arbaclofen is in clinical trials as a treatment for autism and fragile X syndrome.
Researchers have homed in on the brain region thought to be responsible for the autism-like symptoms that can accompany Dravet syndrome, a rare epilepsy disorder, according to research published Wednesday in Nature.