A subset of people with autism have genetic and biochemical abnormalities in a sleep-related enzyme, according to research presented Friday at a satellite conference of the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in Washington, D.C.

Genetic variants in two autism-associated genes have been linked to repetitive behavior and hyperactivity, two common symptoms of the disorder, according to two studies published in the past few months.

Infants with fragile X syndrome spend more time looking at a toy before switching their attention elsewhere than do healthy controls, according to a study published 1 July in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

At a workshop where some of the top scientists in autism research assembled to discuss biomarkers, a 7-year-old girl with the disorder was the real expert.

A new mouse model of 15q duplication syndrome, a genetic disorder associated with autism, falls short of recapitulating the symptoms of the syndrome. But it nonetheless points to a cluster of well-known risk genes as the most likely culprits.

A new opinion piece argues that the risks of early screening for autism outweigh the benefits. But the article does a poor job of articulating what these risks might be, instead focusing only on the fact that there are few good options available to children after their diagnosis.

People who have severe gastrointestinal problems during childhood are no more likely to be on the autism spectrum than are healthy controls, a study reported 21 March in Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology.

Only a small fraction of autism therapies are supported by robust scientific evidence, according to three reviews published in the May issue of Pediatrics.

Dogs, cats, horses, dolphins, gerbils — could animals be the key to helping people with autism?

Researchers are exploring the possibility that gastrointestinal bacteria may influence brain development and play a role in autism.