A new study fans the flames of a link between autism and schizophrenia, finding that children with autism are at a three-fold greater risk of psychotic episodes in their teen years than their typically developing peers.

Understanding the basis of sexual dimorphism in autism may not only inform our treatment of this condition, but may translate to therapies for many other mental illnesses, say Nirao Shah and Devanand Manoli.

Genes near the chromosomal region implicated in Williams syndrome are involved in epilepsy and autism-like behaviors, according to a study published 12 June in the European Journal of Human Genetics.

Children with autism who are older than 13 years and have low intelligence are at the greatest risk of having epilepsy, according to one of the largest epidemiological studies on the issue to date, published 4 July in PLoS One.

Children who have severe autism symptoms, epilepsy or poor intelligence and language skills fare worse as they age than their peers with milder symptoms, according to two long-term studies published in July, one of which spanned 40 years.

The genes involved in Rett and Angelman syndromes may collaborate to regulate the expression of other proteins, according to a study published 19 July in Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications. This may explain the overlap in symptoms between the two disorders, the researchers say.

A new clinical test for duplications or deletions of chromosomal regions is customized to detect more than 380 known changes, including many that are linked to autism. The method was published 24 June in the American Journal of Medical Genetics Part A.

The simplest form of in vitro fertilization does not increase the risk for autism or intellectual disability, but the effect of other fertility treatments is still unclear, according to two large Scandinavian studies published in July.
 

The first sizable study to use whole-genome sequencing to investigate autism has shown its mettle, revealing new mutations and candidate genes for the disorder, according to a report published 11 July in the American Journal of Human Genetics.

Chromosomal abnormalities may be more prevalent in individuals with a rare form of childhood-onset schizophrenia than in those with the classic presentation of the disorder, according to a study published 21 May in Molecular Psychiatry.