Early features of other conditions may contribute to autism itself

Harmful mutations in a gene called NAA15 may lead to autism, intellectual disability and delayed speech and motor function.

A widely used test for autism misses some children with delays in motor, social and communication skills.

The proportion of children with autism considered to be minimally verbal in a study depends on the criteria researchers use to identify them.

Language difficulties and emotional challenges such as anxiety or aggression in children with autism at age 3 predict their social skills at around age 5.

Five years after its latest revision, the manual used to diagnose autism is back under scrutiny, as evidence suggests it excludes some people on the spectrum.

Communication problems have always been considered a core feature of autism. Yet there are substantial and wide-ranging differences in how people with autism communicate.

People on the spectrum often have subtle problems using language or making facial expressions. Pinpointing where those difficulties originate may help ease their social communication.

A diagnosis of social communication disorder only keeps people from a community and resources they desperately want and need.

A single gene, OTUD7A, may account for most of the features seen in people missing a segment of chromosome 15 known as 15q13.3.