Roughly one-third of children with fragile X syndrome also have an autism diagnosis. Studies published in the past few months, however, suggest that the set of autism-like symptoms seen in people with fragile X syndrome may only resemble autism superficially.

Untrained volunteers can reliably detect signs of autism in children by watching home videos of the children posted on YouTube, suggests a study published 16 April in PLoS One. But critics say fundamental design flaws in the study undermine its results.

To understand the role of FOXP2, a gene that links autism and language, researchers should look at its partner genes and at language models such as songbirds, say Genevieve Konopka and Todd Roberts.  

By age 2, children with autism show difficulty with movement, communication, emotional control and problem-solving, distinct from the symptoms of children with other disorders, reports a study published in February.

A new device designed to conduct magneto-electroencephalography in children younger than 3 years is ideal for detecting early signs of autism, researchers reported 3 March in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience. 

Researchers have revamped a screen for ‘mind blindness’ — an impaired understanding of others’ intentions and perspectives — which is a key deficit in autism. The revised test may shed light on how autism develops.
 

The brains of children with autism contain discrete patches of what look like immature neurons, according to a small study of postmortem brains published 27 March in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Thought until recently to only coordinate motor skills, the cerebellum is involved in diverse cognitive functions such as language and social interaction, and may play a role in autism, says Emanuel DiCicco-Bloom.

People with autism show diminished language activity in the left halves of their brains but otherwise show typical specialization between hemispheres, according to a study published 6 February in Molecular Autism.

Researchers have established a set of commercially available cell lines that can help gauge the quality of tests for Rett syndrome, they reported in the March issue of the Journal of Molecular Diagnostics.