Blocking an enzyme involved in learning and memory corrects brain abnormalities and improves memory in fly and mouse models of fragile X syndrome.

Drugs designed to treat fragile X syndrome have yet to show substantial benefits in people. But rather than abandon them, child neurologist Elizabeth Berry-Kravis suggests a new way to measure their effectiveness.

Children with autism don’t find social situations as rewarding as their peers do, according to a popular theory. A new study suggests they instead have trouble adjusting expectations when awaiting a reward that never comes.

An overabundance of neuronal connections in the brains of people with autism may contribute to the motor impairments associated with the disorder.
 

Behavioral interventions that are led by parents and learned at home can improve autism symptoms in toddlers.

Deletion of an autism-linked chromosomal region leads to learning problems in male mice but not in females, according to unpublished results presented yesterday at the 2014 Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in Washington, D.C.

A new interaction-based therapy delivered by parents may improve behavior and language skills in infants with autism symptoms, suggests a small pilot study.

The language abilities of children with autism vary widely in early childhood, but become more predictable after age 6, reports a 17-year study.

A “beautiful” new study traces a complex repetitive behavior in a mouse model of autism to a subset of neurons in one brain region.

The protein missing in fragile X syndrome is necessary for mice to respond to the stimulant cocaine, according to a study published 7 May in Neuron.