Molecular mechanisms: Maternal stress affects male mice
The male offspring of mice subjected to stress during pregnancy can transmit the effects to their own male pups.
The male offspring of mice subjected to stress during pregnancy can transmit the effects to their own male pups.
BTBR mice, which are less social than the typical B6 mice, have an elevated immune response in their brains and blood compared with those mice, according to a study published 20 July in PLoS ONE. Hybrids of BTBR and B6 mice have intermediate levels of immune molecules.
A complicated interplay between a certain genetic variant and autism, schizophrenia and rheumatoid arthritis adds one more intriguing correlation to the growing list of autism risk factors.
A new study of twins proposes the controversial claim that environmental influences during early development are just as, if not more, important than genetics. But the findings are not substantially different from those of previous twin studies, however, and some experts are critical of the study’s statistics.
A high-profile autism researcher has been indicted for stealing more than $1 million in autism research money.
Animal research hints that sex hormones may be responsible for the gender bias in autism. More research is needed in people to back this up, says a new review.
An Italian group is investigating the provocative hypothesis that some cases of autism are the result of a viral infection passed from sperm to fetus.
The Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee has released an updated list of priorities for government-funded autism research.
Infection with swine flu in early pregnancy causes inflammation in the placenta, and raises the risk of schizophrenia and autism in the offspring, according to a study published in January in Neuropharmacology.
At birth, children with autism have lower blood levels of a class of antibody produced in response to infection compared with healthy controls, according to a report published in December in Autism Research.