Among the younger siblings of children with autism who do not have the disorder themselves, more than one-quarter show developmental delays at their first birthday, according to a study published in April.
An automated system developed for tracking the movements of lab animals can be used to accurately map the activity of children with autism, researchers reported in the February Molecular Autism. When given free rein, the system found, children with autism tend to explore a room’s edges, whereas those with other developmental disorders cling to their parents.
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.
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.
Deleting the Rett syndrome gene MeCP2 from oligodendrocytes, a brain support cell, leads to a mild form of the disorder in mice, according to a study published 27 November in The Journal of Neuroscience.
Teenagers with autism or other psychiatric disorders are far less likely to exercise or play team sports than their typical peers, reports a Norwegian study published 22 January.
FOXP2, a language gene that is linked to autism, may regulate active connections between neurons by controlling the levels of a protein called SRPX2, according to a study published 22 November in Science.
The motor problems seen in Rett syndrome may be the result of deficits in a reward pathway in the striatum, according to a study published 12 November in Brain Structure and Function.
Results from four studies published in the past year point to a role for the cerebellum in autism-related behaviors.
Babies later diagnosed with autism tend to stare at objects after picking them up at much later ages than controls do, according to a study published in Behavioral Brain Research.