Tracking eye movements in people with autism may provide insight into the variety of symptoms of the disorder, says Rich Krauzlis.

The onset of Rett syndrome, which is marked by the sudden loss of speech and motor skills, is more gradual than previously believed, according to two studies published in the past few months.

Researchers have adapted a motion-sensing video game controller to detect repetitive movements that are characteristic of autism, according to a preliminary study published in the 2012 Conference Proceedings – IEEE Engineering Medical Biological Society.

To define appropriate social behavior for mice, which are often used as laboratory models of human social disorders, it may be best to ask the mice. This is the basis of a new assay for mouse social deficits, published 21 February in Autism Research.

A boy with a rare deletion in chromosome 3 was diagnosed with autism and psychotic symptoms by age 5, according to a case report published 26 February in the American Journal of Medical Genetics Part A. He is the second identified individual with this deletion who has these symptoms, which are exceedingly rare in combination.

Riding horses may help children with autism learn to trust others, says a study published 1 February in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

Systematic analysis of video clips is better than questionnaires are at assessing repetitive movements in children with autism, says Sylvie Goldman.

A boy with autism lacks one copy of SHANK2 and has a duplication of CHRNA7, two genes that have been linked together to autism risk, according to a case study published 25 January in Clinical Genetics.

A new map highlighting brain circuits finds that regions involved in synthesizing information tend to vary more among people than those that govern sensory and motor functions.

Most boys who have an extra copy of the MeCP2 gene have a diagnosis of autism, but their symptoms differ from those of classic autism, according to a study published 20 November in Autism Research.