Using a sugar alcohol found in fruit, researchers have concocted a new chemical cocktail for making brains transparent.

A 3D printer makes brains out of bio-ink, and researchers debate the number of types of neurons.

Looking in families with a history of severe autism among women, researchers have unearthed 18 new candidate genes for the disorder. One of these genes, delta-catenin, plays a critical role in brain development, researchers reported yesterday in Nature.

Scientists peel back the layers of genetic complexity in autism, starting with the master regulator CHD8.
 

Researchers can coax human stem cells to grow into layered structures that mimic the brain’s center for motor control, the cerebellum.

Small pieces of DNA within genes, dubbed ‘microexons,’ are abnormally regulated in people with autism, suggests a study of postmortem brains.

A new database that maps changes in gene expression in the prefrontal cortex shows that autism-linked genes are expressed differently than other genes through six stages of life.

Fetal mice that have too many neurons grow to show social deficits and repetitive behaviors. The finding, reported 11 December in Cell Reports, debuts a mouse model of autism that’s based on a biological abnormality seen in some people with the disorder.

It’s no easy feat to whittle down the list of the most influential autism papers to a mere 10. So please consider this but a taste of the burgeoning field, presented in chronological order and based on suggestions from many researchers.

An analysis of genes expressed in the postmortem brains of people with autism has identified three molecular pathways linked to the disorder. The findings, published 10 December in Nature Communications, add to mounting evidence that the myriad causes of autism converge on common biological processes.