Preliminary research shows that in people with autism, oxytocin enhances activity in brain areas that process social information.

Propranolol, a drug used to treat heart disease and anxiety, might improve memory and attention deficits in autism, according to a study published in the May issue of the Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society.

Adults with autism have regional differences in brain volume in areas that play a role in social behavior and communication compared with controls, according to a large study published in the February issue of Archives of General Psychiatry. The differences correlate with the severity of autism symptoms, the study also shows.

Researchers have charted patterns of DNA methylation — a chemical alteration to DNA that modifies gene expression — in the planning center of the brain from before birth to old age. The results were published 10 February in The American Journal of Human Genetics.

What makes humans so different from our primate cousins? The answer may lie in unique patterns of gene expression soon after birth, primarily in genes required to form the junctions between neurons.

Toddlers with autism who have larger-than-normal heads are also taller and weigh more than controls, according to a study published in October in Archives of General Psychiatry.

Social cognition tests using videos of actors performing emotional expressions and scenes can measure subtle impairments characteristic of high-functioning people with autism, according to unpublished research presented at the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in Washington, D.C.

Individuals who carry an autism-linked common variant in the MET gene have abnormally low brain connectivity, according to unpublished research presented at the 2011 Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in Washington, D.C.

Girls with autism have more brain matter than do either controls or girls with developmental disabilities. This defect is particularly pronounced in the left superior frontal gyrus, a region in the medial prefrontal cortex that is responsible for higher-order cognitive function.

Researchers have created detailed three-dimensional reconstructions of the numerous complex branches of dendrites, the signal-receiving ends of neurons.