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.
A new study points to a possible link between inflammation in the womb, brain overgrowth and the behavioral impairments seen in autism.
Soft touch and physical closeness to other people wire the social brain right from the earliest days after birth, and problems in the response to touch may play a fundamental role in autism. This picture emerges from unpublished results presented by several teams at the 2014 Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in Washington, D.C.
Mice born via cesarean section show subtle social deficits and increased immune and stress responses, suggesting a link between microbe exposure during birth and behavior. Researchers presented the unpublished work today at the 2014 Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in Washington, D.C.
Monkeys exposed in utero to their mother’s immune response to a mock infection show inflammation in their brains four years later. Researchers presented the unpublished work today at the 2014 Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in Washington, D.C.
Children born too soon or too long after their siblings have an increased risk of autism, a new study reports.
Having an infection during pregnancy significantly raises the risk of having a child with autism, finds the largest epidemiological study to date to examine the link.
It’s been 15 years since researchers published an epidemiological study with results so striking they sparked worldwide changes in food fortification. Geneticist Joseph Cubells is revisiting the results to determine whether folate decreases autism risk.
Mice with mutations in the autism-linked gene WDFY3 have enlarged brains reminiscent of those seen in some children with autism, according to a study published 8 September in Nature Communications.
When covering research on prenatal risk factors, are journalists too quick to blame the mother?