Children with autism, even those with low intelligence, can improve their self-control by practicing a Chinese mind-body exercise technique, reports a study published 10 July in PLoS One.

A new study looking at an auditory reflex raises important questions about whether autism is fundamentally a problem of high-level processing or something that arises from early disruptions in perceptual processing.
 

An ear muscle is more sensitive to loud sounds in children with autism than in controls, according to a study published 3 July in Autism Research. The researchers say this measure could serve as a clinical biomarker of the disorder, but others fiercely disagree.

Children with autism who react intensely to sensations also have other severe symptoms of the disorder, including low intelligence and trouble adapting to change, suggests a study published 25 June in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

Many children with autism have eye problems, such as crossed eyes or a lazy eye, according to a study published in the June issue of Strabismus.

Using a little-known brain-imaging technique, a new study shows that children with autism have low levels of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), a chemical that keeps brain signals in check.

The brainstems of children with autism are smaller than average, but reach sizes similar to those of controls by age 15, according to a two-year imaging study published 22 April in Behavioral Brain Research.

Three new studies published in March suggest that some infants who have a high risk of developing autism show early differences in brain responses to sight and sound.

Using a sensitive new imaging molecule, researchers can watch neurons in the larval zebrafish brain spring into action when the fish sees a potential meal, according to a study published 29 January in Current Biology.

In 2003, John Rubenstein and Michael Merzenich first described the theory, now popular in autism, that the disorder reflects an imbalance between excitation and inhibition in the brain. Takao K. Hensch and Parizad M. Bilimoria review the paper and its impact on the field.