Skip to main content

Spectrum: Autism Research News

Tag: sensory perception

September 2012

‘Noisy’ brain signals could underlie autism, study says

by  /  24 September 2012

Sensory responses in the brain of an individual with autism vary much more than in someone without the disorder, according to a study published 20 September in Neuron. This may explain why some people with autism are extremely sensitive to lights and sounds.

Comments

Insights for autism from Williams syndrome

by  /  18 September 2012

Studying the well-characterized Williams syndrome could help researchers understand autism and discover new therapeutic targets, says Andreas Meyer-Lindenberg.

Comments
July 2012

Tuberous sclerosis gene loss triggers autism-like features

by  /  26 July 2012

Losing one or both copies of TSC1, one of the two genes responsible for tuberous sclerosis complex, in specific cells of the cerebellum can trigger several autism-like behaviors in mice, according to research published 1 July in Nature.

Comments

Simple worms could help unravel complex human brains

by  /  25 July 2012

The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans may serve as a useful model to study synapses, the junctions between neurons, according to a study published 18 June in PLoS One.

Comments

Music’s meaning

by  /  24 July 2012

People with autism respond emotionally to music, they just have trouble expressing it, according to a study in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

Comments

Molecular mechanisms: Fragile X clumps function at synapses

by  /  3 July 2012

FMRP, the protein missing in people with fragile X syndrome, localizes in clusters of proteins at neuronal junctions that relay sensory and motor information, according to a study published 23 April in The Journal of Comparative Neurology.

Comments
June 2012

Whole-brain circuits light up in fish brains

by  /  20 June 2012

A new approach allows researchers to visualize individual neurons in the small, clear brains of larval zebrafish as they interact with their surroundings, according to a study published 9 May in Nature.

Comments

Cognition and behavior: Context affects repetitive behavior

by  /  20 June 2012

Repetitive behaviors are often motivated by anxiety when children with autism and intellectual disability transition from one task to the next, but they are linked to a desire for attention when the children have free time, according to a study published in May in the Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities.

Comments

Sensory experience

by  /  12 June 2012

A Dutch multimedia project attempts to convey how people with autism experience the world.

Comments

‘Baby sibs’ struggle to integrate audio, visual speech cues

by  /  7 June 2012

Infants at high risk for autism have difficulty integrating information from different senses, such as vision and hearing, a new study suggests.

Comments