For Spectrum’s fourth annual book, we offer a guide to prevalence estimates.

How chemical tags called methyl groups position themselves on genetic sequences may hint at some of the causes of autism.

The possibility of microbial treatments for autism has inspired a burst of research and nascent clinical trials, but new research suggests these efforts rest on shaky scientific ground.

Brian Lee has transformed the science of linking prenatal experiences to a child’s chances of having autism; his work taps social skills as well as statistical acumen.

Children born to people given an epidural during labor do not have an increased chance of having autism, according to two new studies.

Mock viral infections impair social memory in mice with a mutation tied to autism, and autistic boys are more likely than their non-autistic peers to have had serious infections early in life.

Children born to mothers who take antipsychotic drugs during pregnancy are not more likely to have autism or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or to be born preterm or underweight.

Young autistic children with sleep troubles tend to have difficulty regulating their behavior later in childhood.

Too little — or too much — of certain substances during pregnancy may increase the odds of having a child with autism. Here we explain what scientists know about these associations.

Genes influence how autistic people react to sights, sounds and other sensory cues, whereas environmental factors shape their tendency to notice and seek out such stimuli, a new study in twins suggests.