The nature of the mutation that leads to Angelman syndrome — a disorder characterized by speech impairment and developmental delays — affects the disorder’s presentation, reports a study published 19 March in Research in Developmental Disabilities.

States with the weakest infrastructure for diagnosing children with autism often lack laws requiring compensation for treatment costs, finds an analysis published 30 April in the journal Autism.

A focus on adults with autism and on junior researchers in the field were two of the themes at the 2014 International Meeting for Autism Research in Atlanta, Georgia.

A large study of autism in Swedish families suggests that about half of the risk for autism comes from genetics and the other half from environmental factors, researchers reported 7 May in The Journal of the American Medical Association. However, the mathematical model the study used may not be appropriate for evaluating autism risk, experts say.

In the past few years, several studies have implicated fathers’ age more strongly than mothers’ in increasing autism risk. Although older fathers have more spontaneous mutations in their sperm than younger fathers do, no one has shown that these accumulating mutations contribute to autism risk in their children, argues Daniel Weinberger.

Male and female preschoolers with autism have distinct sets of brain regions that distinguish them from typically developing controls, according to unpublished research presented Saturday at the 2014 International Meeting for Autism Research in Atlanta.

A Swedish twin study plans to search for the shared genetic and environmental origins of autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, which are often mistaken for each other.

Daily updates and reactions from attendees at the 2014 International Meeting for Autism Research in Atlanta, Georgia.

Children with autism are about four times more likely to experience gastrointestinal distress than are their typically developing peers, reports a large review published 28 April in Pediatrics.

Women who take antidepressants such as Prozac while pregnant may increase their sons’ risk of autism and developmental disability, reports a study published 14 April in Pediatrics. But, like other studies before it, the study leaves room for doubt.