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Spectrum: Autism Research News

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Science & Society

From funding decisions to scientific fraud, a wide range of societal factors shape autism research.

March 2023
Illustration of a gloved hand reaching down to place a pill bottle on a pedestal.

Debut drug for Rett syndrome at edge of approval

by  /  2 March 2023

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration plans to make an approval decision on the first-ever drug for girls and women with Rett syndrome by 12 March.

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A bar graph with a hand extending from below to push the center bar higher.

Private equity harms autism service market

by  /  1 March 2023

Time is running out to expose this disreputable push for profit over care and change insurance, funding and training practices for the better.

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February 2023
Many mouths making conversation, with speech bubbles in red and blue.

Community Newsletter: Faulty enrichment analyses; wearable tool; peer-review backlog

by  /  26 February 2023

This week, researchers on Twitter discussed false results in gene expression studies, a wearable neuron-recording device, and paper-publishing requirements.

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Week of FebruaryFeb
20th
2023

Spotted around the web: The structural connectome; sleep genes; Australian guidelines

by  /  24 February 2023

Here is a roundup of news and research for the week of 20 February.

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A crowded street in Edinburgh

Neurodiversity conference aims to link research, lived experience

by  /  24 February 2023

The “It Takes All Kinds of Minds” conference draws neurodiversity researchers, clinicians and community members to Scotland, where they plan to discuss interdisciplinary, transdiagnostic work.

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Illustration of a series of pills in petri dishes laid out to look like a descending line graph.

Biotech downturn hurts companies targeting autism-linked conditions

by  /  23 February 2023

After a year of intense growth, funding for biotech is in decline. The result is layoffs and program cuts — and maybe some innovation.

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Speech bubble formed by a network of communication

Community Newsletter: Rare genetic variants; shape-shifting microglia; telehealth diagnoses

by  /  19 February 2023

Tweets this week consider new research on how rare gene variants contribute to complex traits and microglia change their shape, plus views on diagnosing autism virtually.

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Week of FebruaryFeb
13th
2023

Spotted around the web: Brain organoids; early IQ changes; anti-racist policies

by , ,  /  17 February 2023

Here is a roundup of news and research for the week of 13 February.

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Coraline with her family at home in Pennsylvania.

The promise of telehealth in autism diagnoses

by  /  15 February 2023

The COVID-19 pandemic forced a reckoning, in which autism clinicians had to redefine best practices and expand how children are evaluated. The remote assessments they developed may help solve a persistent problem: the long wait families endure to get a diagnosis in the United States.

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Headshot of Wendy Chung.

Simons Foundation clinical research head Wendy Chung to lead Boston Children’s pediatrics department

by  /  14 February 2023

Chung, a clinical and molecular geneticist, plans to continue serving as principal investigator of two large research projects involving cohorts of people with autism and related neurodevelopmental conditions.

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