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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.

December 2009

Virtual games teach real-world skills to kids with autism

by  /  21 December 2009

Astropolis, a dynamic video game, allows for the unprecedented testing of children with autism on a variety of cognitive skills, all at once, without the artificial, boring and anxiety-ridden setup of a typical psychology lab.

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November 2009

Only subset of chromosome 16 variants linked to autism

by  /  20 November 2009

Deletions or duplications of chromosomal segment 16p11.2 — previously reported as a key autism region — are seen in people with developmental delays and speech and behavioral problems, but not necessarily autism. That’s the finding from two large studies published last week of people carrying these rare genetic variations.

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Massive genomics project unveils schizophrenia results

by  /  10 November 2009

The Psychiatric GWAS Consortium has released its first batch of analyses, identifying several significant common variations associated with schizophrenia. The results were presented Sunday at the World Congress of Psychiatric Genetics in San Diego.

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Variants associated with autism over-hyped, company says

by  /  6 November 2009

Variations linked to autism and schizophrenia crop up in people with a large variety of conditions, including bipolar disorder, seizures and obsessive-compulsive disorder, as well as in healthy people. This notion gained new support from unpublished data presented at the World Congress for Psychiatric Genetics in San Diego.

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Point mutation in neuroligin found in brothers with autism

by  /  6 November 2009

A new mutation in the neuroligin-4 (NLGN4) gene, one of the few genes convincingly tied to autism, has been found in two brothers with autism, further implicating the gene in the disorder, scientists reported in the Journal of Neuroscience.

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The entire spectrum

by  /  6 November 2009

A newer version of the psychiatric manual may expand the definition of autism, folding in Asperger syndrome and pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified.

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October 2009

Postmortem study hints at two types of autism

by  /  21 October 2009

The brains of people with autism show high levels of inflammation compared with controls, suggests a study of postmortem brain tissue from 11 individuals with autism, presented at a poster session Monday at the Society for Neuroscience meeting in Chicago.

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Video: NIH director bemoans ‘lack of trust’ in autism field

by  /  20 October 2009

On Saturday, a top government official resigned from the Interagency Autism Coordination Committee, the body of scientists and advocates that’s responsible for guiding all autism research funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health. Institute director Francis Collins responds.

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Video: NIH director has big plans for autism research

by  /  19 October 2009

National Institutes of Health director Francis Collins talks about the agency’s upcoming plans for “beefing up” autism research, including more than $100 million each year in grants for the field.

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Video: What autism teaches us about normal development

by  /  18 October 2009

Some of the most profound mysteries of human nature relate to how we communicate and interact with each other. Matthew Belmonte, assistant professor of human development at Cornell University, talks about how studying people with autism can help understand these aspects in healthy people.

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