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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.

April 2010

Random genetic changes may explain variability in autism

by  /  13 April 2010

Random changes in gene expression can cause genetically identical embryos to develop different traits, according to a study of worms published in Nature. The findings suggest that haphazard movements of molecules could partly explain why autism-associated mutations don’t always cause the same symptoms.

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Psychiatry’s new game plan

by  /  12 April 2010

Writing in Science, leading scientists call for a 10-year, $2 billion international scheme that would combine the latest in genetics and animal research to combat psychiatric diseases.

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Disclosing DNA data

by  /  8 April 2010

Ethicists ask, should participants of autism genomic studies have access to their own DNA?

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Scandals in the news

by  /  2 April 2010

Two high-profile autism researchers have been accused of fraud.

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March 2010

Happy birthday, genome

by  /  31 March 2010

This summer will mark ten years since scientists sequenced the human genome. What have we gained from knowing those 3 billion base pairs?

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Researchers seek patterns in the sounds of autism

by  /  15 March 2010

Scientists have created machines to detect distinctive speech patterns in children with autism that go unnoticed by the naked ear.

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On the right track

by  /  10 March 2010

Moving a drug from the lab bench to the pharmacy’s shelves takes about 10 years. But for one controversial autism treatment, the process might be much quicker.

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Studies challenge link between premature birth and autism

by  /  8 March 2010

The proposed connection between premature birth and autism may be more complicated than it seems, according to a new report. Early birth may not cause classically defined autism but, rather, may predispose children to autism-like symptoms that are part of a larger syndrome, the researchers say.

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Clinical, animal studies probe DISC1’s role in autism

by  /  1 March 2010

Several genetic and animal studies in the past year have found intriguing ties between autism and DISC1, one of the oldest candidate genes for psychiatric disorders.

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February 2010

Rare deletions on chromosome 16 tie autism to obesity

by  /  10 February 2010

Individuals who carry a large and rare deletion on chromosome 16 that is associated with autism are likely to have developmental delays, be obese or both, according to two studies published last week in Nature.

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