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Spectrum: Autism Research News

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The Brain

Charting the structure and function of the brain’s many circuits may unravel autism’s mysteries.

February 2023
Research image showing the presence of several proteins in neurons.

Protein networks identified in autism-linked genetic deletion

by  /  28 February 2023

The OTUD7A gene, which may account for some traits in people missing a segment of chromosome 15, appears to interact with several known autism-linked genes.

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MRI scan of a 2-year-old child.

Mapping genetic influences on the infant brain: A chat with Rebecca Knickmeyer

by  /  27 February 2023

Researchers know little about the ways genetic variants affect development in the infant brain. Knickmeyer, who launched the Organization for Imaging Genomics in Infancy, has spent the past five years trying to close the gap.

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Brain scans displaying activity in areas linked with social behavior.

People’s perceptions of ‘social’ animations don’t always square with researchers’ labels

by  /  22 February 2023

The finding calls into question differences between autistic and non-autistic people on a decades-old theory-of-mind test involving interacting geometric shapes.

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Research image of the protein CHD2.

Autism-linked chromatin regulators may moonlight as microtubule influencers

by  /  8 February 2023

Five autism-linked genes widely known as chromatin regulators appear to also shape the cell’s internal skeleton.

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Illustration of neurons.

Chromatin remodeling tied to altered splicing in autism model

by  /  7 February 2023

Exposing neurons to valproic acid, a well-known environmental risk factor for autism, disrupts their ability to generate different proteins from the same gene.

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Fishing for protein partners nets clues to autism

by  /  6 February 2023

Connections between 13 autism-linked proteins and their binding partners in excitatory neurons implicate a new molecular pathway.

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January 2023
Research image showing the impact of a gene mutation on a synapse.

Tweaks to autism-linked pathway tilt circuits’ signaling balance

by  /  31 January 2023

Altered expression of TSC2 and the mTOR pathway reshape the formation of certain synapses between inhibitory and excitatory neurons in mice.

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A photograph of a person preparing for an fMRI scan

Head motion mars most fMRI results, even after correction

by  /  30 January 2023

A new measure shows how greatly movement influences associations between traits and brain activity, revealing abundant false positives and false negatives.

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Two adult prairie voles snuggle.

‘Mind-blowing’ study upends conventional wisdom on oxytocin

by  /  27 January 2023

CRISPR-edited prairie voles that lack receptors for the so-called “social hormone” still bond with their mate and pups, raising questions about the molecule’s role.

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Research image showing neuronal activity in mice exposed to high-frequency sounds.

Missing mechanism helps solve fragile X protein mystery

by  /  24 January 2023

Cells from people with fragile X syndrome overproduce — but don’t accumulate — proteins. New work suggests that excessive protein breakdown may account for this discrepancy, and explain some of the syndrome’s traits.

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