Autism News and Research

Latest Autism News and Research

Coronary heart disease, cancer less likely among people with learning disabilities

Coronary heart disease and cancer rates among people with learning disabilities are nearly a third lower than the general population, says new research.

13 Apr 2016

Telemedicine makes diagnosis and treatment more easy, cost-effective for ASD patient families

Telemedicine - connecting health care providers and patients via computer or smart phone for diagnosis and treatment -- has been making it easier, and more cost-effective, to "see" the doctor. Using a camera-enabled computer or smart phone, patients with common health concerns can get some diagnoses without leaving their homes. Emergency room doctors and nurses are able to communicate with their peers in larger trauma centers via computer, as well.

13 Apr 2016

Cornell researchers discover potential way to penetrate blood brain barrier

Cornell researchers have discovered a way to penetrate the blood brain barrier (BBB) that may soon permit delivery of drugs directly into the brain to treat disorders such as Alzheimer's disease and chemotherapy-resistant cancers.

11 Apr 2016

Chemists design set of molecules that promote microscopic, anatomical changes in neurons

Chemists at the University of California San Diego have designed a set of molecules that promote microscopic, anatomical changes in neurons associated with the formation and retention of memories. These drug candidates also prevent deterioration of the same neuronal structures in the presence of amyloid-beta, a protein fragment that accumulates in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease.

11 Apr 2016

Baker’s yeast could help in finding disease-causing mutations

It's easier than ever to sequence our DNA, but doctors still can't exactly tell from our genomes which diseases might befall us. Professor Fritz Roth is setting out to change this by going to basics -- to our billion-year-old cousin, baker's yeast.

7 Apr 2016

Scientists detect FFR signals from previously unknown part of the brain

Scientists at the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital at McGill University have made an important discovery about the human auditory system and how to study it, findings that could lead to better testing and diagnosis of hearing-related disorders.

7 Apr 2016

Pediatric researchers uncover new syndrome that causes intellectual disability

Pediatric researchers, using high-speed DNA sequencing tools, have identified a new syndrome that causes intellectual disability (ID). Drawing on knowledge of the causative gene mutation, the scientists' cell studies suggest that an amino acid supplement may offer a targeted treatment for children with this condition.

5 Apr 2016

Tumor suppressor p53 gene twice as likely to be defective in autistic children

A large study by researchers with the UC Davis MIND Institute has found that a gene whose role is to suppress cellular damage from environmental stressors is nearly twice as likely to be defective in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and that the deficit is also present in their fathers.

1 Apr 2016

Prevalence of autism spectrum disorder in U.S. unchanged, finds new CDC report

Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health contributed to a new U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report that finds the prevalence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) largely unchanged from two years ago, at one in 68 children (or 1.46 percent).

1 Apr 2016

Commonly used fungicides could cause gene expression changes in brain cells

Scientists at the UNC School of Medicine have found a class of commonly used fungicides that produce gene expression changes similar to those in people with autism and neurodegenerative conditions, including Alzheimer's disease and Huntington's disease.

31 Mar 2016

Remotely tracking patients' eye gaze could help identify children with ASD

A study to be published in the April 2016 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry reports that eye tracking can differentiate children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) from children without ASD but with other developmental problems (non-ASD).

31 Mar 2016

Understanding neuronal feedback could provide new insight into visual perception

Ever see something that isn't really there? Could your mind be playing tricks on you? The "tricks" might be your brain reacting to feedback between neurons in different parts of the visual system, according to a study published in the Journal of Neuroscience by Carnegie Mellon University Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences Sandra J. Kuhlman and colleagues.

31 Mar 2016

Lack of UBE3A gene causes Angelman syndrome

The gene UBE3A plays a critical role in early neurological development. If UBE3A is overexpressed - or if the enzymatic function of UBE3A protein is hyperactive - autism ensues. A lack of functional UBE3A causes Angelman syndrome (AS), a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by severe developmental delay, motor deficits, absence of speech, and, in most cases, epilepsy.

25 Mar 2016

Scientists unravel genetic basis of autism spectrum disorder

The types of gene mutations that contribute to autism are more diverse than previously thought, report researchers at University of California, San Diego School of Medicine in the March 24 online issue of The American Journal of Human Genetics. The findings, they say, represent a significant advance in efforts to unravel the genetic basis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

25 Mar 2016

Children with autism spectrum disorder need continued support

9 out of 10 preschool children with autism still have major difficulties within the autism field at school age, despite having received early intervention. A majority of the parents stated that the children do not receive sufficient support at school.

25 Mar 2016

Defective PTCHD1 gene in brain creates symptoms associated with autism and ADHD

Evidence is mounting that a gene called PTCHD1 helps the brain sort between important sights and sounds — and distractions. This gene is active in a brain region that attaches more attention to a conversation with your boss, for instance, than to an air conditioner buzzing in the background.

24 Mar 2016

Early diagnosis, effective treatments can benefit children with autism

April is Autism Awareness Month, an opportunity to promote autism awareness and acceptance for the tens of thousands who are facing an autism diagnosis. With one in 68 children living with autism in the U.S., the need for awareness and research is significant.

24 Mar 2016

FDA proposes to change regulation of ECT treatment

For decades, people with severe depression, bipolar disorder, and other major mental health conditions have gotten help from the treatment known as ECT, when nothing else helped them.

24 Mar 2016

Women with Alzheimer’s disease have poorer cognitive abilities than men

Women with Alzheimer’s have poorer cognitive abilities than men at the same stage of the disease, reveal academics from the University of Hertfordshire in a paper published in World Journal of Psychiatry today.

22 Mar 2016

Research sheds new light on genetic relationship between ASD and ASD-related traits in wider population

New light has been shed on the genetic relationship between autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) and ASD-related traits in the wider population, by a team of international researchers including academics from the University of Bristol, the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, and Massachusetts General Hospital.

22 Mar 2016