Autism News and Research

Latest Autism News and Research

UT Southwestern researchers identify new role for protein linked to neurological disorders and cancers

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have identified a second role for a class of RNA-binding proteins, revealing new insights about neurological diseases and conditions associated with this protein such as autism, epilepsy, and certain types of cancer.

18 Mar 2016

UC San Diego researchers use CRISPR-Cas9 system to target RNA in living cells for first time ever

The genetic code stored in DNA determines everything from the color of our eyes to our susceptibility to disease. This has motivated scientists to sequence the human genome and develop ways to alter the genetic code, but many diseases are linked to a different fundamental molecule: RNA.

18 Mar 2016

UW-Madison neuroscientist discover genetic machinery that causes maturation in young nerve cells

In one of the first studies to 'read' the genetic activity inside individual brain cells, University of Wisconsin-Madison neuroscientist Xinyu Zhao has identified the genetic machinery that causes maturation in a young nerve cell. The cells under study came from the hippocampus, a memory-related structure that is the only place in a mammal's brain where new neurons can form throughout life.

18 Mar 2016

Anti-anxiety drug reduces autistic features in Jacobsen syndrome mice

About half of children born with Jacobsen syndrome, a rare inherited disease, experience social and behavioral issues consistent with autism spectrum disorders. Researchers at University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and collaborators developed a mouse model of the disease that also exhibits autism-like social behaviors and used it to unravel the molecular mechanism that connects the genetic defects inherited in Jacobsen syndrome to effects on brain function.

16 Mar 2016

Humanoid robot can be used as a tool in therapy for improvement of children with autism

Children with autism have special difficulty in expressing emotions, usually have no social skills and face major problems when communicating. In order to help children with this problem learn to recognize facial expressions in themselves and in others, a group of researchers at the Tec de Monterrey, in Mexico, created a robot using artificial intelligence.

15 Mar 2016

Maternal bacterial infections affect fetal brain anatomy and cognitive functioning after birth

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists have discovered how pieces of bacterial cell wall cross the placenta and enter developing neurons, altering fetal brain anatomy and cognitive functioning after birth. The study appears today in the scientific journal Cell Host & Microbe.

10 Mar 2016

Immune cells play vital role in rewiring connections between nerve cells

A new study out today in the journal Nature Communications shows that cells normally associated with protecting the brain from infection and injury also play an important role in rewiring the connections between nerve cells.

8 Mar 2016

Researchers find key brain receptor linked to depression, drug addiction and Alzheimer's disease

Researchers at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus have found that a key receptor in the brain, once thought to only strengthen synapses, can also weaken them, offering new insights into the mechanisms driving depression, drug addiction and even Alzheimer's disease.

3 Mar 2016

Stemina developing new screening method to diagnose autism

A University of Wisconsin-Madison spinoff is screening blood samples in an effort to develop a biologically based method to diagnose autism.

2 Mar 2016

Scientists reveal how the brain processes information with lightning speed

Surprisingly complex interactions between neurotransmitter receptors and other key proteins help explain the brain's ability to process information with lightning speed, according to a new study.

27 Feb 2016

Study finds no evidence of lactase deficiency specific to autistic children with GI symptoms

Children with autism have no unique pattern of abnormal results on endoscopy or other tests for gastrointestinal (GI) disorders, compared to non-autistic children with GI symptoms, reports a study in the Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition, official journal of the European Society for Paediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition and the North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition.

26 Feb 2016

Kansas State University engineers developing technology to help children with special needs

A Kansas State University engineering team is developing a technology collection that can make a big difference in the lives of children with developmental disabilities.

26 Feb 2016

Children with autism can develop speech, gestures by listening to different speech sounds

Children with autism and other similar conditions often have difficulties in several areas of communication. A new doctoral thesis in linguistics from the University of Gothenburg shows that these children can develop speech, gestures and a sense of rhythm and melody by listening to various speech sounds.

24 Feb 2016

Penn researchers develop new mathematical model to estimate mutation rates in the human genome

It turns out that the type, how frequent, and where new mutations occur in the human genome depends on which DNA building blocks are nearby, found researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania in an advanced online study published this week in Nature Genetics.

22 Feb 2016

New study focuses on safety of using induced pluripotent stem cells in patients

A new study led by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute and the J. Craig Venter Institute shows that the act of creating pluripotent stem cells for clinical use is unlikely to pass on cancer-causing mutations to patients.

22 Feb 2016

Researchers reveal how brain-specific microRNA plays key role in causing abnormal brain development

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) are a group of highly inheritable behavioural disorders that pose major personal and public health concerns. Patients with ASDs have mild to severe communication difficulties, repetitive behaviour and social challenges. Such disorders significantly challenge an individual's ability to conduct daily activities and function normally in society. Currently there are very few medication options that effectively treat ASDs.

17 Feb 2016

Current evidence insufficient to assess benefits and harms of screening for ASD

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force has concluded that the current evidence is insufficient to assess the balance of benefits and harms of screening for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in children 18 to 30 months of age for whom no concerns of ASD have been raised by their parents or a clinician.

17 Feb 2016

New MU research finds link between trouble sleeping and behavioral problems in autistic children

New research from the University of Missouri has found associations between trouble sleeping and behavioral problems in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

17 Feb 2016

One specific microRNA has strong links to autism spectrum disorder, say TSRI scientists

Discovered only in the 1990s, microRNAs are short molecules that work within virtually all cells. Typically, each one functions as a “dimmer switch” for the expression of one or more genes, regulating a wide variety of cellular processes, including learning and memory.

16 Feb 2016

TAU research highlights neuroprotective potential of protein-protectant drug candidate SKIP

Activity-dependent neuroprotective protein (ADNP), essential for brain formation, is frequently mutated in children on the autism spectrum. In older men and women, ADNP expression in the blood is correlated with cognition and further altered in Alzheimer's disease.

11 Feb 2016

Autism News and Research

Latest Autism News and Research

UT Southwestern researchers identify new role for protein linked to neurological disorders and cancers

UC San Diego researchers use CRISPR-Cas9 system to target RNA in living cells for first time ever

UW-Madison neuroscientist discover genetic machinery that causes maturation in young nerve cells

Anti-anxiety drug reduces autistic features in Jacobsen syndrome mice

Humanoid robot can be used as a tool in therapy for improvement of children with autism

Maternal bacterial infections affect fetal brain anatomy and cognitive functioning after birth

Immune cells play vital role in rewiring connections between nerve cells

Researchers find key brain receptor linked to depression, drug addiction and Alzheimer's disease

Stemina developing new screening method to diagnose autism

Scientists reveal how the brain processes information with lightning speed

Study finds no evidence of lactase deficiency specific to autistic children with GI symptoms

Kansas State University engineers developing technology to help children with special needs

Children with autism can develop speech, gestures by listening to different speech sounds

Penn researchers develop new mathematical model to estimate mutation rates in the human genome

New study focuses on safety of using induced pluripotent stem cells in patients

Researchers reveal how brain-specific microRNA plays key role in causing abnormal brain development

Current evidence insufficient to assess benefits and harms of screening for ASD

New MU research finds link between trouble sleeping and behavioral problems in autistic children

One specific microRNA has strong links to autism spectrum disorder, say TSRI scientists

TAU research highlights neuroprotective potential of protein-protectant drug candidate SKIP

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Autism News and Research

Latest Autism News and Research

Clue's CEO Rhiannon White on the Future of Femtech and PCOS

Freezing Point Osmometry in Life Science Applications

Precision in every drop: Inside Hamilton’s syringe technology

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