Autism News and Research

Latest Autism News and Research

Digital games become an important tool for self-management of illness and chronic conditions

Millions of dollars and immeasurable hours of research and development are being invested to develop and employ increasingly sophisticated hardware and software technologies to deliver innovative new personalized health care interventions.

17 Feb 2012

Augmented toys may help children with autism

Making play sets more interactive and giving children with autism greater opportunities to control and add content of their own to the game could improve cooperative play with other children as well as giving them greater confidence in understanding how objects interact.

17 Feb 2012

Exposure to common flame retardant may affect fertility and long-term memory

Mice genetically engineered to be susceptible to autism-like behaviors that were exposed to a common flame retardant were less fertile and their offspring were smaller, less sociable and demonstrated marked deficits in learning and long-term memory when compared with the offspring of normal unexposed mice, a study by researchers at UC Davis has found.

16 Feb 2012

Controversy over psychiatric diagnosis reaches a fever pitch

As the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders is revised for the first time since 1994, controversy about psychiatric diagnosis is reaching a fever pitch.

16 Feb 2012

First study to evaluate motor impairments in children with ASD

Children with autism often have problems developing motor skills, such as running, throwing a ball or even learning how to write. But scientists have not known whether those difficulties run in families or are linked to autism. New research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis points to autism as the culprit.

16 Feb 2012

African-American children tend to be diagnosed later for autism

The rate of diagnosis for autism spectrum disorders (ASD) is the same among all racial groups — one in 110, according to current estimates. However, a study by a Florida State University researcher has found that African-American children tend to be diagnosed later than white children, which results in a longer and more intensive intervention.

16 Feb 2012

New information about IL-6 protein's role in development of neurological disorders

A UT Dallas study is revealing new information about a key protein's role in the development of epilepsy, autism and other neurological disorders. This work could one day lead to new treatments for the conditions.

15 Feb 2012

Two prefrontal cortex areas critical in distinguishing emotions from facial expressions

It's Valentine's Day, he forgot to bring flowers, and somehow that painfully sad look on her face is simply not registering in his mind. Could be it's a problem in his prefrontal cortex? Neuropsychology researchers at the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital - The Neuro, McGill University, have found that two areas of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) are critical for either detecting or distinguishing emotions from facial expressions.

14 Feb 2012

Paternal and maternal age may increase risk of autism in children

Older maternal and paternal age are jointly associated with having a child with autism, according to a recently published study led by researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.

13 Feb 2012

USC Occupational Science Symposium to be held on March 9, 2012

USC faculty and community experts are slated to convene on March 9 at the USC Occupational Science Symposium to share research and perspectives on autism and autism spectrum disorders with an audience of university colleagues and students, health professionals and public advocates.

13 Feb 2012

Chromosomal microarray provides more information about fetal abnormalities

A nationwide, federally funded study has found that testing a developing fetus' DNA through chromosomal microarray (CMA) provides more information about potential disorders than does the standard method of prenatal testing, which is to visually examine the chromosomes.

10 Feb 2012

Scientists capture finest nerve cell details in living mouse brain

To explore the most intricate structures of the brain in order to decipher how it functions - Stefan Hell's team of researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry in G-ttingen has made a significant step closer to this goal. Using the STED microscopy developed by Hell, the scientists have, for the first time, managed to record detailed live images inside the brain of a living mouse.

7 Feb 2012

Viewpoints: Komen's retreat; Romney's selected support of Medicare cuts; Heritage refuses blame for individual mandate

A group like Komen only has the quality service it provides and goodwill garnered over the years to encourage donations and support. Its trademark pink is not as bold as before. For the moment, it seems drab and faded.

6 Feb 2012

Medicaid news: Kansas insurer says 'no' to Medicaid

The state of Kansas' largest insurance company has decided it doesn't want to participate in Gov. Sam Brownback's plan to move Medicaid patients into privatized managed-care programs. In a letter addressed "Dear provider," Angie Strecker, director of institutional relations for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas, said the insurer "has decided not to submit a proposal to the state to be a Medicaid contractor."

6 Feb 2012

Future of social robotics requires meeting the expectations of human brain

After years of existing only in fiction, social robots are finally being designed that can more closely emulate how people express themselves, interact and learn - and doing so while performing jobs like teaching social behavior to children with autism or helping stroke patients with their physical rehabilitation exercises.

4 Feb 2012

Mental illness suspect genes are among the most environmentally responsive regulatory mechanisms

For the first time, scientists have tracked the activity, across the lifespan, of an environmentally responsive regulatory mechanism that turns genes on and off in the brain's executive hub.

3 Feb 2012

Scientists uncover genes that govern male and female behaviors

Hormones shape our bodies, make us fertile, excite our most basic urges, and as scientists have known for years, they govern the behaviors that separate men from women. But how? Now a team of scientists at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) has uncovered many genes influenced by the male and female sex hormones testosterone and estrogen that, in turn, govern several specific types of male and female behaviors in mice.

3 Feb 2012

Insurance news: Sen. Feinstein supports state review of rate increases; Anthem plans in Colo. and Conn. to pay extra for coordinated care

Sen. Dianne Feinstein announced she is supporting a ballot measure to give California regulators the power to approve health insurance rates. In other news, Blue Shield in California says it will cover an autism behavioral therapy and Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans in Colorado and Connecticut announce plans to pay doctors for coordinating care.

3 Feb 2012

Adults with profound learning disability more likely to develop autism

New research on autism in adults has shown that adults with a more severe learning disability have a greater likelihood of having autism.

1 Feb 2012

New UNC clinic to address individuals with Angelman Syndrome

February 3, 2012 marks the grand opening of the UNC Comprehensive Angelman Syndrome Clinic at the Carolina Institute for Developmental Disabilities (CIDD).

1 Feb 2012