Outlook: Autism
Culture: Diverse diagnostics
The study of autism around the globe must account for a variety of behavioural norms in different societies.
Perspective: Imaging autism
Several studies in the past two years have claimed that brain scans can diagnose autism, but this assertion is deeply flawed, says Nicholas Lange.
Epidemiology: Complex disorder
Researchers are digging into the myriad causes of autism to refine its definition and find elusive biological signatures.
Perspective: Brain scans need a rethink
Head movement can bias brain imaging results, undermining a leading theory on the cause of autism, say Ben Deen and Kevin Pelphrey.
Perspective: Brain scans need a rethink
Treatments: In the waiting room
After years of making do with drugs developed for other conditions, doctors and scientists are eagerly pursuing drugs that target the social symptoms of autism.
Diagnosis: Redefining autism
Draft diagnostic guidelines are raising concerns that mild forms of the disorder may no longer be recognized.
Adulthood: Life lessons
We know little about autism past adolescence, but a well-studied generation of children with autism will change that.
Child development: The first steps
Because infants born into families with autism are more likely to develop the condition, studying them might lead to ways to diagnose people in the general population earlier.
Genetics: Searching for answers
Solving the riddle of autism genetics will require looking beyond the growing list of candidate genes to epigenetics and personalized medicine.
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Neurons from the two rodents can wire up together to form functional circuits—all while maintaining some species-specific properties, two new studies show.
Rat neurons thrive in a mouse brain world, testing ‘nature versus nurture’
Neurons from the two rodents can wire up together to form functional circuits—all while maintaining some species-specific properties, two new studies show.
It’s past time to stop using the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test
The widely used measure of “theory of mind” needs to be re-examined, along with the long-standing claim that autism is linked to a lack of this ability.
It’s past time to stop using the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test
The widely used measure of “theory of mind” needs to be re-examined, along with the long-standing claim that autism is linked to a lack of this ability.
Robots boost data consistency in rodent studies reliant on mechanical, optogenetic stimulation
Two new devices take experimenter variation out of the equation, the lead investigators say.
Robots boost data consistency in rodent studies reliant on mechanical, optogenetic stimulation
Two new devices take experimenter variation out of the equation, the lead investigators say.