Michael Ehlers
Neuroscience Chief Scientific Officer
Pfizer
From this contributor
A cautionary tale for autism drug development
Poorly designed animal drug studies for motor disorders have led to spurious conclusions for the clinical trials that follow. This may be even more true for autism research, says Michael Ehlers.
SHANK mutations converge at neuronal junctions in autism
SHANK3, one of the strongest candidate genes for autism, has the potential to be a molecular entry point into understanding the synaptic, developmental and circuit origins of the disorder.

SHANK mutations converge at neuronal junctions in autism
Drug zone
Rodent and stem cell models remain challenging for developing psychiatric drugs, says Michael Ehlers, chief scientific officer of neuroscience at Pfizer.
Explore more from The Transmitter
The BabyLM Challenge: In search of more efficient learning algorithms, researchers look to infants
A competition that trains language models on relatively small datasets of words, closer in size to what a child hears up to age 13, seeks solutions to some of the major challenges of today’s large language models.

The BabyLM Challenge: In search of more efficient learning algorithms, researchers look to infants
A competition that trains language models on relatively small datasets of words, closer in size to what a child hears up to age 13, seeks solutions to some of the major challenges of today’s large language models.
‘Ancient’ brainstem structure evolved beyond basic motor control
The human red nucleus may also help coordinate action, reward and motivated behavior, a new study suggests.

‘Ancient’ brainstem structure evolved beyond basic motor control
The human red nucleus may also help coordinate action, reward and motivated behavior, a new study suggests.
Reporter’s notebook: Highlights from INSAR 2025
The annual meeting brought autism researchers, advocates and clinicians to Seattle to discuss the latest research, including attempts to define subgroups, a potential new CHD8 macaque model and life expectancy gaps.

Reporter’s notebook: Highlights from INSAR 2025
The annual meeting brought autism researchers, advocates and clinicians to Seattle to discuss the latest research, including attempts to define subgroups, a potential new CHD8 macaque model and life expectancy gaps.