Amanda Leigh Mascarelli is a freelance writer based in Denver, Colorado.
Amanda Leigh Mascarelli
Freelance Writer
SFARI.org
From this contributor
Time perception problems may explain autism symptoms
Individuals with autism have trouble perceiving the passage of time, and pairing sights and sounds that happen simultaneously, according to two new studies.
![](https://www.thetransmitter.org/wp-content/uploads/image-archive/images/news/411076.jpg)
Time perception problems may explain autism symptoms
Social interactions not rewarding for children with autism
Children with autism have abnormally low brain activity in the ‘reward center’ of the brain when given money or shown a happy face, according to a study in Autism Research. These are the first imaging data to support the notion that children with autism derive less pleasure from social interactions compared with their healthy peers.
![](https://www.thetransmitter.org/wp-content/uploads/image-archive/images/news/389846.jpg)
Social interactions not rewarding for children with autism
Flu triggers schizophrenia-like features in monkeys
Babies born to rhesus monkeys infected with the flu virus during pregnancy have significantly smaller brains than normal, and other brain abnormalities seen in schizophrenia, researchers have found. The study, published last month in Biological Psychiatry, provides the first evidence in non-human primates linking flu infection to a higher risk of schizophrenia.
![](https://www.thetransmitter.org/wp-content/uploads/image-archive/images/news/380558.jpg)
Flu triggers schizophrenia-like features in monkeys
Faulty connectivity found in mouse model of schizophrenia
Mice engineered to carry a well-known risk factor for schizophrenia show disruptions in the connections between two brain regions that coordinate memory and learning. And these disruptions directly cause problems with working memory — the ability to actively hold information and to recall that information to make a decision, according to a study published in Nature.
![](https://www.thetransmitter.org/wp-content/uploads/image-archive/images/news/375263.jpg)
Faulty connectivity found in mouse model of schizophrenia
Autism not a fundamental problem of attention, study says
Toddlers with autism pay less attention to faces than do healthy controls, but both groups give equal attention to objects, according to a study published in the Archives of General Psychiatry. The findings challenge the idea that individuals with autism have a generalized problem with attention, suggesting instead that they struggle with attending specifically to social stimuli, researchers say.
![](https://www.thetransmitter.org/wp-content/uploads/image-archive/images/news/308199.jpg)
Autism not a fundamental problem of attention, study says
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New connectomes fly beyond the brain
Researchers are mapping the neurons in Drosophila’s ventral nerve cord, where the central nervous system meets the rest of the body.
![Research image of neurons in the fly’s ventral nerve cord.](https://www.thetransmitter.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/lede-motormodules-1200-1024x692.webp)
New connectomes fly beyond the brain
Researchers are mapping the neurons in Drosophila’s ventral nerve cord, where the central nervous system meets the rest of the body.
Building an autism research registry: Q&A with Tony Charman
A purpose-built database of participants who have shared genomic and behavioral data could give clinical trials a boost, Charman says.
![Illustration of researchers talking to laypeople amidst strands of DNA.](https://www.thetransmitter.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/1200_Charman-1024x687.webp)
Building an autism research registry: Q&A with Tony Charman
A purpose-built database of participants who have shared genomic and behavioral data could give clinical trials a boost, Charman says.
Cerebellar circuit may convert expected pain relief into real thing
The newly identified circuit taps into the brain’s opioid system to provide a top-down form of pain relief.
![](https://www.thetransmitter.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/paincircuit-1200-1024x692.webp)
Cerebellar circuit may convert expected pain relief into real thing
The newly identified circuit taps into the brain’s opioid system to provide a top-down form of pain relief.