Christian Schaaf is professor of human genetics at the University of Heidelberg in Germany.
Christian Schaaf
Professor
University of Heidelberg
From this contributor
Oxytocin lessons from autism-linked syndromes: A chat with Christian Schaaf and Ferdinand Althammer
Oxytocin therapies have failed to consistently benefit autistic people, but their effects in people with two autism-linked conditions may yield new insights, experts argue.
Oxytocin lessons from autism-linked syndromes: A chat with Christian Schaaf and Ferdinand Althammer
By
Peter Hess
7 September 2022 | 4 min read
How an expert panel evaluates genes for autism genetic tests
About 15 percent of genes currently included in clinical genetic tests for autism or intellectual disability don’t have enough evidence to support their ties to the conditions, the panel found.
How an expert panel evaluates genes for autism genetic tests
By
Laura Dattaro
22 July 2022 | 8 min read
Explore more from The Transmitter
Autism-linked genes alter sleep behavior, and more
Here is a roundup of autism-related news and research spotted around the web for the week of 13 April.
Autism-linked genes alter sleep behavior, and more
Here is a roundup of autism-related news and research spotted around the web for the week of 13 April.
By
Jill Adams
14 April 2026 | 2 min read
This paper changed my life: Erin Calipari ponders the nuances of rewarding and aversive stimuli
A 1960s study by Kelleher and Morse found that lever pressing in squirrel monkeys depended not on whether they received a reward or shock, but on the rules of the task. This taught Calipari to think deeply about factors that influence how behavior is generated and maintained.
This paper changed my life: Erin Calipari ponders the nuances of rewarding and aversive stimuli
A 1960s study by Kelleher and Morse found that lever pressing in squirrel monkeys depended not on whether they received a reward or shock, but on the rules of the task. This taught Calipari to think deeply about factors that influence how behavior is generated and maintained.
By
Erin Calipari
14 April 2026 | 5 min read
Why neural foundation models work, and what they might—and might not—teach us about the brain
These models can partly generalize across species, brain regions and tasks, suggesting that a set of machine-learnable rules govern neural population activity. But will we be able to understand them?
Why neural foundation models work, and what they might—and might not—teach us about the brain
These models can partly generalize across species, brain regions and tasks, suggesting that a set of machine-learnable rules govern neural population activity. But will we be able to understand them?
By
Juan Gallego
13 April 2026 | 8 min read