Mark Zylka
Associate Professor
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
From this contributor
Few autism researchers control for the ‘litter effect’ — this needs to change
Anyone who uses multiple animals from a small number of litters to increase sample size is making a serious mistake. The similarities within individual litters will heavily skew the results.

Few autism researchers control for the ‘litter effect’ — this needs to change
Length matters: Disease implications for long genes
A gene’s length may influence its expression, and this has implications for autism, which tends to be linked to particularly long genes, says Mark Zylka.

Length matters: Disease implications for long genes
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Oxytocin prompts prairie voles to oust outsiders, fortifying their friendships
The “love hormone” drives the neurobiology behind platonic bonds in animals usually studied for their romantic attachments.

Oxytocin prompts prairie voles to oust outsiders, fortifying their friendships
The “love hormone” drives the neurobiology behind platonic bonds in animals usually studied for their romantic attachments.
Contested paper on vaccines, autism in rats retracted by journal
The editor-in-chief cited “inconsistencies in the number of subjects” as the reason for the retraction.

Contested paper on vaccines, autism in rats retracted by journal
The editor-in-chief cited “inconsistencies in the number of subjects” as the reason for the retraction.
Body state, sensory signals commingle in mouse whisker cortex
The new study challenges a long-held view that the barrel cortex exclusively encodes sensory signals from the whiskers.
Body state, sensory signals commingle in mouse whisker cortex
The new study challenges a long-held view that the barrel cortex exclusively encodes sensory signals from the whiskers.