Convergent effects of autism-linked genes in zebrafish; and more

Kettle of fish: More than two dozen strains of zebrafish with autism-linked gene variants share overlapping developmental pathways that lead to differences in social behavior, brain activity patterns and brain size, according to a new study. Molecular drivers of the differences include altered function in neuropeptide signaling, neuronal maturation and cell proliferation, which the authors point out are potential targets for intervention. The Transmitter has previously reported on convergent effects of autism-linked genes on brain size and activity in zebrafish. And large head size has long been noted in many, but not all, autistic people. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

More autism research we spotted: 

• “Identifying daily living skills from childhood and adolescence predictive of adult outcomes in a longitudinal study of autism and related developmental conditions” Autism Research
• “Research review: Conceptualizing and measuring ‘problem behavior’ in early intervention autism research—a project AIM secondary systematic review” Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry
  See also: “Reporting bias widespread in early-childhood autism intervention trials”
• “Motor impairment in children with 16p11.2-deletion and -duplication syndromes” Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders
• “NIH autism research funding down 26% under Trump, analysis shows” Disability Scoop
• “The Language ENvironment Analysis (LENA) system in toddlers with early indicators of autism: Test–retest reliability and convergent validity with clinical language assessments” Autism Research
  See also: “AI tool estimates social ability by analyzing speech”
• “A common computational and neural anomaly across mouse models of autism” Nature Neuroscience