Spectrum

Recent articles

Spectrum is the go-to destination for the latest news and analysis about autism research and a springboard for scientists and clinicians to forge collaborations that deepen our understanding of autism.

Action potentials

Image
Upcoming event
JULY
21
2025
INDIANAPOLIS
ASF Research Symposium
21 -23 JULY 2025
Learn more
Quote

There is just a probability of finding something that might be utterly meaningless — CATHERINE LORD, GEORGE TARJAN DISTINGUISHED PROFESSOR OF PSYCHIATRY AND EDUCATION AT THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, LOS ANGELES

Read more
WHAT WE ARE READING
“A cascading effects model of early sensory development in autism”
By NATALIE RUSSO et al IN PSYCHOLOGICAL REVIEW
READ MORE

Sign up for the weekly Spectrum newsletter.

Stay current with the latest advancements in autism research.

an illustration of scientists parachuting
Spectrum

The perils of parachute research

Scientists who study autism in lower-income countries are working to end practices that exploit or ignore collaborators and communities on the ground.

By Linda Nordling
6 June 2024 | 11 min read
Research video of a zebrafish larva (zoomed in on the gut) being given glucose.
Spectrum

On the periphery: Thinking ‘outside the brain’ offers new ideas about autism

Neuronal alterations outside the brain may help to explain a host of the condition’s characteristic traits, including sensory changes, gut problems and motor differences.

By Sarah DeWeerdt
13 April 2023 | 20 min read
See all Features See all Features - opens a new tab
Illustration of an open journal featuring lines of text and small illustrations of eyes and mouths.

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

Here is a roundup of autism-related news and research spotted around the web for the week of 9 June.

By Jill Adams
10 June 2025 | 2 min read
Image of alpha-synuclein filaments in the brain.

Large study links autism to Parkinson’s disease

Autistic adults appear to be prone to an early-onset form of Parkinson’s, according to a long-term study that tracked 2.2 million people in Sweden.

By Charles Q. Choi
5 June 2025 | 4 min read
Research image of brain volume in mice.

Improving longitudinal research; and more

Here is a roundup of autism-related news and research spotted around the web for the week of 2 June.

By Jill Adams
3 June 2025 | 2 min read
Amina Abubakar, dressed in yellow, stands outside and looks into the camera lens.

Amina Abubakar translates autism research and care for Kenya

First an educator and now an internationally recognized researcher, the Kenyan psychologist is changing autism science and services in sub-Saharan Africa.

By Ruth Kadide Keah
29 May 2025 | 8 min listen
Research image of spine formation in mouse neurons.

Post-traumatic stress disorder, obesity and autism; and more

Here is a roundup of autism-related news and research spotted around the web for the week of 26 May.

By Jill Adams
27 May 2025 | 2 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

Illustration of a fly in various poses.

This paper changed my life: Bradley Dickerson on how a 1940s fly neuroanatomy paper influences his research to this day

This classic paper by zoologist John Pringle describes the haltere—a small structure in flies that plays a crucial role in flight control. It taught me to think about circuits and behavior as greater than the sum of their parts.

By Bradley Dickerson
17 June 2025 | 5 min listen
Hundred dollar bill digitally cut into small pieces.

NIH cuts quash $323 million for neuroscience research and training

“I am frightened for the state of the future of our field if this isn't reversed rapidly,” says Joshua Gordon, professor of psychiatry at Columbia University and former director of the National Institute of Mental Health.

By Claudia López Lloreda
16 June 2025 | 8 min read
Illustration of complex, intersecting biological structures.

Everything, everywhere, all at once: Inside the chaos of Alzheimer’s disease

To truly understand Alzheimer’s disease, we may need to take a systems approach, in which inflammation, vascular injury, impaired glucose metabolism and other factors interact in complex ways.

By Michael A. Yassa
16 June 2025 | 7 min read