WCPG 2009

Recent articles

Spectrum from The Transmitter.

Autism study zooms in on five-gene strip on chromosome 16

Genetic analysis of one Belgian family with a history of autism has pinpointed a piece of DNA on chromosome 16, within a segment thought to be missing in about one percent of all cases of autism. The unpublished data was presented on Saturday at the World Congress of Psychiatric Genetics in San Diego.

By Virginia Hughes
10 November 2009 | 4 min read
Spectrum from The Transmitter.

Massive genomics project unveils schizophrenia results

The Psychiatric GWAS Consortium has released its first batch of analyses, identifying several significant common variations associated with schizophrenia. The results were presented Sunday at the World Congress of Psychiatric Genetics in San Diego.

By Virginia Hughes
10 November 2009 | 3 min read
Spectrum from The Transmitter.

Variants in synaptic protein linked to autism

Scientists have identified several autism-specific variants in a gene that lies within a chromosomal region linked to the disorder, according to a poster presented at the World Congress of Psychiatric Genetics in San Diego.

By Virginia Hughes
9 November 2009 | 3 min read
Spectrum from The Transmitter.

Variants associated with autism over-hyped, company says

Variations linked to autism and schizophrenia crop up in people with a large variety of conditions, including bipolar disorder, seizures and obsessive-compulsive disorder, as well as in healthy people. This notion gained new support from unpublished data presented at the World Congress for Psychiatric Genetics in San Diego.

By Virginia Hughes
6 November 2009 | 5 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

A series of colored rectangles in a cosmos-like black space.

The challenge of defining a neural population

Our current approach is largely arbitrary. We need new methods for grouping cells, ideally by their dynamics.

By Mark Humphries
11 August 2025 | 8 min read
Two prairie voles.

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.

By Holly Barker
8 August 2025 | 8 min listen
A red pencil sits on top of a stack of white papers.

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.

By Marta Hill
7 August 2025 | 5 min listen