Adults with autism

Recent articles

A boy and girl run in a field.

Sex bias in autism drops as age at diagnosis rises

The disparity begins to level out after age 10, raising questions about why so many autistic girls go undiagnosed earlier in childhood.

By Helena Kudiabor
13 February 2026 | 4 min read
Composite of Autism Data Science Initiative researcher headshots.

Meet the Autism Data Science Initiative grantees

The awarded projects plan to study gene-and-environment interactions in people, stem cells and organoids, as well as predictors of positive life outcomes in autistic youth and adults.

By Calli McMurray
3 October 2025 | 12 min read
Portrait photograph of Dame Stephanie Shirley.

In memoriam: Stephanie “Steve” Shirley, autism philanthropist

Fueled by business success and her son, she played an outsized role in British autism research.

By Lauren Schneider
25 September 2025 | 6 min read
An illustration of a magnifying glass, checklists, and anonymous figures.

Spectrum 2024: Year in review

We round up our most notable autism stories of the past 12 months.

By Daisy Yuhas
23 December 2024 | 2 min read
Photo of the U.S. Capitol Building.

In updated U.S. autism bill, Congress calls for funding boost, expanded scope

The current Autism CARES Act sunsets in late September.

By Rachel Zamzow
5 September 2024 | 5 min read
Illustration of researchers talking to laypeople amidst strands of DNA.

Building an autism research registry: Q&A with Tony Charman

A purpose-built database of participants who have shared genomic and behavioral data could give clinical trials a boost, Charman says.

By Cathleen O’Grady
25 July 2024 | 8 min read
Research image of excitatory synapses in the prefrontal cortex.

Synaptic anomalies in autistic people support imbalance hypothesis

Increased excitatory and decreased inhibitory synapses in the prefrontal cortex of autistic people suggest broader impacts on brain function and connectivity.

By Giorgia Guglielmi
27 June 2024 | 4 min read
Conceptual image of colorful falling letters, casting shadows on a white wall.

Some minimally verbal autistic people show signs of written-language familiarity, study suggests

But researchers not involved in the work worry the findings could be used to support discredited facilitated-communication techniques.

By Calli McMurray
9 May 2024 | 7 min read
two people sit on opposite edges of a cliff

Spectrum 10K consultation report delayed

The U.K.-based genetics study launched the consultation more than a year ago in response to fierce criticism from autistic self-advocates.

By Cathleen O’Grady
7 March 2024 | 6 min read
A woman sits on the edge of her bed in a darkened room

Life expectancy lags for autistic people in United Kingdom

The finding confirms past research that links autism to early death, but it also suggests that the life expectancy gap may be smaller than previously thought.

By Gina Jiménez
15 February 2024 | 3 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

Illustration of pipa frog showing nerves in fingertips.

How the pipa frog hunts prey by touch

Each of the frog’s eight fingers branches into 16 ultra-sensitive tips, which together function as a fovea—potentially the first demonstration of this type of sensory structure outside of mammals.

By Calli McMurray
30 September 2026 | 7 min read
scaled

Response to ‘Finally, a new route for the magnetic-sense field’

Magnetoreception in Drosophila has much to offer those with an interest in neuroscience.

By Denis Henshaw
30 September 2026 | 3 min read
Research image of perineuronal nets.

Organoids missing the TSC2 gene form rogue astrocytes; and more

Here is a roundup of autism-related news and research spotted around the web for the week of 28 September.

By Jill Adams
29 September 2026 | 2 min read