AGRE

Recent articles

mutations in their mitochondrial genome

Mounting evidence links mitochondrial DNA to autism

Genetic variants that affect mitochondria, the organelles that power cells, may increase the risk of autism.

By Jessica Wright
5 April 2018 | 5 min read

Mitochondrial risk; anxiety amelioration; fever factor and more

Some variants in mitochondrial DNA are more common than others in autism, cognitive therapy reduces anxiety for people on the spectrum, and maternal fever in the third trimester is tied to autism risk.

By Emily Willingham
25 August 2017 | 5 min read
A young boy and a young girl hiding behind the kitchen table.

Sibling study bolsters role of common variants in autism

Children with autism are genetically more similar to one another than to a group of unaffected siblings.

By Jessica Wright
24 August 2017 | 4 min read

Rogue poop; ancestral autism; travel limbo and more

A Tampa clinic goes rogue with fecal transplants, autism’s genetic ancestry traces to our deep past, and the U.S. Supreme Court revives the travel ban.

By Emily Willingham
30 June 2017 | 6 min read

Some behavioral problems in autism may stem from poor health

Many children with autism have gastrointestinal problems, seizures and sleep disorders. A new study suggests that these seemingly disparate conditions are interconnected and may lead to the children’s behavioral issues.

By Rachel Nuwer
11 June 2015 | 5 min read

Power of girls to thwart autism shows up in sibling study

Children whose older sisters are on the spectrum are at higher risk for autism than are those with affected older brothers, a new study suggests. Younger brothers of children with autism are at greater risk than younger sisters.

By Charles Q. Choi
28 May 2015 | 4 min read

Reference strains aid genetic testing for Rett syndrome

Researchers have established a set of commercially available cell lines that can help gauge the quality of tests for Rett syndrome, they reported in the March issue of the Journal of Molecular Diagnostics.

By Jessica Wright
26 March 2014 | 2 min read

Algorithm uncovers autism syndromes’ fingerprints

An artificial-intelligence algorithm designed to analyze behavior has learned to recognize six genetic disorders associated with autism, according to a report published 11 February in Molecular Autism. The algorithm could be used to hone the search for autism’s genetic underpinnings.

By Jessa Netting
6 March 2014 | 6 min read

Clinical research: Epilepsy and autism share familial risk

In families with a history of autism, the affected children are seven times more likely to also have epilepsy than their unaffected siblings, according to a study published 1 December in Molecular Autism. The results suggest that epilepsy and autism share some risk factors.

By Jessica Wright
21 February 2014 | 2 min read

Large study links autism to autoimmune disease in mothers

About one in ten women who have a child with autism have immune molecules in their bloodstream that react with proteins in the brain, according to a study published 20 August in Molecular Psychiatry.

By Sarah DeWeerdt
22 August 2013 | 6 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

Illustration of distorted lines of different colors being pulled into a box where they are smoothed in a single multicolored line.

The Transmitter’s favorite essays and columns of 2024

From sex differences in Alzheimer’s disease to enduring citation bias, experts weighed in on important scientific and practical issues in neuroscience.

By The Transmitter
23 December 2024 | 2 min read
A curly line connects two pencils that are hovering over overlapping speech bubbles.

Say what? The Transmitter’s top quotes of 2024

“We’ve cured mouse-heimer’s thousands of times...”—find out who said this to a Transmitter reporter, and read our other favorite quotes from the past year.

By The Transmitter
23 December 2024 | 2 min read
Four microphones on a table with speech bubbles above them.

The Transmitter’s favorite podcasts of 2024

Our picks include a deep dive into dopamine, the role of PKMzeta in memory, and studying the stomatogastric ganglion.

By The Transmitter
23 December 2024 | 1 min read