Judith Van de Water is professor of internal medicine at the University of California, Davis and director of the UC Davis Center for Children’s Environmental Health.
Judy Van de Water
Professor
University of California, Davis
From this contributor
What the placenta could reveal about autism
Understanding the interactions between the placenta and the uterine lining could explain how maternal immune activation leads to autism.
What the placenta could reveal about autism
By
Judy Van de Water
19 February 2019 | 4 min read
Premature ideas
A New York Times opinion column on 25 August suggested that at least some cases of autism could be considered inflammatory disorders. But this theory is still in its infancy.
Explore more from The Transmitter
From friend to foe: How the brain updates feelings toward others
A specific hippocampus-to-amygdala pathway reassigns emotional valence to a known individual, whereas the hippocampus’s own representation of that individual’s identity remains stable.
From friend to foe: How the brain updates feelings toward others
A specific hippocampus-to-amygdala pathway reassigns emotional valence to a known individual, whereas the hippocampus’s own representation of that individual’s identity remains stable.
By
Natalia Mesa
9 July 2026 | 5 min read
Mass-produced science is coming. What happens to scientists?
Artificial intelligence may soon enable researchers to generate high-quality science at a previously unimaginable speed. For science consumers—the public, medical patients, technology users—the likely effects will be positive. For scientists, the effects will be as disruptive as industrial mass production was for artisan manufacturers.
Mass-produced science is coming. What happens to scientists?
Artificial intelligence may soon enable researchers to generate high-quality science at a previously unimaginable speed. For science consumers—the public, medical patients, technology users—the likely effects will be positive. For scientists, the effects will be as disruptive as industrial mass production was for artisan manufacturers.
By
Kenneth Harris
9 July 2026 | 9 min read
Neuropathologist not guilty of research misconduct, says university probe
The investigation determined that seven papers by corresponding author Adriano Aguzzi have “scientifically significant” errors, which Aguzzi attributes to his former students.
Neuropathologist not guilty of research misconduct, says university probe
The investigation determined that seven papers by corresponding author Adriano Aguzzi have “scientifically significant” errors, which Aguzzi attributes to his former students.
By
Dalmeet Singh Chawla
8 July 2026 | 5 min read