New hope for understanding autism spectrum disorders

 

Researchers from McGill University and the University of Montreal have identified a crucial link between protein synthesis and autism spectrum disorders (ASD), which can bolster new therapeutic avenues. Regulation of protein synthesis, also termed mRNA translation, is the process by which cells manufacture proteins. This mechanism is involved in all aspects of cell and organism function. A new study in mice has found that abnormally high synthesis of a group of neuronal proteins called neuroligins results in symptoms similar to those diagnosed in ASD. The study also reveals that autism-like behaviors can be rectified in adult mice with compounds inhibiting protein synthesis, or with gene-therapy targeting neuroligins. Their results are published in the journal Nature.

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Are schizophrenia and autism close relations?

 

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), a category that includes autism, Asperger Syndrome, and Pervasive Developmental Disorder, are characterized by difficulty with social interaction and communication, or repetitive behaviors. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Management says that one in 88 children in the US is somewhere on the Autism spectrum ? an alarming ten-fold increase in the last four decades.

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Researchers report success in treating autism spectrum disorder

 

Using a mouse model of autism, researchers at the University of Cincinnati (UC) and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center have successfully treated an autism spectrum disorder characterized by severe cognitive impairment.

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New clinical study evaluates first drug to show improvement in subtype of autism

In an important test of one of the first drugs to target core symptoms of autism, researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine are undertaking a pilot clinical trial to evaluate insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1) in children who have SHANK3 deficiency (also known as 22q13 Deletion Syndrome or Phelan-McDermid Syndrome), a known cause of autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

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Biomarkers for autism discovered

An important step towards developing a rapid, inexpensive diagnostic method for autism has been take by Uppsala University, among other universities. Through advanced mass spectrometry the researchers managed to capture promising biomarkers from a tiny blood sample. The study has just been published in the prestigious journal Nature Translational Psychiatry.

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Novel mouse model for autism yields clues to a year-old mystery

Early disruptions in serotonin signaling in the brain may contribute to autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and other “enduring effects on behavior,” Vanderbilt University researchers report.

Serotonin is a brain chemical that carries signals across the synapse, or gap between nerve cells. The supply of serotonin is regulated by the serotonin transporter (SERT). In 2005, a team of Vanderbilt researchers led by Randy Blakely and James Sutcliffe identified rare genetic variations in children with ASD that disrupt SERT function.

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Cleveland Clinic Children’s Hospital launches study to genetically test for autism

Cleveland Clinic Children’s Hospital has launched a study to determine whether genetic markers can be used to help identify children who are at risk of developing autism.

The study is designed to confirm the predictive value of established genetic markers and is a follow-up to retrospective studies that have been completed.

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New autism research reveals brain differences at 6 months in infants who develop autism

A new study from the Infant Brain Imaging Network, which includes researchers at the Center for Autism Research at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), found significant differences in brain development starting at age 6 months in high-risk infants who later develop autism, compared to high-risk infants who did not develop autism.

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Brain-imaging differences evident at 6 months in infants who develop autism

A new study led by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill found significant differences in brain development starting at age 6 months in high-risk infants who later develop autism, compared to high-risk infants who did not develop autism.

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Autism redefined: Yale researchers study impact of proposed diagnostic criteria

Getting an autism diagnosis could be more difficult in 2013 when a revised diagnostic definition goes into effect. The proposed changes may affect the proportion of individuals who qualify for a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder, according to preliminary data presented by Yale School of Medicine researchers at a meeting of the Icelandic Medical Association.

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