30 October 2012

A Newsletter from the Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative

NEWS New rules allow joint diagnosis of autism, attention deficit CONFERENCE NEWS: Autism Consortium Research Symposium 2012 Autism Speaks launches scheme to develop drugs, devices PROFILE Thomas Bourgeron: Pioneering rare paths in autism genetics IN BRIEF Cognition and behavior: Children with autism struggle to mime Genetics: More SHANK3 mutations in mild autism cases Clinical research: Temperament marks infants with autism TOOLBOX Technique follows calcium trail to track changes in signaling BLOG Drug zone Big show

NEWS

New rules allow joint diagnosis of autism, attention deficit

About 30 percent of children with autism have symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, but under current diagnostic guidelines they can only be diagnosed with one or the other. Thats about to change.

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CONFERENCE NEWS: Autism Consortium Research Symposium 2012

Autism Speaks launches scheme to develop drugs, devices

The research and advocacy organization Autism Speaks plans to launch a nonprofit arm that will fund companies to develop treatments for the disorder, Robert Ring, head of translational research for the organization, announced at the Autism Consortium Research Symposium in Boston.

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INVESTIGATOR PROFILE

Thomas Bourgeron: Pioneering rare paths in autism genetics

Thomas Bourgeron discovered the first rare mutation linked to nonsyndromic autism, pointing to neuronal connections as prime drug targets.

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IN BRIEF

Cognition and behavior: Children with autism struggle to mime

Children with autism have trouble imitating others actions, a trait that may be linked to their poor motor skills, according to a study published 10 September in PLoS One.

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Genetics: More SHANK3 mutations in mild autism cases

Mutations in SHANK3, a leading autism risk gene, occur in roughly two percent of individuals with autism spectrum disorders, according to a study published 15 August in the European Journal of Human Genetics.

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Clinical research: Temperament marks infants with autism

Babies later diagnosed with autism tend to have a heightened response to sights and sounds in their first year of life, and smile and cuddle less as toddlers than controls do, according to a paper published 24 August in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. Read More >

TOOLBOX

Technique follows calcium trail to track changes in signaling

Researchers have genetically engineered neurons to fluoresce in response to the calcium signals emitted when they fire, according to a study published 18 October in Neuron.

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BLOG

Drug zone
Rodent and stem cell models remain challenging for developing psychiatric drugs, says Michael Ehlers, chief scientific officer of neuroscience at Pfizer.

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Big show
Our coverage of the 2012 Society for Neuroscience annual meeting ran the gamut from feral monkeys to the language of mice and new treatments for fragile X syndrome.

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