Autism

Autism and social anxiety can look similar on the surface, but new research reveals meaningful differences in how empathy is experienced. The study proposes a new tool to help clinicians more accurately differentiate between the two conditions.

A new study used artificial intelligence to analyze over 740,000 Reddit posts about autism. The findings offer a window into how autistic individuals describe their lives, revealing emotional struggles, sensory issues, and community support often missing from clinical descriptions.

Autism-like behaviors in mice vanished after researchers calmed a hyperactive brain circuit using targeted drugs and neuromodulation. The findings point to the thalamus as a key player in autism and open the door to brain-based treatment strategies.

A new study in Autism highlights how adults diagnosed later in life navigate the decision to share their diagnosis.

New research suggests that the gut microbiome in infancy may offer early clues about a child’s risk for autism and related disorders—years before symptoms emerge. Microbial imbalances were detectable in stool and cord blood long before diagnosis.

New research indicates that a six-week self-guided mindfulness app helped autistic adults experience meaningful reductions in anxiety, stress, and negative emotions. The improvements remained stable even after participants stopped regularly using the app.

Walking patterns may provide important insights into autism. Studies suggest autistic people often display distinctive gait differences, from slower steps to greater variability. These movement patterns link to brain development.

Clinical trials are underway for an eye-tracking test that may predict autism in infancy, potentially revolutionizing early intervention. Yet the technology also poses difficult questions about medical ethics, parental decision-making, and how predictive data should be handled by insurers.

Shortly before publishing a study linking chemical exposure to autism severity in children, a coauthor’s entire research division was eliminated by RFK Jr. The findings raise new concerns about how parental occupational exposures may shape developmental outcomes in autism.

Scientists at the University of Hawaii have found evidence that maternal obesity before pregnancy—not during it—can lead to autism-like traits in male offspring. The study highlights how pre-conception health may influence brain development through epigenetic and transcriptomic changes.

Using single-nucleus RNA sequencing, scientists analyzed over 100,000 brain cells from people with and without autism, uncovering cell-specific changes in neurons and glia that may disrupt communication between brain regions and offer promising new targets for future treatments.

A blockbuster Danish study finds no link between aluminum in infant vaccines and 50 chronic disorders, yet newly appointed health chief Robert F. Kennedy Jr. blasts the work as rigged. Which story should parents trust?

New research suggests "neural confusion" may underlie social avoidance in some forms of autism. In a mouse study, neurons that should value social contact responded similarly to both another mouse and a plastic object, blurring the line between the two...

Diagnosing autism and attention-related conditions often takes months, if not years. But new research shows that analyzing how people move their hands during simple tasks, with the help of artificial intelligence, could offer a faster, objective path to early detection.

Children exposed to high levels of PFAS during early pregnancy may face an increased risk of autistic traits by age four, especially if they also have a higher inherited risk for autism, according to new findings.