Emerging tools and techniques that may advance autism research.
A questionnaire that clinicians can administer in 20 minutes, either in person, by phone or online, correctly distinguishes children with autism from those without the disorder 86 percent of the time.
Glowing particles called ‘Sticky-flares’ can light up RNAs, the molecular blueprints for protein production, in living cells. Using these flares, researchers can plot the paths of specific RNAs through a cell.
Marmosets exposed to an epilepsy drug in the womb do not recognize reciprocity — the social give-and-take that is a challenge for some people with autism — suggests a new study. The findings add to mounting evidence that these tiny monkeys offer clues about autism.
A new software application allows researchers to more efficiently edit genes using the popular method CRISPR.
Researchers have devised a reliable technique for evaluating how well antibodies home in on specific molecules in scientific experiments. The new approach could take some of the guesswork out of studies that use antibodies to label and isolate proteins.
A new strategy sharpens the analysis of chemical tags on the DNA-protein complexes that regulate gene expression. The method may help researchers decipher how gene expression goes awry in disorders such as autism.
A new computer program can quickly and accurately characterize bird songs and mouse squeaks — showing, for example, that mouse pups with an autism-linked mutation call out for their mothers differently than normal mice do.
A new cell culture method allows researchers to easily transform skin cells into layered spheres of firing neurons.
Researchers have for the first time mapped gene expression in the rhesus macaque brain from birth through adulthood. The atlas illuminates the expression patterns of genes likely to be important in autism.
A new resource reveals that gene expression varies more across tissues in one person than it does in the same tissue type among individuals. The findings, described 8 May in Science, indicate that the brain’s gene expression signature is unique.
