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Spectrum: Autism Research News

Tag: inhibitory signaling

January 2023
Research image showing the impact of a gene mutation on a synapse.

Tweaks to autism-linked pathway tilt circuits’ signaling balance

by  /  31 January 2023

Altered expression of TSC2 and the mTOR pathway reshape the formation of certain synapses between inhibitory and excitatory neurons in mice.

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Figure shows cultured human kidney cells and cultured rat cortical neurons responding to light exposure.

Unconventional optogenetics technique spurs long-lasting changes in neuronal activity

by  /  9 January 2023

Conventional optogenetic manipulations to excite or inhibit neurons stop when the light switches off. A new approach makes the changes last.

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December 2022
Composite image of inhibitory and excitatory neurons.

One-rosette technique grows well-organized organoids

by  /  2 December 2022

The method yields complex organoids that more closely mimic embryonic brain development than do those cultured in other ways.

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November 2022
Two white mice socialize.

Autism genes converge on disruptions in social brain circuit

by  /  17 November 2022

The circuit linking the prefrontal cortex and part of the thalamus is impaired in mice raised in social isolation and in mice with mutations in the FMR1 or TSC2 genes.

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Single astrocyte on black background.

Mouse studies cast astrocytes as stars of sensory perception

by  /  13 November 2022

Data from two separate research teams suggest the cells are key to sensory hypersensitivity in fragile X syndrome.

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October 2022
Laura Cancedda in Iama's lab.

Building a better drug

by  /  6 October 2022

Iama Therapeutics is hoping a new class of molecule will prove successful against an old target in autism.

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August 2022

Of mice and human interneurons: A Q&A with Moritz Helmstaedter

by  /  1 August 2022

People’s brains have a larger network of inhibitory interneurons than mouse brains do, according to a new study. Changes to that network could contribute to autism or other conditions, says lead investigator Moritz Helmstaedter.

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July 2022

Genetic underpinnings of brain activity may differ in autism

by  /  19 July 2022

The expression levels of certain genes that track with brain activity are different in autistic people than in their non-autistic peers.

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Illustration shows calcium signaling astrocytes, which are star-shaped and change color from light blue to purple.

Portrait of a research field: astrocytes in autism

by  /  14 July 2022

Long cast in supporting roles in the brain, astrocytes are now emerging as primary players in certain characteristics of autism and related conditions.

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New resource maps gene expression, regulation in neuron subtypes

by  /  1 July 2022

The catalog could help researchers understand the effects of autism-linked DNA variants that fall outside genes.

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