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Spectrum: Autism Research News

Tag: maternal infection

November 2017
pregnant woman blowing nose and sick on couch

Maternal immune response may render brain vulnerable to injury

by  /  12 November 2017

Mouse brains exposed to inflammation in the womb become more susceptible to a second challenge.

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October 2017
Areas of excitable neurons mark the brains of mice exposed to inflammation in utero.

Maternal infection may trigger autism traits via neuronal ‘patches’

by  /  2 October 2017

Patches of overactive neurons in the brains of mice exposed to inflammation in the womb may lead to autism-like features in the mice.

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September 2017
Week of SeptemberSep
25th
2017

Genetics do-over; iffy influences; high-tech education and more

by  /  29 September 2017

A re-analysis of data yields an increased estimate for the genetic contribution to autism, how the environment might contribute to autism is hard to pin down, and students on the spectrum describe the benefits of using technology at school.

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Week of SeptemberSep
11th
2017

Maternal immunity; drug doubts; harassment scandal and more

by  /  15 September 2017

Two studies back the link between autism and maternal inflammation, other work weakens worry about antidepressant use in pregnancy, and a harassment scandal rocks a university’s cognitive science department.

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August 2017
Week of AugustAug
21st
2017

Mitochondrial risk; anxiety amelioration; fever factor and more

by  /  25 August 2017

Some variants in mitochondrial DNA are more common than others in autism, cognitive therapy reduces anxiety for people on the spectrum, and maternal fever in the third trimester is tied to autism risk.

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Week of AugustAug
14th
2017

Transcranial treatment; maternal inflammation; autism ants and more

by  /  18 August 2017

Transcranial treatment may bolster memory in adults with autism, inflammatory molecule may alter an emotional brain region in newborns, and examining ants could yield insights into autism

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June 2017
Week of JuneJun
26th
2017

Rogue poop; ancestral autism; travel limbo and more

by  /  30 June 2017

A Tampa clinic goes rogue with fecal transplants, autism’s genetic ancestry traces to our deep past, and the U.S. Supreme Court revives the travel ban.

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Autism risk climbs with number of fevers during pregnancy

by  /  26 June 2017

Having fevers while pregnant boosts the risk of having a child with autism, according to a study of more than 95,000 women.

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Week of JuneJun
12th
2017

Fever finding; neuronal cookbookery; CRISPR’d unicorns; mining 23andMe

by  /  16 June 2017

The evidence linking autism and maternal infections grows, special neuron recipes are in development, a CRISPR pioneer envisions unicorns, and 23andMe delivers empathy data.

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May 2017

Infection during pregnancy may alter expression of autism genes

by  /  22 May 2017

A mother’s immune response to a severe infection during pregnancy disrupts the expression of autism genes in her child, a rat study suggests.

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