Skip to main content

Spectrum: Autism Research News

Tag: stem cells

February 2018
Week of FebruaryFeb
5th
2018

Political scientists; folate block; mutational mosaic and more

by  /  9 February 2018

Scientists campaign for elected office in record numbers, folate autoantibodies are common in autism families, and neurons form a genetic mosaic in the brain.

Comments
January 2018
Neurons missing a part of chromosome 16 (left) are larger and have more branches than control neurons (middle); neurons with duplications of the region are small and sport short dendrites (right).

Lab-grown neurons showcase effects of autism mutations

by  /  15 January 2018

Neurons derived from people with mutations linked to autism display diverse abnormalities that may help explain the origins of these individuals’ features.

Comments
December 2017

2017 in pictures: Spectrum’s picks for best images

by  /  22 December 2017

We asked autism researchers to enter the Spectrum science image contest. Here are the top pics.

Comments
November 2017
Neurons (green) generated from a human stem-cell line carry one of six mutations associated with schizophrenia, autism or intellectual disability.

New technique ramps up editing of genes in stem cells

by  /  17 November 2017

A novel method allows researchers to rapidly generate stem-cell colonies with mutations linked to autism or other conditions.

Comments
Organoids derived from fetal bone recapitulate brain development over the first 16 weeks of gestation.

‘Mini-brains’ mirror fetal brain development

by  /  14 November 2017

Spheres of brain cells derived from a fetal skull have gene expression patterns similar to those in brain tissue from the same fetus.

Comments
Stem cells derived from an individual’s skin can become neurons with her unique genetic makeup.

Brain cells spun from skin point to subtypes of autism

by  /  12 November 2017

Neurons derived from people with a syndromic form of autism look and behave differently than do those from people with classic autism.

Comments
Mini-brains made from stem cells contain several types of cells found in developing human brains.

Simple recipe dishes up realistic ‘mini-brains’

by  /  3 November 2017

A simple method for growing spheres of brain cells yields more realistic replicas of the brain than traditional techniques do.

Comments
Neurons derived from people with autism make unusually few branches (right). Exposing them to control astrocytes fixes the problem (left).

Cells spun from baby teeth implicate astrocytes in autism

by  /  2 November 2017

In children with autism, star-shaped brain cells may release inflammatory molecules that harm neurons.

Comments
September 2017
After months in culture, stem cells (left) develop into mature brain cells, including star-shaped astrocytes (right).

Lab-grown spheres yield star-shaped brain cells

by  /  22 September 2017

A new technique allows researchers to generate brain cells called astrocytes and maintain them in culture as they mature.

Comments
July 2017
Week of JulyJul
10th
2017

Autism author; new leadership; cannabis crush and more

by  /  14 July 2017

An author with autism debuts his second book, the U.S. agency tasked with protecting public health has a new director, and new legislation makes medical cannabis accessible to people with autism in Georgia.

Comments