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5 June 2012

A Newsletter from the Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative

NEWS Immune cells sculpt brain by pruning neuronal connections Autism gene PTEN plays vital role in neural stem cells IN BRIEF Molecular mechanisms: Microglia abnormal in autism brains Cognition and behavior: Rare syndrome distinct from autism Genetics: Search for recessive mutations reveals autism genes TOOLBOX New functional analysis can predict and rank autism genes BLOG Brain trust Global road map

NEWS

Immune cells sculpt brain by pruning neuronal connections

Immune cells called microglia may play a central role in trimming synapses, the connections between neurons, according to research published 24 May in Neuron. These modifications are part of a normal developmental process by which excess synapses in the brain are destroyed.

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Autism gene PTEN plays vital role in neural stem cells

Knocking out an autism-linked gene called PTEN only in neural stem cells of the hippocampus, a brain region central to learning and memory, throws the development of new neurons off course in adult mice, according to research published last month in the Journal of Neuroscience.

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IN BRIEF

Molecular mechanisms: Microglia abnormal in autism brains

Two new postmortem studies show that microglia, which protect the brain from invaders, are denser and more concentrated around neurons in the brains of individuals with autism than in those of controls.

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Cognition and behavior: Rare syndrome distinct from autism

Individuals with Cornelia de Lange syndrome, a rare genetic disorder often accompanied by autism, have subtle differences in the nature of their social deficits compared with those who have autism alone, according to a report published 10 April in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry.

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Genetics: Search for recessive mutations reveals autism genes

By screening for recessive mutations, which are present on both copies of a gene, researchers have identified four autism candidates that may be involved in neuronal signaling, according to a study published 12 April in PLoS Genetics.

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TOOLBOX

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New functional analysis can predict and rank autism genes

A new computational analysis can predict whether a gene is implicated in autism or intellectual disability with up to 98 percent accuracy, according to a study published 15 May in the American Journal of Medical Genetics.

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BLOG

Brain trust
Preliminary research shows that in people with autism, oxytocin enhances activity in brain areas that process social information.

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Global road map

Two reviews sketch a road map for understanding and treating autism in lowand middle-income countries.

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