Research: Funded Projects

Autism arises in early childhood, during a period of intense learning when many of the brain’s connections are modified by experience.

The sense of touch allows us to navigate our physical world.

The generation of all-or-none action potentials is critical for proper brain function.

Abnormal patterns of head and brain growth have been reported in a subset of individuals with autism.

Opioids have long been implicated in social behaviors.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a highly heritable, complex neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by impaired social interaction and communication as well as restricted repetitive behaviors presenting in early childhood.

Timothy Roberts and his colleagues at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia are studying the responsiveness of neural oscillatory measures to acute administration of STX209 (arbaclofen), a GABAB …

It is well established that homeostatic signaling systems interface with the mechanisms of developmental and learning-related plasticity to achieve stable yet flexible neural function and animal behavior.

The Autism Biomarkers Consortium for Clinical Trials (ABC-CT) is a multicenter research study based at Yale University that spans Duke University, Boston Children’s Hospital, the University …

Whole-exome sequencing studies of sporadic autism cases have identified SCN2A, which encodes the neuronal voltage-gated sodium channel NaV1.2, as one of the most commonly mutated …

Ivan Iossifov studies the genetics of autism using the large datasets produced with comparative genomic hybridization, whole-exome and whole-genome sequencing of the extensively phenotyped Simons Simplex …

Fei Xu and her colleagues conduct research on early cognitive and language development in typically developing infants and children.

The cause of autism is thought to involve a combination of both genetic and environmental factors.

The Kaiser Permanente Autism Family Biobank Study is a three-year project at Kaiser Permanente Northern California.

Although mutations — the fundamental process by which genomic variation is acquired — are necessary to the evolution and success of a species, they are also the origin of all …

Anatomical and electrophysiological studies have made it clear that dysfunction in the cerebellum, and in Purkinje cells specifically, is linked to behavioral abnormalities in autism.

Although autism is characterized primarily by impairments in social skills and communication, as well as restricted interests and repetitive behaviors, it has become evident that attention abnormalities may …

Multiple autism spectrum disorders share similar neuronal deficits at the molecular and cellular levels.

Reciprocal copy number variation (CNV), or duplication or deletion, of the 16p11.2 region of chromosome 16 causes a multi-system genomic disorder.

To understand the neurobiology behind autism, we need data at the cellular level.

Benjamin Cheyette and his colleagues at the University of California, San Francisco have discovered several variations in the sequence of the DIXDC1 gene in individuals with autism, using …

Understanding how genetic defects that cause autism lead to abnormal neurodevelopment is critical to developing mechanism-based treatments.

Autism appears to be caused by a complex interplay of genetic and environmental factors.

Understanding the emotional state of a person one is communicating with stands at the center of meaningful and successful human interaction, and speech serves as a conduit for …

The proposed research takes advantage of the resources available at the University of Oxford in the U.K.

Autism is diagnosed in boys four times more frequently than in girls.

A core symptom of autism involves impaired social relationships.

Genetics is important in the etiology of autism, with many identified candidate genes linking autism to synaptic pathology.

The development of safe and effective new treatments for social impairments in autism is an important priority.

Illness or infections during early pregnancy are associated with increased incidence of autism.

Immune‐related genes and immune responses to environmental stimuli are receiving attention due to their potential involvement in several neurodevelopmental disorders, including autism.

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Anatomic and molecular features observed in the brains of individuals with autism suggest that abnormalities in early embryonic development underlie the development of autism.

Mutations in hundreds of genes may predispose individuals to autism, but no common feature characterizes these genes, little is known about the functions of many of them and …

Nearly 90 percent of children with autism are estimated to suffer from sensory abnormalities, often hypersensitivities, to stimuli that a neurotypical individual could ignore.

Biological networks provide a natural framework for integrating the diverse genetic variations associated with complex and multifactorial disorders.

We are beginning to identify many genetic alterations, environmental factors and developmental processes that contribute to autism, but we do not yet understand how various molecular perturbations add …

Children with the rare genetic disorder Prader-Willi syndrome have a high rate of autism spectrum disorders, with features including restricted and repetitive, compulsive and self-injurious behaviors.

Fragile X syndrome is the most common cause of inherited autism and results from loss of function of a single gene: FMR1.

Efforts to find genetic causes of autism have identified hundreds of rare mutations in individuals with the disorder, and this list is anticipated to grow steadily in the …

There is growing support for the idea that both genetic and environmental risk factors contribute to autism.

A major goal of autism research is to understand the relationships among genetic etiology, altered developmental trajectory, aberrant neural circuits and behavioral symptoms characteristic of this disorder.

Finding a way to diagnose autism early in development is crucial for devising new interventions and understanding its underlying neurobiological causes.

Evan Eichler and his colleagues at the University of Washington aim to perform the systematic discovery of single nucleotide variations (SNVs), insertions and deletions in DNA (indels) and …

Autism is a complex disorder of many biological causes that results in characteristic behavioral symptoms.

A large number of susceptibility genes for autism and schizophrenia have been identified, although the function of many of these risk factors in regulating neuronal development is not …

The etiology of autism is complex and mysterious.

Human brain function is the result of a highly organized network of connections linking multiple areas across the brain.