In the largest-ever study of its kind, researchers again found that the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine did not increase risk for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This proved true even among children already considered at high risk for the disorder.

In all, the researchers analyzed the health records of 95,727 children, including more than 15,000 children unvaccinated at age 2 and more than 8,000 still unvaccinated at age 5. Nearly 2,000 of these children were considered at risk for autism because they were born into families that already had a child with the disorder.

The report appears today in JAMA, the Journal of the American Medical Association. 

“Consistent with studies in other populations, we observed no association between MMR vaccination and increased ASD risk,” the authors write. “We also found no evidence that receipt of either one or two doses of MMR vaccination was associated with an increased risk of ASD among children who had older siblings with ASD.”

The analysis looked at autism rates and MMR vaccination at ages 2, 3, 4 and 5 years. It showed no increased risk of autism with immunization at any age. In fact, autism rates were lower in the vaccinated groups. However, this might be because parents who see early signs of autism were more likely to delay or avoid vaccination, the authors speculate.

Lower vaccination rates among families affected by autism
Some 15 year ago, a small, now-discredited study sparked concerns about a link between the MMR vaccine and autism. Since then, a large and growing body of research has continued to find no association. Still, the continuing uncertainty around what does cause autism has left some people worried. Such concerns likely explain why vaccination rates have dropped in families that have an older child with the disorder.

In the new study, MMR vaccination rates for children without an affected older siblings were 84 percent at 2 years and 92 percent by age 5 years. Vaccination rates for children with an older sibling affected by autism were significantly lower: 73 percent at 2 years and 86 percent at age 5 years.

In an accompanying editorial, Dr. Bryan King, director of the Seattle Children’s Autism Center, writes:

“Taken together, some dozen studies have now shown that the age of onset of ASD does not differ between vaccinated and unvaccinated children, the severity or course of ASD does not differ between vaccinated and unvaccinated children, and now the risk of ASD recurrence in families does not differ between vaccinated and unvaccinated children.”

Study made possible by large database
The investigators performed their analysis using the claims records from a large US health plan database (the Optum Research Database). Participants included children continuously enrolled in an associated health plan from birth to at least 5 years of age between 2001 and 2012. All had an older sibling.

Of the 95,727 children in the study, around 1 percent (994) were diagnosed with autism during the study’s follow-up period. Among those who had an older sibling with autism (1,929), approximately 7 percent (134) developed the disorder. This difference in autism prevalence – between children with or without an older sibling affected by autism – is consistent with earlier studies. 

Watch a JAMA video report on the study here.

A new study documents the effectiveness of a training program that teaches parents strategies for managing challenging behavior in young children with autism.

The report appears today in JAMA, the Journal of the American Medical Association.

The study enrolled 180 children with autism, ages 3 to 7 years, and their parents. Roughly half the parents received behavior intervention training. The training consisted of eleven 60- to 90-minute sessions with a therapist over 16 weeks. The therapist taught management strategies for challenging behaviors such as tantrums, aggression, self-injury and refusal to cooperate. This was followed by one home visit and two phone consultations over the following two months.

For comparison, the other half of the parents (91) received twelve “parent education” sessions and one home visit. During these educational sessions, the parents learned about autism and autism services, but received no training in behavior management.

Before and after the parent sessions, specialists evaluated all the children for challenging behaviors using standardized checklists. All the children showed improvements.

However, the children whose parents received the behavioral training showed greater improvements: a 48 percent vs 32 percent improvement on the Aberrant Behavior Checklist-Irritability subscale; and a 55 percent vs 34 percent improvement on the Home Situations Questionnaire-Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Parent behavioral training also surpassed parent education on a rating of the children’s overall improvement (69 percent vs 40 percent), as judged by a specialist who didn’t know which sessions each child’s parents had received.

“This is a huge step,” comments Kara Reagon, Autism Speaks Associate Director for Dissemination Science. “It’s telling us that simply educating parents about autism isn’t enough. They really need help in the home and community, and there’s a need for more effective parent training.” (Dr. Reagon wasn’t involved in the study.)

By way of example, Dr. Reagon notes the importance of teaching parents to consider what happened immediately before a child acts out in a disruptive or harmful way.

“Sometimes children with autism don’t have verbal skills to say what they want,” she explains. “By looking at what happened before the behavior started and afterward, we can often identify what’s causing it.” The next step is to help the child replace the problem behavior with a better alternative such as pointing to what he wants instead of crying, screaming or grabbing in frustration.

The current issue of Binghamton University Magazine profiles alumni making a difference in the world of autism research and services.

“Michael Rosanoff ’04 talks, blogs and tweets about autism research,” author Diana Bean writes. “As director of global public health research for Autism Speaks, he has traveled to 30 countries in the past six years to appear at conferences, give interviews and meet with policy makers.

What gives him the most satisfaction, though, is an experience like this: ‘I once had a dad of a child with autism say it was the first time since high school that he understood a science lecture. You could tell he was excited about it — it seemed to unlock something that made him hopeful for the future of his child.’

The ability to share research is as important as the research itself, Rosanoff says. “That’s what excites me about being a science communicator.”

Follow the hyperlink to read the full feature: “Deciphering Autism.”

Follow Michael Rosanoff on Twitter @AS_ScienceGuy

Lonnie Zwaigenbaum has devoted much of his career to understanding how to identify autism as early as possible. Despite his years of experience, Dr. Zwaigenbaum says physicians like himself would do well to seek the insights of a more important group of experts – parents.

"Parents are the experts when it comes to their kids and their observations are really valuable," Dr. Zwaigenbaum says. "In some respects, parents are picking up on differences at six and nine months of age that we have a much harder time seeing in the clinic."

Dr. Zwaigenbaum is the senior author of a new study showing that parents’ early autism-related concerns are not only common – they’re quite reliable. The report appears in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.

Dr. Zwaigenbaum is a principal investigator at the Autism Speaks Autism Treatment Network center at Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital and the University of Alberta, in Edmonton, Canada. He and other researchers seeing families for this study (Susan Bryson at Dalhousie University and Jessica Brian at Bloorview Research Institute) are also part of the Autism Speaks Baby Siblings Research Consortium.

Over 12 years, the investigators tracked the autism-related concerns of parents seen at their Canadian clinics. This included about 300 families of children ages six months to three years old. Some, but not all, of the families already had an older child diagnosed with autism. Because autism tends to run in families, the younger siblings of children with autism are themselves at higher risk for developing the disorder. In fact, earlier research by the Baby Siblings Research Consortium found that autism develops in one out of five "baby sibs." That's dramatically higher than the estimated prevalence of 1 in 66 in the general population.

At three years of age, all of the children in the study were assessed for autism. Researchers then looked back at the parent concerns.

The parents who already had one child with autism proved particularly adept at spotting the early signs of autism. Overall, their concerns at 12 months accurately predicted an eventual autism diagnosis. This was true even earlier – at 6 months – for concerns regarding sensory difficulties (unusual sensitive to sounds, light or touch). Concerns about language and sociability tended to appear later – between 12 and 15 months of age.

The researchers urge both parents and physicians to take such concerns seriously and seek further evaluations and, if needed, early intervention therapies. "Parents can play a critical role in implementing these interventions by learning how to encourage social interaction in everyday caregiving and play activities," says lead study author Lori Sacrey, also at the University of Alberta and Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital.

“Our study argues for a renewed emphasis on parents' concerns early in life," Dr. Sacrey concludes. "Where interventions are concerned, the earlier you can start, the better … to address early developmental difficulties that can ultimately enhance skill development and improve outcomes.”

Even in the absence of parent concerns, it’s important to fully evaluate all younger siblings of children with autism - given their high risk for the disorder, adds developmental pediatrician Paul Wang, Autism Speaks head of medical research. For instance, fewer than half of the parents whose children were diagnosed with autism had expressed concerns about social difficulties. “This finding shows that signs of autism can be so subtle that even experienced parents don’t notice,” says Dr. Wang, who was not involved in the study. 

* Learn more about the Autism Speaks Autism Treatment Network here.
* Find the ATN center nearest you here.
* Explore our archive of ATN expert-advice blogs and news stories here.

One in 14 toddlers entering an early intervention program in the Bronx overcame their autism symptoms by grade school. But the vast majority continued to struggle with emotional or behavioral issues that warranted special-education services.

Lead researcher Lisa Shulman, of New York City’s Albert Einstein College of Medicine, presented her team’s findings today at the annual meeting of the Pediatric Academic Societies, in San Diego.

Previous research has shown that autism symptoms resolve in a small subset of children, most of whom have received intensive early intervention. It’s not been clear, however, if these children continue to struggle with other emotional, behavioral or learning issues.

The researchers tracked 569 children diagnosed with autism as toddlers. They re-evaluated the children before they entered elementary school – on average 4 years after they began receiving early intervention services.

The re-evaluations showed that 38 of the 569 had improved to the point that they would no longer receive a first-time diagnosis of autism. Autism is considered lifelong. So children don’t “lose” their diagnosis, even with dramatic improvement.

In addition, most of the 38 children had tested as intellectually disabled (IQ below 70) as toddlers. On re-evaluation, all of them scored within a normal intellectual range.

But despite these improvements in social and intellectual abilities, 35 of the 38 children (92 percent) still needed mental health or special-education services.

Rough two-thirds of these children had some type of language or learning disability. Nearly half had behavior problems such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder or disruptiveness. One in four had emotional disorders such severe anxiety or obsessive-compulsiveness. And nearly three out of four still needed some type of special-education services.

"When an early ASD diagnosis resolves, other learning and emotional behavioral diagnoses often remain," Dr. Shulman concludes. "Understanding the full range of possible positive outcomes in this scenario is important information for parents, clinicians and the educational system."

Autism Speaks Head of Medical Research Paul Wang comments:

“This bolsters what we’ve learned about early intervention helping some children with autism achieve a so-called optimal outcome, where their autism symptoms resolve. More importantly, perhaps, the findings tell us that these children still need continued support for other aspects of their language and behavior – as Dr. Shulman notes. Of course, we must also continue to improve treatments for the vast majority of children and adults who do not respond so strongly to current interventions.” Dr. Wang was not involved in the study.

View the full study abstract, as presented at the Pediatric Academic Societies meeting here.

Subscribe to Autism Speaks Science Digest for autism research news, perspective and expert advice delivered biweekly to your inbox.

Autism Speaks is pleased to announce its seventh annual class of Weatherstone Predoctoral Fellows. Selected from a highly competitive pool of applicants, the eight promising young investigators will pursue two-year autism research projects under the mentorship of the field’s leading scientists.

Autism Speaks established the Dennis Weatherstone Predoctoral Fellowship Program in 2008 with a generous grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation. The program honors the late financier Sir Dennis Weatherstone and his commitment to the education of young scientists pursuing autism research. Lady Weatherstone and daughter Cheryl Weatherstone continue to actively support the Autism Speaks Weatherstone fellows on a personal level. 

“We thank the Stavros Niarchos Foundation and the Weatherstone family for their continuing dedication and investment in the future of autism research," says Autism Speaks Chief Science Officer Rob Ring. “This program embodies Autism Speaks’ ongoing commitment to developing the future of autism research by supporting essential training opportunities for the field’s brightest young investigators. Many of our Weatherstone fellows have already made important findings that advance our understanding of autism and how to best meet the needs of those affected by it.”

Read about Autism Speaks Weatherstone fellows in the news here.

 “The announcement of a new class of Weatherstone Fellows is always an exciting time for our families and supporters,” says Autism Speaks President Liz Feld. “We are so inspired to see these talented young scientists embark on careers that will transform the lives of those affected by autism."

The 2015 class brings the number of Autism Speaks Weatherstone Predoctoral fellows to 59.

Here, then, is this year’s class of Autism Speaks Weatherstone fellows, with brief introductions to their projects. (Click on each fellow’s hyperlinked name to learn more about his or her funded research.) 

Kathryn Unruh, of Vanderbilt University, will investigate visual attention, nonsocial interests and motivations in toddlers affected by autism. Her goals include insights that can guide the creation of early intervention programs that improve social learning and development. Unruh will work with developmental psychologist James Bodfish, whose research and practice focus on severe and treatment-resistant forms of autism.

David Grayson, of the University of California-Davis, will use noninvasive brain scans to study the formation of altered brain pathways in some 280 preschoolers, more than half of whom have autism. His goals include greater understanding of autism subtypes that can guide personalized treatments and other supports. Grayson will work under the guidance of David Amaral, director of research at the UC-Davis MIND Institute.

Rebecca Grzadzinski, of Columbia University, will evaluate the usefulness of the Brief Observation of Social Communication Change (BOSCC) as a much-needed measure for gauging response to treatment across a broad range of children and adults affected by autism. Her goals include improving and speeding the identification of effective interventions as well as tailoring treatments to optimize outcomes and quality of life for those with autism. Grzadzinski will work with psychologist Catherine Lord, founding director of the Center for Autism and the Developing Brain.

Rylan Allemang-Grand, of Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children, will evaluate the effects of several promising experimental autism treatments using brain imaging and mouse models of Rett syndrome. Allenmang-Grand will work in the laboratory of neuroscientist Jason Lerch.

Daniel Tylee, of the State University of New York, Upstate Medical University, will pursue genetic studies aimed at identifying gene changes that protect against autism. Tylee will work in the Psychiatric Genetic Epidemiology & Neurobiology Laboratory of Stephen Glatt.

Kathryn Jankowski, of the University of Oregon, will study brain activity and other biological reactions underlying social and emotional responses in adolescent boys affected by autism. Such information promises to guide the development of behavioral interventions and hormonal therapies that improve social function and quality of life. Jankowski will work under the guidance of neuropsychologist Susan Bookheimer.

Samuel Hubert, of Duke University, will investigate the function of the Shank3 gene during the early development of brain-cell connections (synapses) in mouse models of autism. His goals include a deeper understanding of autism subtypes that can guide the development of targeted treatments. Hubert will work in the laboratory of pediatric geneticist and neurologist Yong-hui Jiang.

Leah Townsend, of the University of North Carolina, will investigate how autism-linked gene changes affect the development of the brain’s cerebral cortex, especially for visual processing. Her goals include the development of detailed profiles of altered brain function that can provide treatment targets for new therapies. Townsend will work under the mentorship of UNC neuroscientist Spencer Smith.

“We look forward to meeting with and supporting our new Weatherstone fellows in the months and years ahead,” Dr. Ring says. “We wish them all the best as they launch their careers in autism research with these innovative projects.”

For full descriptions of all eight 2015 Weatherstone Fellowship projects, click here. You can explore all the research and family-service projects that Autism Speaks is funding using this website’s Grant Search.
 

On Autism Awareness Day at Rogers Centre, Toronto Blue Jays broadcasters talked with renowned Canadian geneticist Stephen Scherer – director of Autism Speaks’ MSSNG program– about advances in autism research and awareness. Dr. Scherer also directs the Centre for Applied Genomics at Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children and the McLaughlin Centre at the University of Toronto.

Watch the clip here.

What we know about autism is not enough. MSSNG is the search for the answers.
Learn more at MSS.ng.

Autism Speaks is proud to be a major sponsor of the International Meeting for Autism Research (IMFAR), taking place this week in Salt Lake City. The annual meeting is the world’s largest gathering of autism scientists, doctors, therapists, parents and individuals on the spectrum.

We hope you’ll stay tuned to the Autism Speaks website this week for daily IMFAR news coverage.

Events will include more than a hundred scientific presentations by Autism Speaks staff and funded researchers. You can view and download the full program of Autism Speaks-funded presentations and activities below – along with a special message from Autism Speaks Chief Science Officer Rob Ring.

Follow our daily coverage from IMFAR 2015 here.

Autism Speaks@IMFAR 2015

Researchers tracking children with autism into middle adulthood have found that the single most-important predictor of success is the mastery of self-care skills such as bathing, dressing, cleaning and cooking.

According to their analysis, these skills prove more important than language, intellectual ability or the severity of autism symptoms when it comes to maintaining employment and achieving life satisfaction. 

The researchers presented the early findings of their study– funded by Autism Speaks and Foundation of Hope – at the International Meeting for Autism Research (IMFAR).

Follow Autism Speaks’ weeklong coverage of IMFAR 2015 here.

“Autism symptoms, language ability and intellectual function certainly contribute to adult outcomes,” says lead researcher Laura Klinger, of the University of North Carolina’s TEACCH Autism Program. “But the single most important predictor of adult employment turns out to be the basic skills of daily living.Being employed, in turn, is strongly related to adult quality of life.”

Dr. Klinger calls the results “tremendously hopeful.”

L“We can’t necessarily change IQ or symptom severity,” she explains. “But we can teach daily living skills.”

Along these lines, Autism Speaks is funding the TEACCH program to develop and deliver programs that help teens with autism develop the skills they need for into adulthood and employment. (Learn more about these research and community grants here.)

Following children into mid-adulthood
In their current study, the TEACCH team is following up on 149 people diagnosed with autism as children at their center between 1970 and 1999. Using both caregiver surveys and in-person assessments, they are assessing independence, employment, mental health and overall quality of life.

As children, the majority of these adults had scored in a low IQ range indicating intellectual disability. Most continue to have difficulty with conversational language as adults. Around 40 percent are employed, though only 12 percent are living independently.

Of particular interest, Dr. Klinger says, is a subgroup of participants who as children showed low daily living, or “adaptive,” skills but relatively mild autism symptoms and normal to high IQ. In the follow-up survey, these adults tended to have been employed, but were unable to maintain employment.

“This is a group where I think we can make a big difference if we can help them master daily self-care skills,” she says. Ideally this type of training would have been provided in childhood. But self-care classes for adults with autism may prove equally effective, she says.

“I see our results as a wake-up call,” Dr. Klinger concludes. “Self-care is not something we’ve targeted as much as, say, social and language skills in children’s autism intervention programs.”

Adds Lucia Murillo, Autism Speaks’ assistant director for education research: “Studies such as this help us understand how to better target interventions that promote the best outcomes for our loved ones with autism. It gives us the long-term perspective, which is too often overlooked but can ultimately lead to increased independence and a more fulfilling life.”

Learn more about Autism Speaks-funded research and community grants supporting adults with autism here.

Also see “Spectrum Careers” a new jobs portal from Autism Speaks and Rangam Consultants.

New research on preschoolers finds that the behavior of girls with autism differs more from that of “neurotypical” girls than the behavior of boys with autism differs from that of other boys.

“Most studies of gender differences compare males and females with autism to each other,” says lead researcher Christine Nordahl, of the University of California-Davis MIND Institute. “But only by comparing girls with autism to other girls can we really see the extent of their social impairments and need for support.”

Dr. Nordahl presented the preliminary results of her team’s behavioral study at the International Meeting for Autism Research (IMFAR) in Salt Lake City.

For more daily news coverage from IMFAR, click here.

“Our finding suggests that girls with autism have greater social impairments than do boys,” Dr. Nordahl adds. This is consistent, she says, with previous research suggesting that, while girls have some degree of protection from autism, when they are affected, their symptoms tend to be more severe.

Comparisons of girls with autism to their unaffected peers may be crucial to improving understanding of the autism-related challenges girls and women face, Dr. Nordahl says. Unfortunately, enrolling sufficient numbers of girls into autism studies remains a great challenge. Autism affects nearly five times more boys (1 in 42) than girls (1 in 189).

The preliminary results of Dr. Nordahl’s ongoing study includes information from professional evaluations and parent surveys on 153 preschool boys and 46 preschool girls with autism. It compares their behaviors to those of 58 typically developing boys and 38 typically developing girls.

Do brain differences underlie behavior?
Dr. Nordahl also leads the Girls with Autism Imaging of Neurodevelopment (GAIN) Study. In a related brain-imaging study published last week, her team reported differences in the brains of 27 preschool girls versus 112 preschool boys with autism. More specifically, they found differences in the fibers that extend from the brain’s corpus callosum into the frontal lobes. (See image below.)

The corpus callosum forms a kind of bridge uniting the brain’s two halves, or hemispheres. The frontal lobes control many aspects of higher-level thought including social behavior and decision making.

 “Differences in the patterns of callosal fibers projecting to these areas could lead to differences in how autism manifests in boys and girls,” Dr. Nordahl says. Previous studies have associated autism with changes in the corpus callosum. However, these studies included very few girls or women, Dr. Nordahl notes.

Over the next three years, Dr. Nordahl hopes to enroll another 100 preschool-age girls with autism in her research. Learn more about the GAIN study, including recruitment across California here.

Researchers studying families at high risk for autism have linked epigenetic changes on the DNA of pregnant mothers to the severity of their children’s autism symptoms at 12 months.

Epigenetic molecules regulate when genes turn on and off. Their tight control of gene activity is particularly crucial during early brain development. Age and exposure to environmental toxins are among the factors known to alter epigenetic regulation. Genes also play a role.

The newly reported findings add to a growing body of research that implicates epigenetic changes in the development of autism.

“Our results, though preliminary, are consistent with the idea that a mother’s experiences may influence the severity of autism symptoms in her child,” says study co-author Daniele Fallin, director of the Wendy Klag Center for Autism and Developmental Disabilities, at Johns Hopkins University.

Dr. Fallin and colleagues presented their study’s preliminary results today at the International Meeting for Autism Research (IMFAR), in Salt Lake City. A number of Autism Speaks research grants help support their ongoing research.

In 2012, Autism Speaks awarded Dr. Fallin its first Geier Autism Research Grant in Environmental Sciences to advance her pioneering work on the gene-environment interactions involved in autism epigenetics. 

Tracking babies at high risk for autism
The 77 mothers and 77 children in the study are part of the larger Early Autism Risk Longitudinal Investigation (EARLI).

In 2008, EARLI researchers began following pregnancies and babies in families already affected by autism. Because autism tends to run in families, autism rates are notably higher among the younger siblings of children who have autism. Autism affects around 1 in 5 “baby sibs.” By comparison, autism’s prevalence in the general population now stands at 1 in 68.

Using blood samples from the pregnant women, the researchers analyzed epigenetic patterns across the whole genome (the entire length of each woman’s DNA). Specifically they looked at the epigenetic mechanism of methylation. In essence, a methylated gene is a gene in the “off” position. An unmethylated gene is turned on and active. (See DNA illustration at top.)

The researchers then assessed the women’s babies for autism symptoms at 12 months using the standardized Autism Observational Scale for Infants. Their analysis associated several distinct DNA methylation patterns with significantly higher levels of autism symptoms in the 1 year olds.

Epigenetic changes may reflect environmental exposures
“If these findings are confirmed,” Dr. Fallin says, “the next step is to explore how these epigenetic differences may relate to a mother’s age, environmental experiences and genetic predispositions. Above all, perhaps, these findings highlight that we need to be looking at moms as well as babies when we look for autism’s prenatal risk factors.”

Conversely, Dr. Fallin says, such epigenetic changes may ultimately serve as tell-tale markers for past environmental exposures. For instance, further research might identify epigenetic markers that reflect a past exposure to, say, high levels of air pollution. 

“If we could do a better job of measuring how particular environmental exposures predispose to autism – in this case with epigenetic signatures of specific exposures – this might help guide public policies and health recommendations to reduce autism risk,” Dr. Fallin explains. “Greater understanding of these mechanisms might also lead to better interventions – pharmaceutical or behavioral – for preventing or treating autism.”

Comments developmental pediatrician Paul Wang, Autism Speaks Head of Medical Research Research:
“As a relatively new field of investigation, epigenetics has taken us beyond traditional genetics to show that not only are genes and gene mutations important, we also need to look at where and when genes are turned on or turned off – in this case through the epigenetic mechanism of methylation. Since methylation is affected by the environment, these findings provide more evidence that environmental exposures that affect the mother can be important in understanding the causes of autism. However complex the issues, we need to keep working to better understand these exposures and how they affect the developing brain.”

Read the scientific abstract of the results presented at IMFAR here.

Autism Speaks continues to support EARLI and its related investigations into environmental risk factors for autism with a number of research grants. To learn about participating in EARLI, visit http://www.earlistudy.org.

For more on research involving high-risk families, also see “Research by Autism Speaks Baby Siblings Research Consortium.”

Autism Speaks is a major sponsor of IMFAR. For more daily news coverage, click here.

Delays in how the brain processes danger and safety may underlie the chronic anxiety that plagues so many people with autism, according to the early findings of two related studies presented at the International Meeting for Autism Research (IMFAR) today.

If confirmed with further research, the results could guide how therapists tailor treatments for anxiety in patients who also have autism.

Autism Speaks is a major funder of IMFAR. For more daily coverage, click here.

Addressing a major debility in the autism community
Anxiety is a major – frequently debilitating – problem in the autism community. By adulthood, around half of people with autism have been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder such as obsessive-compulsion, a phobia or panic disorder. Many more may struggle with chronic but undiagnosed anxiety, studies suggest.

“Among adults with autism, these anxiety disorders frequently prove more disabling than the direct symptoms of autism,” says study co-author Mikle South, a psychologist at Brigham Young University. These disorders can also be particularly difficult to treat in patients with autism.

“So we went into this study looking for possible difference in what causes anxiety in someone with autism versus anxiety in someone unaffected by the disorder,” Dr. South explains.

Discerning danger
In the first of two studies, the Brigham Young investigators used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to track brain activity during a classic “fear training” exercise. Participants included 21 young adults (ages 18 to 29) who had autism and a control group of age- and IQ-matched adults not affected by the disorder.

As each participant lay in the fMRI, he or she watched a screen displaying a random series of blue and yellow squares. (See figure 1 above.) A computer program randomly assigned one or the other color to be followed by startling puff of air to the neck – not every time the color flashed, but often enough to create an association.

This “fear acquisition” segment of the exercise was followed by a “fear extinction” portion. The participant again saw a series of randomly arranged blue and yellow squares. But neither color was followed by the startling puff of air.

All the while, the investigators were tracking activity in two parts of the brain crucial to rapidly discerning threatening situations – the amygdala and the insula. (Figure 2 below.)

In the non-autistic group, the amygdala and insula responded strongly to the “threat” color early in the first half of the exercise. This is the expected response when the brain is learning to recognize a new “danger.” The brain activity in these two regions then faded away across the extinction portion of the exercise – as it became clear that no more disquieting puffs of air were in store. (Red bars in figure 3 below.)

Right place, wrong time?
By contrast, a very different pattern arose among the participants affected by autism. Their brains’ danger-recognition centers responded weakly at best when introduced to the new danger cue. (Blue bars in figure 3 below.) Then, during the fear-extinction part of the exercise, brain activation continued to remain strong – even increase – in the amygdala and insula, when just the opposite should be happening. 

“When the danger-recognition response finally came, it was too late,” Dr. South says. “I think what we’re seeing suggests that many people with autism can’t easily discriminate when to feel safe. In that situation – when we don’t know if a situation is safe or not – our natural default is for fear. That’s just instinct to help keep us alive.”

Implications for treatment
The findings suggest possible approaches for tailoring anxiety interventions for those with autism. “If people with autism don’t rapidly process when it’s okay to feel safe, perhaps we should be looking at how to help them better understand their environment,” Dr. South proposes.

By way of example, Dr. South explains how, as a psychologist he often finds himself helping patients with autism recognize that a given situation makes them anxious. This may start with helping them recognize the physical cues that he or she is upset (racing heart, sweaty palms, etc.). Next, the person may need help recognizing what it is about the situation that is triggering the anxiety. It might be a background noise that others don’t notice. Or perhaps a blinking light in the corner.

“Once we help them identify what’s startling them, then we can help them learn that they don’t need to be afraid of it,” he explains. “It may be that those with autism need more external help processing their internal reactions to their environment.”

Neural networks for anxiety?
In their follow-up study, the Brigham Young team found weaker connections between the “fear recognition” centers of the brain (the amygdala and insula) and the frontal cortex. The frontal cortex is the area of the brain responsible for controlling emotions and making decisions.

These pathways between brain regions consist of bundles of high-speed nerve cells and form a network of communication superhighways.

“It’s the job of the frontal cortex to put the brakes on anxiety,” Dr. South explains. “It tells us, ‘hey, that’s just a garden hose and not a snake coiled in the grass.’”

Using another brain imaging method – called diffusion tensor imaging – the investigators found that these white matter pathways to the frontal cortex were, on average, half as large in the participants with autism as in those unaffected by the disorder (figure 4 at right).

“It may be that we need to pay more attention to building these pathways – beginning in early childhood – to help those with autism to better integrate sensory information from their environment,” Dr. South comments. Already many occupational therapists embrace such an approach, which they call sensory integration training, he notes.

For more on sensory integration through occupational therapy, see
“Sensory Integration: Changing the Brain through Play.”

“These insights on how anxiety may arise and persist in people with autism may prove very helpful,” comments Paul Wang, Autism Speaks’ head of medical research. “It may be that we can modify existing behavioral therapies for anxiety in ways that improve their effectiveness for people on the autism spectrum.”

Read the investigators' scientific abstract, as presented at IMFAR here and here.

For more Autism Speaks news coverage from IMFAR 2015, click here.

Swedish researchers have associated delayed clamping of a newborn’s umbilical cord with higher social and fine-motor skills in preschool boys. The findings, published today in JAMA Pediatrics, are of particular interest to those in the autism community who have suspected premature cord clamping as causing or contributing to the condition.

“This new study provides preliminary but interesting evidence that delaying cord clamping can improve aspects of child development, though it didn’t look specifically at autism symptoms,” comments developmental pediatrician Paul Wang, Autism Speaks head of medical research.

In previous research, the Swedish investigators linked early cord clamping (within 10 seconds of delivery) to iron deficiency in infants. Iron deficiency, in turn, has long been associated with poor behavioral, motor and intellectual development in children. Since then, the World Health Organization and other medical groups have recommended delayed cord clamping as a general practice. But obstetricians continue to vary in their practices.

More than a century ago, immediate cord clamping became common with the idea that it would reduce the risk of maternal bleeding and, more recently, that it would prevent infant jaundice (high bilirubin). But studies have since shown that it does neither.

“Delaying cord-clamping by just a few minutes gives infants a small transfusion of their own blood,” Dr. Wang explains. “This is helpful because many infants, especially in the developing world, have low iron, and iron is critical for child development.”

In their new investigation, the researchers followed up on the 600 infants from their earlier study when the children reached age 4. They were able to complete developmental assessments and parent questionnaires on 263. Of these, 141 had cord clamping delayed by 3 minutes or more after birth. The other 122 had cord clamping within 10 seconds of delivery.

Overall, the preschoolers in the delayed-clamping group had higher scores on several tests of fine-motor development as well as parent-reported social and personal-care skills. However, when the researchers looked separately at boys versus girls, they found clear differences only between the boys in the two groups. In addition, they found no broader differences in behavior or IQ among any of the groups.

They propose that larger differences might be seen among children at higher risk for iron deficiency than those in the relatively high-income families participating in their study.

“This study appears to be the first look at early versus delayed cord clamping and neurodevelopmental outcomes,” says epidemiologist Michael Rosanoff, Autism Speaks’ director for public health research. “While preliminary, these interesting findings warrant further investigation.”

In an accompanying editorial, experts from the University of Rhode Island and Brighton and Sussex Medical School write:

“Awareness of the benefits [of delayed cord clamping] for all newborns continues to increase as more studies are published. While many physicians have incorporated delayed cord clamping into practice, there remains a hesitation to implement delayed cord clamping, particularly with full-term infants. …this hesitation should disappear.”

Also see: “Taking Iron during Pregnancy May Lower Autism Risk.”

Get Daily Science News Updates from Autism Speaks: Subscribe here.

In its June issue, the industry newsletter Neurotech Insights features Autism Speaks' DELSIA in its "Company Spotlight." The editors interview DELSIA President Dan Smith, who is also Autism Speaks vice president for innovative technologies. Autism Speaks created DELSIA in 2012, as a not-for-profit venture philanathropy vehicle to support the commercial translation of scientific breakthroughs and technological advances into products greatly needed by the autism community.

Read the full article below.

NeuroTech Insights June 1 2015 Autism DELSIA Highlight

Learn more about DELSIA here.

A new study dramatically changes scientific understanding of the brain-immune system connection, with a newly discovered system of lymph vessels in the membranes that line the brain. (See illustration above.)

The discovery could likewise advance understanding of inflammation’s role in neurological conditions such as autism, the study authors say. Their findings appear online this week in the journal Nature.

Lymph vessels carry patrolling immune cells from sites throughout the body to lymph nodes – the “command centers” that direct the immune system to fight perceived threats with inflammation. Previously, it was believed that the brain was largely cut off from the body’s larger immune system. Indeed, the brain has its own distinct immune cells, called glia, which are found nowhere else in the body.

The new discovery suggests that there may be far more interplay between the immune systems of the brain and body than previously thought.

“This adds to the numerous lines of scientific evidence linking brain-immune system interactions to health and well-being and will increase focus on how they relate to autism,” comments neuroscientist Dan Smith, Autism Speaks’ vice president for innovative technologies. (Dr. Smith was not involved in the study.) “Whether we’re looking at genes or environmental risk factors, we repeatedly see that the brain and the immune system are implicated in its causes and symptoms.”

"We believe that for every neurological disease that has an immune component to it, these vessels may play a major role," says senior study author Jonathan Kipnis, of the University of Virginia’s Center for Brain Immunology and Glia.

The discovery was made by Antoine Louveau, a postdoctoral fellow in Kipnis' lab. He detected the lymph vessels after developing a method to examine a mouse's meninges - the membranes covering the brain - as a whole. This enabled him to see vessel-like patterns in the distribution of immune cells on the meninges. Further analysis showed that the immune cells were inside a network of lymphatic vessels.

As to how the brain's lymphatic vessels managed to escape notice all this time, Kipnis described them as "very well hidden." They follow blood vessels so closely that they are easy to miss with traditional dissection methods.

Insights into autism, Alzheimer's and beyond
The newly discovered lymphatic vessels open a new avenue of research into the immune system’s role in brain conditions such as autism, Alzheimer’s, multiple sclerosis and more.

“The promise of these findings is that they will lead to a deeper understanding of how the brain and immune systems interact in autism,” Dr. Smith concludes. “Further study may reveal specific mechanisms that underlie medical or behavioral issues and that might become targets for more effective interventions.”

For more on autism’s brain-immune connection, also see:

“Study may shed light on autism and brain inflammation”

“More evidence of impaired immune response in some children with autism”

“Study suggests that key immune protein could play a role in autism”

Subscribe to a daily digest of Autism Speaks Science News here.

In the largest study of its kind, researchers with the Autism Speaks Autism Treatment Network (ATN) found that supplements and special diets for children with autism commonly result in excessive amounts of some nutrients and deficiencies in others. In particular, they found that many of the children in their study were consuming high and potentially unsafe levels of vitamin A, folic acid and zinc while not getting enough calcium and vitamin D.

The study appears this week in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. The research was supported through the ATN’s role as the federally funded Autism Intervention Research Network on Physical Health (AIR-P).

“Few children with autism spectrum disorder need most of the micronutrients they are commonly given as multivitamins,” says lead researcher Patricia Stewart, a nutritionist in the Autism Speaks ATN at the University of Rochester Medical Center. “[This] often leads to excess intake that may place children at risk for adverse effects. When supplements are used, careful attention should be given to adequacy of vitamin D and calcium intake.”

The authors encourage families and healthcare providers to individually assess diet and nutrient levels in children with autism who are on restricted diets. Many children with autism tend to be picky, or selective, eaters. And many are on gluten-free/casein-free diets, which eliminate wheat and milk products.

Subscribe to a daily digest of Autism Speaks Science News here.

The study included 368 children, ages 2 to 11 years, diagnosed with autism and being seen at one of five Autism Speaks ATN sites: Cincinnati Children's Hospital, University of Arkansas, University of Colorado, University of Pittsburgh and University of Rochester. Twelve percent of the children were on a gluten-free/casein-free diet. And 78 percent were taking nutritional supplements.

A nutritionist trained the children’s caregivers to keep detailed diaries of all foods, drinks and supplements consumed. This included recipes, brand names and photographs of nutritional supplement labels. The researchers then analyzed three days of food records.

Overall, the investigators found that the children were consuming vitamins and minerals in amounts typical of children without autism. They also had similar deficiencies. Most commonly these involved vitamins D, E, calcium, potassium and choline.

However, many of the children in the study who were taking supplements were getting potentially unsafe amounts of vitamin A, folate and zinc. In addition, overconsumption of vitamin C and copper was common among participants ages 2 to 3, and excess manganese and copper was common for those 4 to 8 years old.

Of particular concern, around half of the children who had autism and were taking supplements were still not getting enough calcium. Around a third were not getting enough vitamin D.

As a group, the children on a gluten-free/casein-free diet got more magnesium and vitamin E than the other children did. This may be due to the substitution of soy and nut-based products for dairy, the researchers note. Children on a gluten-free/casein- this diet were also more likely to be getting enough vitamin D than were the other children.

“Feeding and nutrition are major issues for many children with autism,” comments developmental pediatrician Paul Wang, Autism Speaks’ head of medical research. “This new study shows that both nutritional deficiencies and nutritional excesses are common. We don't know the consequences of all these nutritional imbalances. But some could be important.”

For example, Dr. Wang notes that low calcium intake may contribute to the unusually high rate of bone fractures seen in children with autism.

“Many children and families affected by autism can greatly benefit from the support of nutritionists and feeding specialists to ensure both immediate and long-term health,” Dr. Wang concludes. The 14 medical centers in the Autism Speaks ATN provide such expertise and work actively to help educate healthcare providers and families in their surrounding communities.

Listen to a podcast interview with lead author Patricia Stewart here.

* Learn more about the Autism Speaks Autism Treatment Network here.
* Find the ATN center nearest you here.
* Explore our archive of ATN expert-advice blogs and news stories here.

The largest-ever multinational study of parental age and autism risk found increased autism rates among the children of teen moms and among children whose parents have relatively large gaps between their ages. The study also confirmed that older parents are at higher risk of having children with autism. The analysis included more than 5.7 million children in five countries.

The study, funded by Autism Speaks, appears online today in the journal Molecular Psychiatry.  

“Though we’ve seen research on autism and parental age before, this study is like no other,” says co-author Michael Rosanoff, Autism Speaks’ director of public health research. “By linking national health registries across five countries, we created the world’s largest data set for research into autism’s risk factors. The size allowed us to look at the relationship between parents’ age and autism at a much higher resolution – under a microscope, if you will.”

“Although parental age is a risk factor for autism, it is important to remember that, overall, the majority of children born to older or younger parents will develop normally,” adds co-author Sven Sandin. Dr. Sandin, a medical epidemiologist, works in the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, in New York, and Sweden’s Karolinska Institute.

Also see "Risk vs Cause in Autism."

The report builds on the broader research of the International Collaboration for Autism Registry for Epidemiology (iCARE). Autism Speaks is a major supporter of iCARE, with the goal of better understanding the factors that predispose or protect against autism.

Read more about Autism Speaks/iCARE research projects here.

Though previous studies had identified a link between advancing parental age and autism risk, many aspects of the association remained unclear. For example, some studies found increased risk with older dads but not moms.

The goal of the new study was to determine whether advancing maternal or paternal ages independently increase autism risk – and to what extent each might do so.

In the video clip above, John Seigenthaler, of Al Jazeera America, interviews co-author Michael Rosanoff, Autism Speaks director for public health research, about the study's importance.

Supported by research grants from Autism Speaks, the iCare team looked at autism rates among 5,766,794 children – including more than 30,000 with autism – in Denmark, Israel, Norway, Sweden and Western Australia. The children were born between 1985 and 2004. The researchers followed up on their development between 2004 and 2009, checking national health records for autism diagnoses.

In their analysis, the researchers identified and controlled for other age-related influences that might affect autism risk. When separating the influence of mother’s versus father’s age, they also adjusted for the potential influence of the other parent’s age.

“After finding that paternal age, maternal age and parental-age gaps all influence autism risk independently, we calculated which aspect was most important,” Dr. Sandin adds. “It turned out to be parental age, though age gaps also contribute significantly.”

Specifically the study found:

* Autism rates were 66 percent higher among children born to dads over 50 years of age than among those born to dads in their 20s. Autism rates were 28 percent higher when dads were in their 40s versus 20s.

* Autism rates were 18 percent higher among children born to teen moms than among those born to moms in their 20s.

* Autism rates were 15 percent higher in children born to mothers in their 40s, compared to those born to moms in their 20s

* Autism rates rose still higher when both parents were older, in line with what one would expect if each parent’s age contributed to risk.

* Autism rates also rose with widening gaps between two parents’ ages. These rates were highest when dads were between 35 and 44 years old and their partners were 10 or more years younger. Conversely, rates rose when moms were in their 30s and their partners were 10 or more years younger.

The higher risk associated with fathers over 50 is consistent with the idea that genetic mutations in sperm increase with a man’s age and that these mutations can contribute to the development of autism. By contrast, the risk factors associated with a mother’s age remain unexplained, as do those associated with a wide gap between a mother and father’s age.

“These results suggest that multiple mechanisms are contributing to the association between parental age and ASD risk,” the authors conclude.

“When we first reported that older age of fathers increases risk for autism, we suggested that mutations might be the cause,” notes co-author Abraham Reichenberg. “Genetic research later showed that this hypothesis was correct. In this study, we show for the first time that autism risk is associated with disparately aged parents. Future research should look into this in order to understand the mechanisms.” Dr. Reichenberg is a neuropsychologist and epidemiologist with the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, in New York City.

Such answers are among the goals of the Autism Speaks MSSNG project (pronounced "missing"). MSSNG, the world's largest autism whole genome sequencing initiative, is providing the autism research community with the genomic data and tools needed to find the causes and potential individualized treatments of autism. Learn more about MSSNG here.
 

Click here to read the full study.

Explore all the research that Autism Speaks is funding – including research into autism risk factors – using this website’s Grant Search Engine. 

Subscribe to a daily feed of Autism Speaks Science News page here.

Researchers working with mice bred to display autism-like behaviors found they could ease such behaviors with a low-glycemic (low sugar) diet – starting during the pregnancy of the animals' mothers.

The findings don’t prove that such a diet will help children with autism. But they back up anecdotal reports by many parents who say that autism symptoms improve when their children eat a less-sugary diet.

The report appears online in the journal Molecular Psychiatry.

High-glycemic foods produce a rapid rise in blood sugar. They tend to be rich in simple carbohydrates such as sugar. Low-glycemic foods don’t produce such a blood-sugar spike. They include foods high in protein (nuts, beans and meat) and complex carbohydrates (whole grains and vegetables). Low-glycemic diets have long been recommended for people with diabetes, to help keep blood sugar on an even keel.

In their study, scientists at California’s Salk Institute used a strain of mice bred to display autism-like symptoms such as repetitive behaviors and social avoidance. Beginning in pregnancy, they divided the mice into two groups. One they fed a high-glycemic diet; the other, a low-glycemic diet. They kept the mouse pups on the same diet as their mothers’ after birth.

Though their diets differed, the two groups of mice consumed the same amount of calories and maintained similar weights. After the pups were weaned, the researchers used a battery of tests to assess their behaviors and brain development.

Less sugar, less symptoms
All the mice in the high-glycemic diet group showed all of the expected autism-like behaviors. They avoided contact with new mice placed near their chambers. They repeated actions that served no apparent purpose and groomed excessively.

By contrast, the mice in the low-glycemic group showed an overall reduction in their autism-like behaviors. They spent more time near new mice. They spent less time performing repetitive behaviors including excessive self-grooming.

Diet and brain development
The researchers went on to look for some of the autism-associated differences in brain development and biology that had been identified in studies with people.

Compared to the mice fed the low-glycemic diet, those on the high-glycemic diet had far lower brain levels of doublecortin – a protein associated with newly developing neurons (brain nerve cells). This difference was especially pronounced in a part of the brain that controls memory.

Diet and inflammation
In addition, the brains of the mice on the high-glycemic diet had greater numbers of activated microglia – the brain’s resident immune cells. (See image at top.) Their brains also showed more gene activity associated with inflammation.

The findings bolster those of earlier studies implicating inflammation during pregnancy with increased risk of autism in people. Most of those studies focused on inflammation from infection during pregnancy. However, studies have found that high-glycemic diets tend to produce chronic low-level inflammation in both people and laboratory animals. Some researchers have proposed that this is why diabetes during pregnancy increases the risk of autism in offspring. Indeed, the Salk researchers plan to see what happens when they give pregnant mice the high-glycemic diet but then feed their pups a normal or low-glycemic diet.

Diet and gut bacteria
The researchers also assessed whether a high-glycemic diet might influence the gut’s bacterial community, or “microbiome.” Previous studies have associated alterations in the microbiome with autism. They found chemical blood markers suggesting an increase in the levels of certain gut bacteria. The group plans further research to look more closely at these changes in gut bacteria and their relationship to the animals’ autism-like behaviors.

Putting the findings into perspective
“This study illustrates two of the broad themes that the best research on autism is pursuing,” comments developmental pediatrician Paul Wang, Autism Speaks head of medical research. (Dr. Wang was not involved in the study.) “First, it shows how genes and environment might interact. The mice have a genetic predisposition to autism-like symptoms, but changing their diet – an environmental factor – can improve their behavioral symptoms. Second, the study looks at how autism can affect many different systems in the body.”

Dr. Wang goes on to caution that benefits seen in animal models frequently fail to extend to people. While a low-glycemic diet is generally considered healthful, he strongly recommends that families work with a nutritionist before embarking on any kind of a restricted diet to ensure adequate nutrition. He notes concerns raised by recent research showing that serious nutrient imbalances are common among children with autism, even when they take nutritional supplements.

To learn more about the previous research mentioned in this story, also see:

* Can early control of gestational diabetes reduce autism risk?

* The microbiome in autism spectrum disorder

* Viral inflammation during pregnancy disrupts brain-cell connections

* Prenatal inflammation linked to autism risk

Subscribe to a daily feed of Autism Speaks Science News here.

A follow-up study on the Early Start Denver Model therapy for autism finds that toddlers who completed the program maintain the significant gains they made two years later, at age 6.

The findings, to be published in the July issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, appear online ahead of print.

Autism Speaks helped fund the study and related research on the Early Start Denver Model (ESDM). ESDM promotes social and communication skills through play-based interactions that the therapist teaches parents to use at home with their children.

In an earlier study, the investigators showed that children who receive ESDM make significantly greater gains in daily function and intellectual ability compared to children who receive their community’s standard early-intervention services. These standard services typically include a mix of speech and behavioral therapy. This earlier research also found that ESDM produces clear improvements in brain function not seen in the other children. TIME magazine included these findings among its “Top Ten Medical Breakthroughs of 2012.”

The new report follows up on the 39 children in the original study. They began receiving either ESDM or their community’s standard intervention services when they were 18 to 30 months old. Both groups received at least 15 hours a week of therapy for two years.

The follow-up study found that the children in the ESDM group maintained their gains in overall intellectual ability and language and had achieved further reductions in their autism symptoms. This progress was significantly greater than the modest improvements seen in the children who had received standard community services.

"This is the evidence needed to support effective intervention policies for children with autism, whether it's insurance coverage or state support for early autism intervention," says lead researcher Annette Estes, of the University of Washington Autism Center, in Seattle.

Autism Speaks actively advocates for autism-related state initiatives and health insurance coverage nationwide. Learn more and join our efforts here.

Also see: “High-quality early intervention for autism more than pays for itself”

“Although a number of studies have shown the positive effects of early intervention on children’s abilities during the preschool period, there have been few studies to date that have followed these children,” adds senior researcher Geri Dawson. “The results suggest that early intervention results in long- term benefits for children across a wide range of skills.”

Autism Speaks' Kara Reagon, associate director of dissemination science, spoke to the Sacramento Bee about the study. She said many parents are drawn to the Early Start Denver Model because it is a naturalistic approach that does not significantly interrupt their day-to-day lives.

Dr. Dawson developed the ESDM program with Sally Rogers, of the University of California- Davis, in 2008. Dr. Dawson served as Autism Speaks’ chief science officer from 2007 to 2013 and now directs the Duke Center for Autism and Brain Development, at Duke University.

In addition to Autism Speaks funding, the study received support from the National Institute of Mental Health and National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

For more on the research referenced in this story, also see:
Intensive Early Intervention Improves Social Skills and Brain Responses.

Explore all the research and family-service projects that Autism Speaks is funding using this website’s grant search. These projects are made possible by the passion and generosity of our families, donors and volunteers.

Subscribe to a daily feed of Autism Speaks Science News here.
 

People with autism often describe themselves as "seeing the world differently." Many show a heightened perception of detail – as seen in the art of Stephen Wiltshire with its astonishingly accurate cityscapes drawn from memory. Now, researchers have found that such heightened perception is often present in infancy – long before the appearance of autism’s obvious symptoms.

The report appears today in the journal Current Biology.

The findings serve as a reminder of the strengths that often accompany autism’s challenges. They also add to the growing evidence that autism-related difficulties with social interaction – which tend to become obvious around age 2 – may stem from earlier differences in attention and perception. These may include greater interest in non-social experiences (spinning wheels, moving cars, etc.) and a general over-sensitivity to sights, sounds and other sensory input.

“Researchers are finding more and more evidence that people with autism perceive things differently,” comments developmental pediatrician Paul Wang, Autism Speaks’ head of medical research. “For some, these differences will support unique talents and creativity that deserve to be celebrated. But these differences can also create challenges that call for greater understanding and support.” Dr. Wang was not involved in the study.

The researchers, from the University of London and Kings College London, worked with 82 infants at high risk for autism because they were born into families already affected by it. Around 20 percent younger siblings of children with autism themselves develop the condition. Another 30 percent develop some autism symptoms but aren’t so severely affected that they receive a diagnosis. The study also included 27 babies at low risk of developing autism (no older sibling on the autism spectrum) as a comparison group.

All the infants were around 9 months old at the start of the study.

The researchers took advantage of the fact that infants tend to focus on anything new in a visual scene. Take, for example, the letter S appearing in a group of X's. Using a gaze-tracking device, they measured how quickly the babies spotted such a change in a video animation. (See video below.)

The researchers then used a standard behavioral checklist to assess the children for emerging behavioral symptoms of autism at 9 months, 15 months and 2 years of age. The researchers did not look at autism diagnosis, per se, because the determination is not always possible at 2 years of age.

Their finding: As a group, the infants who showed heightened visual perception abilities at 9 months had significantly higher levels of autism symptoms at both 15 months and 2 years.

"We know now that we have to give more attention to possible differences in the development of sensation and perception,” says lead researcher Teodora Gliga. "It is the sensory unpredictability of not only social interaction but also of many other aspects of daily life, that people with autism most often report as distressing.” The researchers plan to continue their research by exploring possible links between increased visual perception and difficulties in social interaction, learning and communication. They also urged research to advance understanding of how differences in brain function may underlie this heightened ability.

Editor’s note: Autism Speaks celebrates the talents of individuals with autism and is helping match individuals on the spectrum with employers who need these special skills. Learn more at The Spectrum Careers, a jobs portal created by Autism Speaks in collaboration with Rangam Consultants.

Subscribe to a daily feed of the Autism Speaks Science News page here.