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Autism begins in the womb, according to a new study
From: medicalnewstoday.com
Study finding an in-utero basis for autism is the first to do so
The other new study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, analyzed the brain tissue of children with autism.
The researchers - from the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and the Allen Institute for Brain Science in Seattle, WA - examined 25 genes in the postmortem brain tissue of children with and without autism. These genes included biomarkers for brain cells in different layers of the cortex, genes that have been linked to autism and several control genes.
Analyzing the brain tissue of deceased children who had autism breaks ground with previous research, which instead has used the brain tissue of adults with autism and attempted to extrapolate back to what might have occurred developmentally.
The team found that key genetic markers across multiple layers of brain cells were missing in the brains of autistic children.
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But equally as important as the evidence of developmental disruption in children with autism, the team believes, is that these defects appeared in "focal patches," particularly around the frontal and temporal cortex. This suggests that this defect does not apply equally to all areas of the brain and may explain why different functional systems are affected in people who have autism.
"The fact that we were able to find these patches is remarkable, given that the cortex is roughly the size of the surface of a basketball, and we only examined pieces of tissue the size of a pencil eraser," says researcher Ed S. Lein, PhD, of the Allen Institute for Brain Science. "This suggests that these abnormalities are quite pervasive across the surface of the cortex."
"The finding that these defects occur in patches rather than across the entirety of cortex gives hope as well as insight about the nature of autism," adds Dr. Courchesne.
The discovery of the patch-like nature of the defects could also explain why some toddlers with autism show improved symptoms with early treatment. The researchers think this supports the theory that the brain may be able to rewire neural connections to avoid defects.
The team claim their findings therefore raise hope that further understanding of these patches could allow scientists an insight into how that rewiring occurs, opening doors to potential new treatments and therapies.
From: medicalnewstoday.com
Study finding an in-utero basis for autism is the first to do so
The other new study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, analyzed the brain tissue of children with autism.
The researchers - from the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and the Allen Institute for Brain Science in Seattle, WA - examined 25 genes in the postmortem brain tissue of children with and without autism. These genes included biomarkers for brain cells in different layers of the cortex, genes that have been linked to autism and several control genes.
Analyzing the brain tissue of deceased children who had autism breaks ground with previous research, which instead has used the brain tissue of adults with autism and attempted to extrapolate back to what might have occurred developmentally.
The team found that key genetic markers across multiple layers of brain cells were missing in the brains of autistic children.
-----
But equally as important as the evidence of developmental disruption in children with autism, the team believes, is that these defects appeared in "focal patches," particularly around the frontal and temporal cortex. This suggests that this defect does not apply equally to all areas of the brain and may explain why different functional systems are affected in people who have autism.
"The fact that we were able to find these patches is remarkable, given that the cortex is roughly the size of the surface of a basketball, and we only examined pieces of tissue the size of a pencil eraser," says researcher Ed S. Lein, PhD, of the Allen Institute for Brain Science. "This suggests that these abnormalities are quite pervasive across the surface of the cortex."
"The finding that these defects occur in patches rather than across the entirety of cortex gives hope as well as insight about the nature of autism," adds Dr. Courchesne.
The discovery of the patch-like nature of the defects could also explain why some toddlers with autism show improved symptoms with early treatment. The researchers think this supports the theory that the brain may be able to rewire neural connections to avoid defects.
The team claim their findings therefore raise hope that further understanding of these patches could allow scientists an insight into how that rewiring occurs, opening doors to potential new treatments and therapies.