Summary: Researchers identify a genetic variant in the serotonin transporter gene that is associated with social phobia. Source: University of Bonn. Study from the University of Bonn Supports a Role for Serotonin in Social Anxiety People with social anxiety disorder, also known as social phobia, fear situations in which they may be judged by others. … Read more

Rare Neurons Discovered in Monkey Brains Max Planck scientists identify von Economo neurons in macaque insula, advancing research into self-awareness, empathy and neuropsychiatric disorders. The anterior insular cortex is a compact but highly significant brain region implicated in human self-awareness, subjective feeling, and a range of neuropsychiatric conditions. A distinctive cell type known as the … Read more

University of Kansas researchers found larger resting pupil size and distinctive salivary enzyme patterns in children with autism spectrum disorder Researchers at the University of Kansas report that children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) showed larger resting pupil diameter and altered levels of salivary alpha-amylase (sAA), an enzyme closely associated with the neurotransmitter norepinephrine … Read more

Summary: A recent review identifies alarming trends in mass school shootings across the United States. Researchers report that, since 2000, more people have died in school shootings than in the entire 20th century, and they call for coordinated policy and school-based responses. More people have died or been injured in mass school shootings in the … Read more

Summary: Researchers have developed an ultra-fast sensor that can count the number of glutamate molecules released from a single synaptic vesicle, revealing new mechanisms by which the brain regulates chemical signaling. Source: Chalmers University of Technology Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology and the University of Gothenburg in Sweden have achieved a major breakthrough: they … Read more

New study pinpoints how a specific cellular mechanism drives autism and suggests an existing drug could help patients with UBE3A-related conditions. In late 2015, genetic studies identified more than 1,000 gene mutations associated with autism, but the cellular pathways linking those mutations to the disorder were largely unknown. Researchers at the UNC School of Medicine … Read more

UC Davis researchers identify mitochondrial TSPO as a promising drug target to protect and repair myelin in multiple sclerosis Scientists at the University of California, Davis have discovered that targeting a mitochondrial protein called the translocator protein (TSPO) could lead to safer, more effective therapies for multiple sclerosis (MS) and other diseases that involve loss … Read more

Summary: A new, comprehensive open-access database showing gene activity in mice across ten disease models offers a complete view of immune responses and could substantially reduce the need for animal experiments worldwide. Source: Francis Crick Institute Comprehensive Mouse Gene Expression Resource Reveals Immune Responses Across Diseases Scientists at the Francis Crick Institute have produced a … Read more

Summary: Children whose mothers have a sibling with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) were about three times as likely to be diagnosed with ASD compared with children whose mothers had no siblings with autism. Children whose fathers have one or more siblings diagnosed with ASD were about twice as likely to have an ASD diagnosis. These … Read more

Research shows the brain’s lasting plasticity and how early language exposure shapes later processing You might feel you’ve forgotten a language you heard as a child, but the brain often retains traces of that early exposure. New research indicates that even brief exposure to a first language in infancy can influence how the brain processes … Read more