Mutations in MECP2, encoding methyl CpG binding protein 2 (MeCP2), cause most cases of Rett syndrome (RTT), an X-linked neurodevelopmental disorder. Both RTT and autism are "pervasive developmental disorders" and share a loss of social, cognitive and language skills and a gain in repetitive stereotyped behavior, following apparently normal perinatal development. Although MECP2 coding mutations ...

Feeding problems are common in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), with food selectivity being the most frequently reported. Selectivity based on type and/or texture of food is of concern in those with ASD. Variations in symptom presentation of food selectivity in children with different autism spectrum diagnoses across childhood have not often been investigated. Parent-report of fo...

Introduction: Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) are neuro-developmental disorders characterised by persistentimpairment in reciprocal social communication and repetitive patterns of behaviour.Objectives: To screen for ASDs children aged 16 to 30 months using M-CHAT-F (Modified Checklist Autismin Toddlers- Follow up) estimate the prevalence evaluate factors associated with ASDs.Method: Children we...

neuroplasticity is the brain's ability to reorganize itself by forming new neural connections throughout life. neuroplasticity allows the neurons in the brain to compensate injury and disease and to adjust their activities in response to new situations or to changes in their environment. at the other side, it is now well established that neuronal function is strongly influenced by both cen...

background: transforming growth factor-β1 (tgf-β1) has been found to play a crucial role in early central nervous system development. several studies have illustrated decreased tgf-β1 levels in sera and brains of autistic children. two point mutations in the tgf-β1 signal peptide at 869t/c and 915g/c have been reported to influence tgf-β1 expression. the aim of the present study was to investig...

BACKGROUND Individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) often display symptoms from other diagnostic categories. Studies of clinical and psychosocial outcome in adult patients with ASDs without concomitant intellectual disability are few. The objective of this paper is to describe the clinical psychiatric presentation and important outcome measures of a large group of normal-intelligence a...

Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are characterized by impairments in social behaviors that are sometimes coupled to specialized cognitive abilities. A small percentage of ASD patients carry mutations in genes encoding neuroligins, which are postsynaptic cell-adhesion molecules. We introduced one of these mutations into mice: the Arg451-->Cys451 (R451C) substitution in neuroligin-3. R451C mutant...

Thiomersal is an organomercury compound known for its antiseptic and antifungal properties and used as an antibacterial agent in pharmaceutical products, including vaccines and other injectable biological products. In recent years, concerns about the possible link between immunization with thiomersal-containing vaccines and autism development have grown. Many case-control and cohort studies hav...

Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are common, heritable, but genetically heterogeneous neurodevelopmental conditions. We recently defined a susceptibility locus for ASDs on chromosome 1q41-q42. High-resolution single-nucleotide polymorphisms (126 SNPs) genotyping across the chromosome 1q41-q42 region, followed by a MARK1 (microtubule affinity-regulating kinase 1)-tagged-SNP association study in ...