1. {{Neurobiology: Autism detector}}. {Nature} (Aug 19);466(7309):905.
2. Campbell JM, Barger BD. {{Middle School Students’ Knowledge of Autism}}. {J Autism Dev Disord} (Aug 21)
Authors examined 1,015 middle school students’ knowledge of autism using a single item of prior awareness and a 10-item Knowledge of Autism (KOA) scale. The KOA scale was designed to assess students’ knowledge of the course, etiology, and symptoms associated with autism. Less than half of students (46.1%) reported having heard of autism; however, most students correctly responded that autism was a chronic condition that was not communicable. Students reporting prior awareness of autism scored higher on 9 of 10 KOA scale items when compared to their naive counterparts. Prior awareness of autism and KOA scores also differed across schools. A more detailed understanding of developmental changes in students’ knowledge of autism should improve peer educational interventions.
3. Chomiak T, Karnik V, Block E, Hu B. {{Altering the trajectory of early postnatal cortical development can lead to structural and behavioural features of autism}}. {BMC Neurosci} (Aug 19);11(1):102.
ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Autism is a behaviourally defined neurodevelopmental disorder with unknown etiology. Recent studies in autistic children consistently point to neuropathological and functional abnormalities in the temporal association cortex (TeA) and its associated structures. It has been proposed that the trajectory of postnatal development in these regions may undergo accelerated maturational alterations that predominantly affect sensory recognition and social interaction. Indeed, the temporal association regions that are important for sensory recognition and social interaction are one of the last regions to mature suggesting a potential vulnerability to early maturation. However, direct evaluation of the emerging hypothesis that an altered time course of early postnatal development can lead to an ASD phenotype remains lacking. RESULTS: We used electrophysiological, histological, and behavioural techniques to investigate if the known neuronal maturational promoter valproate, similar to that in culture systems, can influence the normal developmental trajectory of TeA in vivo. Brain sections obtained from postnatal rat pups treated with VPA in vivo revealed that almost 40% of cortical cells in TeA prematurely exhibited adult-like intrinsic electrophysiological properties and that this was often associated with gross cortical hypertrophy and a reduced predisposition for social play behaviour. CONCLUSIONS: The co-manifestation of these functional, structural and behavioural features suggests that alteration of the developmental time course in certain high-order cortical networks may play an important role in the neurophysiological basis of autism.
4. Ghanizadeh A. {{Possible role of caffeine in autism spectrum disorders, a new testable hypothesis}}. {J Food Sci} (Aug 1);75(6):ix.
5. Holt R, Barnby G, Maestrini E, Bacchelli E, Brocklebank D, Sousa I, Mulder EJ, Kantojarvi K, Jarvela I, Klauck SM, Poustka F, Bailey AJ, Monaco AP. {{Corrigendum to: Linkage and candidate gene studies of autism spectrum disorders in European populations}}. {Eur J Hum Genet} (Sep);18(9):1020.
