1. Aili A, Yimin Z, Maiming N, Tuhongjiang Y, Paerhati J, Aini X, Kelimu A, Maimaiti R. The correlation between dietary behaviors and gut microbiota in children with autism spectrum disorder: A cross-sectional study. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. 2026.

OBJECTIVE: This study investigated the associations between dietary behaviors and gut microbiota in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) stratified according to symptom severity, aiming to provide evidence for targeted interventions. METHODS: A cross-sectional study enrolled 81 children with ASD aged 3-12 years, divided into mild-to-moderate (n = 35) and severe (n = 46) groups based on Childhood Autism Rating Scale scores. Dietary behaviors were assessed using the Children’s Eating Behavior Questionnaire. Gut microbiota was analyzed by 16S rRNA (16S ribosomal RNA) gene sequencing. Spearman correlation examined associations. RESULTS: The severe ASD group showed significantly lower Enjoyment of Food scores and higher scores for both Emotional Undereating and Emotional Overeating (p < 0.05). Alpha diversity (Shannon and Simpson indices) was significantly lower in the severe group (p < 0.05). Beta diversity showed significant between-group separation (p < 0.05). The severe group exhibited decreased Firmicutes and increased Proteobacteria at the phylum level, with decreased Faecalibacterium and Dialister and a 2.8-fold increase in Klebsiella at the genus level (p < 0.05). Correlation analysis revealed severity-dependent associations: mild-to-moderate ASD showed phylum-level associations, while severe ASD showed genus-level associations. CONCLUSION: Children with severe ASD exhibited more pronounced dietary behavior abnormalities and gut microbiota dysbiosis. The severity-dependent associations suggest stratified intervention strategies for ASD children.

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2. Andreasen S, Birnie K, Lunsky Y, McMorris CA. The ARISE (Autism Research Initiatives for Suicidality and Empowerment) Project: A study protocol for a modified James Lind Alliance priority-setting process determining research priorities for suicidality in autistic youth. BMJ Open. 2026; 16(8): e115813.

INTRODUCTION: Autistic children and adolescents (herein, youth) are at 3.5 times greater risk of suicide attempts and deaths than the general population, with attempts beginning as early as 10 years of age. However, little is known about the predictors of suicidality or how to provide adequate support to prevent premature mortality in autistic youth. This study will fill critical research and knowledge gaps by identifying the needs and preferences for future research on suicidality in autistic youth. By completing this process alongside the perspectives of caregivers, clinicians and policymakers, we will also determine critical knowledge-to-action steps that will inform future clinical practice and policy directions. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: Using a modified James Lind Alliance priority-setting process (JLA PSP) grounded in a patient engagement approach, the current study will identify key research priorities on suicidality in autistic youth. Our modified JLA PSP process will include: (1) forming a steering committee, (2) conducting a rapid literature review, (3) carrying out a survey across Canada, and (4) collaboratively identifying and disseminating consensus-based research priorities. Questions generated from survey responses will be summarised and then discussed in a priority-setting workshop to identify and agree on a list of the top research priorities for suicidality in autistic youth. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This study has received ethics approval by the University of Calgary Conjoint Faculties Research Ethics Board (REB24-1761). A risk protocol is in place, which outlines the procedure to be undertaken if a participant contacts the research team in distress. Survey respondents will provide informed consent before participation and have access to a resource page containing contact details for a range of support services. Members of the steering committee will have an opportunity to debrief and process difficult discussions with a researcher and clinician with training in suicide and mental health in autism.The top research priorities list will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications and conference publications on both the top priorities and the engagement process with partners, as well as policy briefs for national mental health and suicide strategies, community presentations and social media. In partnership with our community partner organisations, we will conduct webinars for researchers and clinicians as well as community events. Steering committee members (including autistic youth and their caregivers) will be included in co-creating knowledge translation activities.With more than one-third of autistic people experiencing suicidality, and a quarter making at least one attempt, better understanding the priorities in this under-researched area has the potential to save many lives as the identification of autism in youth and adults continues to increase.

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3. Basualdo Allende AL. Comment on: ‘Living in a world that’s not about us’: The impact of everyday life on the health and wellbeing of autistic women and gender diverse people. Womens Health (Lond). 2026; 22: 17455057261484826.

This correspondence comments on Grove et al.’s autistic-led qualitative study on the health and wellbeing of autistic women and gender-diverse people. It argues that oral health should be considered within autism-aware women’s healthcare because toothbrushing, dental attendance, oral pain, sensory distress, and communication barriers may affect daily living, access to care, and overall wellbeing. The letter proposes a practical integration pathway based on simple oral-health screening, autism-aware dental referral, sensory and communication adaptations, and collaboration with primary care, mental health, and women’s health services. This approach does not imply causality, but supports more holistic, person-centred care.

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4. Caldwell-Harris CL. Autistic interests: wide-ranging and intellectually oriented. Front Psychiatry. 2026; 17: 1749552.

INTRODUCTION: The interests of autistic individuals have traditionally been described as circumscribed and restricted, serving the functions of self-regulation by reducing prediction error. Historically, this may have seemed reasonable when applied to autistic children and adults with intellectual disability. The current study investigated the restrictiveness and function of focused interests of autistic adults with typical intellectual ability. METHODS: To hear from autistic adults themselves, bypassing interviewers’ agendas, online discussion posts were analyzed from threads that opened with questions such as What are your special interests? Content analysis was utilized to categorize the special interest topics into a taxonomy (e.g., Academic, Entertainment) and to code for functions, including knowledge seeking (systemizing), mastery, self-regulation, and socializing. Word frequency analyses tallied terms associated with intellectual content and intensity, to evaluate whether interests serve knowledge-seeking vs self-regulation. RESULTS: Academic topics dominated the interests mentioned, appearing in approximately half of all posts, with psychology-related topics being the most frequent, appearing in 29% of posts. Interests were often highly specific, but were frequently the opposite of restricted. Many posts described a large, diverse range of interests, spanning disparate domains, which was labeled wide-ranging intellectual appetite. Knowledge seeking emerged as the primary function, with 52% of posts containing relevant terms (e.g., learn, read, research). Intellectual approaches to an interest were frequently reported even for non-academic topics like fictional worlds, cooking, pets and true crime. Posts describing the purpose of interests as self-regulation appeared in 9% of posts, career, 6% of posts, and socializing, 4% of posts. DISCUSSION: The findings challenge the traditional deficit perspective by demonstrating that focused interests in autistic adults are characterized by knowledge seeking, a construct similar to systemizing, but more explicitly on a continuum with academic interests. These interests are not restricted but wide-ranging, resembling the explorations of polymaths. The established view, that intense interests reduce anxiety by promoting predictability, originated in historical attention to autistic individuals with atypical intellectual ability. Intellectual disability obscured how repetitive behaviors such as object manipulation are ‘experiments to see’. I propose that knowledge-seeking is the primary function of systemizing and intense interests, thus unifying focused interests across multiple levels of intellectual ability of the autism spectrum.

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5. Cheng JS, Held JB, Murphy CG, Onyeka OC, Guzick AG, Riddle DB, Berry LN, Goin-Kochel RP, Messerli MC, Carter JA, Vazquez M, Trent ES, Boedeker PJ, Quast T, Storch EA. Development and Pilot Testing of Internet-Delivered Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Anxiety and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders in Autistic Adolescents. J Cogn Psychother. 2026.

Anxiety disorders are prevalent in autistic adolescents, yet barriers to treatment access exist. The current article describes (a) the development of an internet-delivered, therapist-assisted cognitive behavioral therapy protocol adapted for autistic adolescents with co-occurring anxiety and/or obsessive-compulsive disorder and (b) preliminary feasibility, acceptability, and effectiveness data. Ten autistic adolescents between the ages of 11 and 17 were enrolled. Based on qualitative feedback and quantitative data (i.e., program usage, completion, and satisfaction), the intervention demonstrated strong acceptability and feasibility. Among the eight participants who completed treatment, there were statistically significant reductions in clinician- and parent-rated anxiety symptoms, but not child-rated anxiety symptoms. Posttreatment response and remission rates were 37.5% and 25%, respectively. Further evaluation in a randomized controlled trial is warranted.

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6. Chetcuti L, Spackman E, Loth E, Baker E, Hardan AY, Uljarevic M. Empathy Moderates the Association Between Social Disengagement and Emotion Problems in Autistic Youth. Autism Res. 2026: e70341.

Social disengagement and empathizing difficulties are common in autism and have been linked to various socioemotional outcomes. Yet, their relationship remains understudied. This study addresses this gap by examining associations among different forms of social disengagement and empathy in autistic children and adolescents, as well as their interactive effects in predicting concurrent emotion problems. Parents of 689 autistic youth aged 5-17 years (M [SD] = 11.23 [3.56]; 76% male) completed questionnaires: the Child Social Preference Scale assessed shyness, unsociability, and social avoidance; the Children’s Empathy Quotient measured cognitive and affective empathy; and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire assessed emotion problems. Results showed that all forms of social disengagement were associated with difficulties in both cognitive and affective empathy, with social avoidance showing the strongest associations. Furthermore, the interplay between different forms of social disengagement and empathy contributed to variability in emotion problems. Specifically, the links between unsociability and social avoidance and elevated emotion problems were stronger among youth with higher levels of empathy. In contrast, the positive association between shyness and emotion problems was not influenced by empathy. These findings underscore the importance of considering the multifaceted nature of social disengagement and its association with empathy, offering directions for future research.

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7. Deleş B, Kaytez N, Aral N. A bibliometric analysis of early intervention programs for autism spectrum disorder. Appl Neuropsychol Child. 2026: 1-12.

This study examined early intervention programs for autism spectrum disorder using bibliometric methods. A total of 1,065 research and review articles published in English between 1992 and 2025 and indexed in the Web of Science database were analyzed. The findings showed a marked increase in publications after 2013, with most studies originating from the United States, Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom. In recent years, telehealth and JASPER have emerged as prominent research topics. Overall, this study provides a comprehensive bibliometric overview of the intellectual landscape of early intervention research on autism spectrum disorder by mapping publication trends, geographical distribution, and thematic developments. In addition, it establishes a bibliometric foundation for future studies investigating the neuropsychological mechanisms underlying early intervention programs, including research on brain function, neuroimaging, and developmental outcomes in children with autism spectrum disorder.

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8. Durand-Larrieux C, Geindre-Bombrun C. [Not Available]. Sante Publique. 2026; 38(Hs1): 175-9.

Autism self-help groups (SHGs) are designed as spaces of empowerment that promote inclusion, citizenship, and, by extension, the mental health of people with autism. The opportunity for self-management by the people concerned opens up strong prospects for (re)building their identity, enabling them to develop multiple skills, assert their autonomy, and become involved in various peer support, social participation, and creative initiatives. However, in practice, self-managed SHGs for autism come up against several obstacles, including a lack of specific support, limited institutional recognition, and the absence of qualitative evaluation of the effects on individual and collective trajectories. Autistic coordinators, who are often in precarious situations, have to take on a host of responsibilities without benefiting from the pooled resources available to traditional medico-social institutions. This reality raises questions about the ability of self-managed SHGs for autism to become genuine, sustainable drivers of public mental health. Beyond these observations, this article proposes to reflect on the role that these SHGs could play as places for health promotion and participatory research in the field of neurodiversity, as part of an approach that respects autistic self-normativity and the principle of health democracy: &#8220;nothing for us without us.&#8221.

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9. El Omari M, El Belghiti Y, Belmajdoub H, Minaoui K, Saoudi S. Multibranch Attention and Fusion Network for Voice-Based Autism Detection Using Heterogeneous Audio Embeddings. Int J Neural Syst. 2026: 2750016.

Voice-based analysis is attracting growing interest as a noninvasive means of identifying early markers of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). While pretrained audio models such as YAMNet and VGGish provide complementary views of children’s speech, most existing studies rely on a single representation and do not explore how these embeddings may be combined in a structured manner. This work introduces the multibranch attention and fusion network (MBAFNet), an architecture designed to make fuller use of heterogeneous embeddings by processing each stream through its own convolutional encoder, extracting temporal cues at multiple scales, and modeling cross-representation interactions through a self-attention layer. A gating mechanism then regulates the relative contribution of each embedding before classification. Experiments conducted on the CASD-SC corpus under a subject-disjoint five-fold evaluation protocol show that MBAFNet achieves 94.17% accuracy, outperforming all evaluated baselines and previously reported state-of-the-art approaches. These findings indicate that carefully designed selective fusion can reveal complementary information contained in pretrained embeddings and supports the development of more robust speech-based ASD assessment frameworks, while broader validation remains necessary before screening-oriented use.

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10. Foster TE, Bender GZ, Hine JF, Swanson A, Warren ZE. Screening Tool for Autism in Toddlers and Young Children (STAT) Training: Clinician Confidence, Implementation Barriers, and Ongoing Support Needs. J Dev Behav Pediatr. 2026.

OBJECTIVE: The STAT-MD training program aims to address limited access to specialty autism evaluation services by teaching pediatric professionals to conduct autism assessments using the Screening Tool for Autism in Toddlers and Young Children (STAT). While previous research has demonstrated increased autism-focused assessment and diagnosis in community settings following STAT-MD training, implementation in real-world practice has been hindered by logistical barriers, limited follow-up support, and challenges with integration into community-based care. This study aimed to gather input from past STAT-MD training participants to better inform diagnostic training offerings for primary care clinicians and community providers. METHOD: We invited 1,190 eligible participants from past STAT-MD trainings (2004-2024) to complete an electronic survey. Survey respondents (n = 58) reported on the training’s long-term impact on provider confidence, clinical use, and barriers to implementation. RESULTS: Results showed significant increases in provider confidence across 9 assessment-related domains (p < 0.001), but only 64% of respondents reported applying training content in practice or administering the STAT, and only 54% reported diagnosing autism following training. Reported barriers to implementation included time constraints, limited access to specialists, and inadequate reimbursement. Respondents highlighted the need for ongoing support, implementation guidance, and additional training on caregiver counseling and assessing a broader range of autism presentations. CONCLUSION: These findings underscore the need for training models that provide tailored resources and sustained support around integration within existing practice systems. Future efforts should refine diagnostic training based on provider feedback to increase their long-term impact and facilitate community-based autism assessment.

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11. Govender P, Livingstone RW, Hidalgo-Robles Á, Schomerus R, Leite HR, Paleg G. Applying an F-words lens to planning intervention for a child with autism: a retrospective case report with prospective follow-up. Front Psychiatry. 2026; 17: 1905890.

Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) present with complex, multi-domain functional challenges that single-domain intervention approaches fail to address adequately. This retrospective case report, with prospective follow-up from age 7 years, applies CanChild’s F-words and the F-words Lens Tool to examine intervention planning and developmental outcomes across a five-year trajectory for an eight-year-old autistic girl with co-occurring hypotonia and joint hypermobility. For each developmental period, from 24 months to eight years, we identify the functional challenge encountered, drawing on standardized assessment data (CELF Preschool, Renfrew Action Picture Test, ADOS-2) alongside clinical and family report, and describe how F-words thinking informed clinical decision-making in real time; the F-words Lens Tool, developed subsequently, is applied here, retrospectively for earlier periods and prospectively from age 7, to structure this reasoning transparently, specify the interventions selected and their cross-domain rationale, and report outcomes. The case traces the child’s trajectory through the early developmental period, and following transition to mainstream schooling with presenting strengths and challenges. Caregiver accounts (father, grandmother) and the child’s own first-person perspective provide the lived experience outcomes across F-words domains. Together, this triangulated account demonstrates how the F-words and F-words Lens Tool can enhance clinical decision-making and family collaboration while preserving child agency, contributing an example to the global discourse on evidence-based, family-centred practice in complex neurodevelopmental presentations.

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12. Hou J, Fang Y, Wang Y, Wen S. The impact of non-invasive brain stimulation and digital intervention on social cognitive therapy in autism spectrum disorder: a systematic review and network meta-analysis. Front Psychiatry. 2026; 17: 1877176.

INTRODUCTION: To evaluate the relative efficacy of non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) and digital interventions for improving social cognition in autism spectrum disorder (ASD). METHODS: A systematic search of PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane, CNKI to February 2026 yielded 50 randomized controlled trials (RCTs). A Bayesian network meta-analysis was performed using R, ranking interventions via Surface Under the Cumulative Ranking curve (SUCRA) and assessing evidence certainty with Confidence in Network Meta-Analysis (CINEMA). RESULTS: Across the included trials (mean age range: 2.54 to 20.80 years), among 9 interventions, transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) emerged as optimal (SUCRA = 88.24%), significantly outperforming treatment as usual (TAU) (SMD=-1.69, 95% CrI: -2.67, -0.70). This was followed by high-frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (HF-rTMS) (84.38%, SMD=-1.60, 95% CrI: -2.32, -0.89), low-frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (LF-rTMS) (74.22%, SMD=-1.36, 95% CrI: -1.77, -0.96), and theta-burst stimulation (TBS) (64.21%, SMD=-1.19, 95% CrI: -2.02, -0.35); all significantly outperformed TAU. Standalone digital interventions ranked lower. Meta-regression showed no significant age moderating effect. CONCLUSIONS: tDCS is the most efficacious standalone intervention for ASD social cognitive deficits. We recommend tDCS or TBS clinically and advocate a synergistic paradigm integrating NIBS neural priming with digital training. However, future large-scale, rigorous RCTs are required to further validate both these standalone modalities and the proposed combined protocols. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/view/CRD420261337491, identifier CRD420261337491.

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13. Kamal M. Commentary: Autism screening and diagnosis in children with congenital heart disease. Front Pediatr. 2026; 14: 1936706.

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14. Luan Y, Zhang H, Ma N, Zhang Y, Xu Z, Zhang W, Zhang X, Liu Y. HK2 drives synaptic dysfunction in fragile X syndrome via epigenetic regulation of H3K18 lactylation. Front Pharmacol. 2026; 17: 1903604.

INTRODUCTION: Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder caused by loss of fragile X messenger ribonucleoprotein (FMRP) expression and characterized by synaptic dysfunction and cognitive impairment. However, the metabolic and epigenetic mechanisms underlying these abnormalities remain poorly understood. To address this gap, this study investigated the role of hexokinase 2 (HK2) in FXS pathogenesis and explored downstream metabolic and epigenetic mechanisms associated with synaptic dysfunction and cognitive impairment. METHODS: Using an Fmr1 (-/Y) mouse model, we evaluated HK2 expression and its cell-type specificity in hippocampal neurons. RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) analysis was performed to examine the association between FMRP and Hk2 mRNA. Genetic knockdown of HK2 was used to assess its effects on neurite outgrowth, synapse density, synaptic transmission, and hippocampal long-term potentiation (LTP). Finally, pharmacological experiments using the HDAC3 inhibitor RGFP966 were performed to examine whether modulation of H3K18la levels contributes to HK2-associated phenotypes. RESULTS: HK2 expression was markedly elevated in hippocampal neurons of Fmr1 (-/Y) mice. RIP analysis revealed an association between FMRP and Hk2 mRNA, suggesting that HK2 may represent an FMRP-associated transcript. Genetic suppression of HK2 promoted neurite outgrowth, increased synapse density, and improved synaptic transmission and hippocampal long-term potentiation (LTP) in Fmr1 (-/Y) mice. Mechanistically, HK2 knockdown selectively reduced H3K18la levels without affecting H3K18 acetylation, supporting a role for HK2 in regulating histone lactylation. Consistent with these findings, pharmacological inhibition of HDAC3 with RGFP966 increased H3K18la levels and attenuated the beneficial effects of HK2 suppression on neuronal morphology, synaptic plasticity, and cognitive function. Behavioral analyses demonstrated that modulation of the HK2-H3K18la axis improved spatial learning and memory in Fmr1 (-/Y) mice. CONCLUSION: Taken together, these findings support a role for the HK2-H3K18la axis in synaptic dysfunction in FXS. Targeting this metabolic-epigenetic axis may provide a potential avenue for future therapeutic exploration in FXS and related neurodevelopment disorders.

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15. Napitupulu CLM, Tengkawan J, Utari A, Winarni TI, Sihombing NRB. Phenotypic variability of Fragile-X syndrome in Asian population: A systematic review. Intractable Rare Dis Res. 2026; 15(3): 232-46.

Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is the most common genetic cause of inherited intellectual disabilities. Individuals with full mutation of FXS exhibit physical and behavioral symptoms in addition to other comorbidities. The clinical features of FXS have been widely studied in Caucasians; however, they remain limited in the Asian population. This study aimed to characterize the spectrum and variability of physical and behavioral phenotypes in Asian populations. A total of 5,830 studies from the PubMed, ScienceDirect, Scopus, and Cochrane/CENTRAL databases were screened using the Covidence software. We identified FXS-specific research studies conducted in Asia that reported the clinical characteristics of individuals with FXS. This review summarizes 51 studies from different Asian regions. The frequently reported physical characteristics were large and prominent ears (72.63%), an elongated face (57.49%), and macroorchidism (45.21%). The three most prevalent behavioral characteristics were intellectual disability (ID), hyperactivity, and social withdrawal, reported in 99%, 77%, and 55% of all cases, respectively. Our findings show that the physical characteristics of FXS are variable in the Asian group but similar to those in other populations and are not recommended for early recognition. Individuals with intellectual disabilities, especially when combined with autism spectrum disorders and large prominent ears, are suggestive of further genetic testing for FXS.

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16. Nunez-Gaunaurd A, Tovin MM, Hale M, Li T, Bhat A. Remote Assessment of Physical Function and Physical Activity in Adults With Autism Spectrum Disorder: Protocol for Feasibility, Validity, and Reliability Study. JMIR Res Protoc. 2026; 15: e86020.

BACKGROUND: Adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are at increased risk for chronic health conditions and reduced quality of life (QoL), often linked to lower physical activity (PA), motor impairments, and barriers to health care access. Although communication and social differences in ASD are well documented, motor impairments such as deficits in coordination, balance, and gait remain understudied in adulthood despite their relevance to fall risk and PA participation. Telehealth and wearable technologies may improve access to physical therapy assessment and remote monitoring of physical function in this underserved population. OBJECTIVE: This pilot study aims to evaluate the feasibility, construct validity, and rating reliability of remotely administered physical function and balance assessments in adults with ASD and to examine racial and ethnic disparities and associations among physical function, PA, fall risk, and QoL. METHODS: This pilot study uses a 2-phase, cross-sectional, noninterventional design with remote data collection in legally independent adults aged 18-59 years with ASD who were recruited through the Simons Powering Autism Research and Knowledge (SPARK) registry. Participants complete self-report questionnaires; 2 weeks of wearable step monitoring using a Fitbit Inspire 3 (Google LLC) device; and, for a randomized subset of 25 participants, 1 remote, telehealth-based physical function assessment session. Remote performance-based measures include the Five Times Sit-to-Stand, 30-second Sit-to-Stand, standing balance under eyes open and eyes closed conditions, and single-leg stance under eyes open and eyes closed conditions. Construct validity of the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) physical function measures will be examined using hypothesis testing with related indicators of health and functioning, including steps per day, lower-extremity functional outcome surveys, fall risk screening surveys, and comorbidity burden. Interrater and intrarater reliability of remote performance scoring will be evaluated from video-recorded sessions scored by 6 raters using intraclass correlation coefficients. Secondary analyses will examine racial and ethnic disparities in physical function, PA, and QoL, as well as associations among these variables and moderation by race and ethnicity. RESULTS: Study funding was available from August 2024 to May 2025. Recruitment occurred from December 2024 to March 2025, and final data collection was completed in May 2025. By May 2025, 155 adults with ASD had been recruited, of whom 65.2% were female and 77% identified as Black or Hispanic. Data analysis is projected to be completed in July 2026, and submission of the primary results manuscript is anticipated in August 2026. CONCLUSIONS: This protocol describes a pilot study designed to evaluate the feasibility, construct validity, and equity relevance of remotely administered physical function assessments in adults with ASD. If supported, the findings may provide preliminary evidence for more accessible telehealth-based assessment approaches and inform larger studies on physical functioning, PA, and QoL in this population. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): DERR1-10.2196/86020.

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17. Pereira RO, Almeida-Souza TH, de Santana ALS, Dos Santos JR, de Oliveira ESAM. Maternal high-fat diet and autism-relevant behavioural domains: insights from social and anxiety-like behaviours in rodent models. Brain Res. 2026; 1891: 150523.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental condition involving interactions between genetic and environmental factors. Among environmental exposures, maternal nutrition has received increasing attention. This narrative review critically discusses preclinical evidence on maternal high-fat diet (HFD) exposure and autism-relevant behavioural domains in rodent offspring, focusing on social and anxiety-like behaviours and their underlying neurobiological mechanisms. Maternal HFD exposure was associated with alterations in sociability, social novelty, direct social interaction, aggression, and anxiety-like behaviour. These outcomes varied according to diet and control-diet composition, exposure window, maternal metabolic phenotype, offspring sex and age, species and strain, and behavioural paradigm. Despite significant evidence, the methodological heterogeneity between studies limits the generalisability of the findings and points to the need for standardisation of experimental protocols and further investigation of dimorphic differences and long-term impacts. Additionally, this review highlights the importance of considering contextual factors, such as variations in dietary composition and environmental conditions, which may modulate behavioural and neurochemical outcomes. Furthermore, the integration of interdisciplinary approaches and use of more refined models may improve our understanding of the underlying mechanisms. This review contributes to advancing knowledge regarding the impact of HFD during pregnancy on the neurodevelopment of the offspring.

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18. Zuo X, Zhang X, Liu Y, Li X, Xia M, Ma Y, Fan X. Organoid intelligence: a promising paradigm for autism spectrum disorder research. Mol Psychiatry. 2026.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a multifactorial neurodevelopmental condition marked by heterogeneity in its clinical presentations, which complicates both its diagnosis and treatment. Despite advancements, the molecular mechanisms underlying ASD remain largely unclear. In recent years, two independent yet highly promising technological domains have made significant advancements: organoids and artificial intelligence (AI). Brain organoids can simulate critical processes of human neurodevelopment in both physiological and pathological states, providing an unprecedented window into the mechanisms and potential therapeutics of ASD. Simultaneously, AI has demonstrated formidable capabilities for processing and analyzing large-scale, high-dimensional biomedical data, and has been effectively applied to ASD imaging analysis, genomics research, and behavioral data interpretation. However, these two fields have developed mainly in parallel, leaving their potential for cross-disciplinary integration untapped in ASD research. This review aims to fill this gap by reviewing the current status and limitations of both fields in the context of ASD, and to elucidate a promising research paradigm that integrates AI with brain organoids, called « organoid intelligence », to enhance our understanding of predictive models, unravel ASD pathogenesis, and develop more effective and individualized therapies.

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