Chronic gastrointestinal issues, including pain and constipation, are common among individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), yet the mechanisms through which gastrointestinal dysfunction occur in ASD are not understood. The current project aims to investigate the development and function of peripheral sensory neurons that regulate gastrointestinal function in mice and determine whether this neuronal population is dysfunctional in genetic mouse models of ASD.

Discovering the neurophysiological basis of autism is important for understanding its development and testing potential treatments. In the current project, Scott Murray and Sara Jane Webb seek to test a novel neurophysiological hypothesis of disrupted neural inhibition that is specifically related to the removal of excitatory drive. This will involve the use of several neurophysiological recording techniques in human subjects, including electroencephalography and event-related potentials, combined with brain imaging and psychophysical measures of visual sensitivity.