Medications for treating the core symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) continue to be an unmet need. The only medications approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of individuals with ASD are effective in treating irritability and associated aggressive behaviors, but these medications can also cause severe long-term side effects such as diabetes and involuntary motor movements. Effective medications with more tolerable side effect profiles are highly desirable.

Eye-tracking is a well-established research tool that can be used to study social cognition in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Previous work at the Yale Child Study Center has shown that eye-tracking techniques are robust measures of atypical social-information processing across the lifespan in individuals with ASD.

In this study, Carolyn Bridgemohan and colleagues assessed the feasibility of using platelet serotonin and urinary melatonin levels as biomarkers in children with ASD, including evaluating potential associations between these biochemical measures with physical, behavioral and cognitive profiles.

The Autism Biomarkers Consortium for Clinical Trials (ABC-CT) is a multicenter research study that aims to develop reliable and objective measurements of social function and communication in people with autism.

The cause of autism is thought to involve a combination of both genetic and environmental factors. One approach to understanding the genetic contribution to autism has been to use large samples to investigate multiple genes associated with the disorder. This approach, known as a genome-wide association study, has resulted in several interesting genetic ‘hits,’ — the discovery of genes that appear to be associated with autism.

The Kaiser Permanente Autism Family Biobank Study is a three-year project at Kaiser Permanente Northern California. The study is open to Kaiser Permanente Northern California members with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and their biological parents.

Advancing scientific knowledge for individuals severely affected by autism is a strategic priority for the leading autism science foundations and the National Institutes of Health. Knowledge and treatment options continue to lag for those who are nonverbal, have an intellectual disability or display challenging behaviors, in large part due to these groups’ underrepresentation in study samples. To address this critical knowledge gap, the Autism and Developmental Disorders Inpatient Research Collaborative (ADDIRC) is performing the Autism Inpatient Collection (AIC) study.

Folic acid is an essential vitamin, meaning that people must consume folic acid in the diet, as the body is unable to manufacture it on its own. Strong evidence shows that women who take supplemental folic acid at the time of conception are less likely to give birth to children with neural tube defects such as spina bifida. If folic acid plays a crucial role in early brain development, it may also impact the risk for autism.

Since 2008, Abba Krieger, Andreas Buja and their colleagues in the statistics department at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania have carried out various statistical analyses on genotype (genetically coded information) and phenotype (outward manifestation of that information) data from individuals with autism.