NAAR Awards Include Nearly $6.5 Million in Funding to 41 Pilot studies and 21 Fellowship Applications in 2005

The National Alliance for Autism Research (NAAR) is proud to announce it has committed $8.3 million to fund a variety of projects in autism research. This funding commitment includes research grants and fellowships in the United States, Canada and Europe as well as expansion of the Autism Tissue Program, High Risk Baby Siblings project, and the Autism Genome Project. …https://www.autismspeaks.org/news/news-item/naar-commits-additional-83-million-autism-research

Epilepsy has been found to reduce the generation of new neurons

Amanda Sierra and Juan Manuel Encinas, Ikerbasque researchers at the Achucarro centre (Achucarro Basque Center for Neuroscience) have discovered a new property of hippocampal neural stem cells by using an epilepsy model in genetically modified mice. The work has been published by the journal Cell Stem Cell, an international reference in stem cell research. …https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/05/150515083406.htm

Neuronal hyperactivity impairs neuronal regeneration by accelerating the loss of neural stem cells

Adult neurogenesis is the process of generating new neurons which integrate into existing circuits even after fetal and early postnatal development has ceased. Until recently, it was commonly thought that neurogenesis stops at the end of development. However, in the last decade, many studies have clearly demonstrated that in most mammals including humans, neurogenesis continues in the adults as well but is limited to the specific brain regions, such as hippocampus. …http://www.nri.texaschildrens.org/faculty_research/mirjana_cellstemcell.aspx

Neural stem cells massively turn into astrocytes in a model of epilepsy

While there are treatments for some forms of epilepsy, it is still not known precisely what leads to this sometimes deadly and debilitating condition. However, researchers at Baylor College of Medicine and Achucarro Basque Center for Neuroscience, Zamudio, Spain, are now closer to unlocking that mystery. …https://www.bcm.edu/news/neuroscience/stem-cells-massively-astrocytes-epilepsy

Study: Brain chemistry in autistic kids differs from others with developmental delays

A brain scan study reveals that children with autism have different brain chemistry compared to kids with other developmental disorders.
A new study published in JAMA Psychiatry showed that the brain’s gray matter undergoes several chemical changes when a child is between 3 and 10 years of age. …http://www.cbsnews.com/news/study-brain-chemistry-in-autistic-kids-differs-from-others-with-developmental-delays/

Solving the mystery of autism

By Michael Paulsen, http://www.chron.com/news/health/article/Solving-the-mystery-of-autism-4456952.php

It doesn’t sound like much: A tiny bit of skin, plucked from the arm of a child and placed in a dish. But in a Houston lab, the skin cells in that dish may be key pieces to solving the puzzle of autism – what causes it, how to diagnose it and, eventually, how to treat it.
At the Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children’s Hospital, Dr. Mirjana Maletic-Savatic and a team of colleagues are finding new ways to explore the mysteries of autism, which affects one in 88 kids. Studying brain disorders can be tricky – after all, you can’t cut into the brain and examine it directly. But now, from their 12th-floor lab in the heart of the Texas Medical Center, this team is using a patient’s own cells to re-create human neurons outside the body. …http://www.chron.com/news/health/article/Solving-the-mystery-of-autism-4456952.php

Autism Researchers at Texas Hospital Hunt For Autism’s Roots

Since the diagnosis of Autism, it has become one of the most befuddling areas of scientific inquiry. There is no known cause, no cure, and treatments are limited. That is why Dr. Mirjana Maletic-Savatic of the Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children’s Hospital and her team have been trying to discover a way to improve their knowledge of this mercurial disease. …https://bionews-tx.com/news/2013/04/24/autism-researchers-at-texas-hospital-hunt-for-autisms-roots/