Autism Science Foundation Weekly Science Report

This week we talk to Dr. Renee Gardner from the Karolinska Institute who utilizes large datasets to understand the link between pregnancy exposures and later diagnoses in children – including the diagnosis of autism. She has identified several rare infections during pregnancy that have a strong link to an autism diagnosis in children. Much like “rare” and “common” genetic variations, there is likely to be “rare” and “common” environmental exposures that have different influences on an autism diagnosis. What does this mean for pregnant women? The same as anything a good doctor would tell you: wash your hands, stay away from sick people, and try not to share food with your sick child.

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/2853867

https://ki.se/en/research/research-areas-centres-and-networks/research-groups/epidemiology-of-psychiatric-conditions-substance-use-and-social-environment-epicss-emilie-agardhs-renee-gardners-research-group

Organoids are miniaturized 3D tissue structures that have mimic the structure of a human organ, such as the brain. But can an organoid mimic not just the structure, but the function of a brain, and can it grow past beyond the small structure? How much can an organoid develop into something that is useful for studying disorders like autism? On this week’s podcast, we interview Dr. Kevin Kelley, a neuroscientist and psychiatrist from @Stanford University who spent that past decade developing tools to better understand the potential of organoids. He explains how he created the organoids and the systems needed to show that they can develop past a few cells, that they make connections with other brain cells, spread out, connect, and function in a model system like a brain. This new discovery provides more hope for utilizing it as a system for better understanding the autistic brain and for screening lots of treatment candidates for people who need them.

OPEN ACCESS: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-026-11032-2

This week we talk to Dr. Dan Geschwind from UCLA who was funded by the Autism Data Science Initiative to study thousands of environmental chemicals and medicines across various genetic backgrounds. A decade ago, this study would have taken a decade, but through new technology, robotics, and existing knowledge about genes and these chemicals, it is automated and can be done is 3 years. Dr. Geschwind will explain how he is using cells from people with autism to identify potential environmental factors that may contribute to a diagnosis of autism, or exacerbate or aleviate symptoms of autism and developmental disorders. This is incredibly cool – have a listen to what this ADSI project is doing and what it can tell scientists about what is important to focus on in autism.

How do you know an intervention is working? It starts with making sure you are measuring the right thing. This week, Drs. Mary Wojnaroski from Nationwide Children’s Hospital and Natasha Ludwig from the Kennedy Krieger Institute who work on the Inchstone Project to talk about outcome measures around intellectual function and cognition. Some tools might be used to measure both strengths and weaknesses in those with intellectual disability. But first, clinicians need to know what impacts families the most. What skills are most important to help their children leave fulfilling lives?

YOU can be a part of this work! The Inchstone Project is launching a new survey for families of those with IDD or seizures or global developmental delay. This important survey to a wide group of caregivers asks what are the biggest priorities in an intervention study and what makes the most difference to them. TAKE THE SURVEY HERE: https://inchstoneproject.org/pss2/

Autism does not start at one, two or three years. It is a condition with trajectories, where some individuals show signs early, others later. It doesn’t just happen after some mysterious “medical event”, people are born with it. Scientists know this by tracking outcomes of those with a high likelihood of autism all the way from birth to school age.

We need more research on why features do not show up the same in each person, and how you can predict not just an autism diagnosis but other co-occurring conditions that are common in autism. Finally, science on how to best support each person with autism across their lifespan must continue, not stop. @UCL and @KCL are conducting just that type of research – that understands that features of autism change over time, emerge at different ages and also are accompanied by different biological features. This week we talk to Tony Charman, Tessel Bazelmans, Emily Jones and Mark Johnson who are pioneers in understanding how autism features emerge and change over time, but start in early infancy.

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42640439

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42410708