Today at INSAR: Daily news briefs begin after this introductory message:
Autism Speaks is proud to be a longstanding sponsor of the annual meeting of the International Society for Autism Research (INSAR), this year in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, May 9- 12. The conference is the world’s largest gathering of autism scientists, doctors, therapists, parents and individuals on the spectrum.
Events include more than 20 scientific presentations by Autism Speaks science staff, funded researchers and clinicians in the Autism Speaks Autism Treatment Network. Each provides a glimpse into the early findings of one or more highly promising research projects that was competitively selected for presentation by the INSAR leadership.
“Autism Speaks is honored to continue our sponsorship of the INSAR meeting as the leading conference for discoveries in autism research,” says Autism Speaks Chief Science Officer Thomas Frazier. “The studies presented this year cover the full range of research from genetics and biology to early brain changes to the delivery of tailored interventions. They represent meaningful advances in our understanding of the biology of autism and improvements in our ability to deliver interventions that improve lives.”
You can view the full lineup of Autism Speaks-affiliated presentations and activities in the program book below.
Also see the full video of the opening INSAR press conference below today's postings.
TODAY AT INSAR: Daily Updates from the 2018 meeting
Can sex differences in brain development help explain autism’s “female protective effect”?
On Wednesday May 9, at the annual INSAR press conference, social neuroscientist Daniel Yang, of The George Washington University, described his team’s discovery of a potentially important difference in brain development between boys and girls on the autism spectrum.
The finding may help account for the so-called “female protective factor” that results in autism being much less common in girls and women than in boys and men.
Autism Speaks helped launch Dr. Yang’s autism-research career with a 2014 Autism Speaks Meixner Postdoctoral Fellowship in Translational Research. He is now continuing his research with the support of National Institutes of Health grant to Kevin Pelphrey, one of his Meixner fellowship mentors.
The team began their study by using brain scans (MRI) to look at the thickness of the cerebral cortex – the highly folded sheet of brain cells that forms the surface of the brain – in 93 boys, ages 8 to 18, roughly half of whom had autism. (The two groups were matched across age and cognitive abilities.)
In particular, they examined a cerebral cortex brain network surrounding a brain structure called the right posterior superior temporal sulcus. This network is highly involved in social communication – for example, in understanding the intention of someone else’s eye contact or other actions. (Social communication disability is one of autism’s core symptoms.)
The results: The George Washington investigators discovered that this region of the cortex thinned significantly faster with age in the group of boys with autism compared to the group of unaffected boys. (See graph above.) They also found that, within the group affected by autism, the age-related cortical thinning was faster in the boys who had the most severe social-communication disabilities.
Next, the researchers tested whether there were similar autism-related differences in cortical thinning in 48 girls who had autism, compared to 45 unaffected girls. They found no evidence of advanced cortical thinning in this region of the brain or elsewhere. (See graph above.)
Take home message: This suggests that autism may be neurobiologically different in boys and girls, at least for this brain network, Dr. Yang says. It’s also in line with a possible female protective effect, he says, in that the girls appeared to be less “vulnerable” to a possible disruption in the cortical thinning schedule in this brain area – which is critically important for social communication.
What’s next?“Our goal,” Dr. Yang says, “is to establish a solid foundation of science-based understanding that can guide the development of more accurate diagnosis, personalized interventions and support services for those who need and want them.x
Watch Wednesday's Opening Press Conference below.