Le Mon, 23 Feb 2026 06:00:00 -0500

An increasing body of evidence supports the role of altered sensory processing in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This exploratory study undertook corneal confocal microscopy (CCM) to assess for differences in corneal nerve fiber density (CNFD), branch density (CNBD) and fiber length (CNFL) in relation to ASD severity in children with ASD+ADHD (n = 21), ASD (n = 6) and healthy controls (HC) (n = 15). CNBD was significantly lower in children...

Le Mon, 23 Feb 2026 06:00:00 -0500

No abstract

Le Mon, 23 Feb 2026 06:00:00 -0500

Among the known genetic causes of syndromic autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are transcription factor deficiencies. In this regard, haploinsufficiency of the zinc finger and broad complex, tramtrack, bric and brac domain-containing protein 20 (ZBTB20) leads to a prototypical clinical picture, referred to as Primrose syndrome, comprising severe ASD symptoms together with intellectual disability. Here, we present a comprehensive behavioral and phenotypical characterization of Zbtb20+/- mice, a...

Le Mon, 23 Feb 2026 06:00:00 -0500

Introduction Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) experience a range of comorbidities, including sleep disorders. Sleep disturbances are more prevalent in this population than in typically developing children and may exacerbate behavioral symptoms such as inattention and irritability, increasing the overall psychosocial burden of ASD. Aim This study assessed the pattern, frequency, and predictors of sleep disturbances among children with ASD in Al-Ahsa, Saudi Arabia. Methods A...

Le Mon, 23 Feb 2026 06:00:00 -0500

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a heterogenous condition that has no biologically relevant subtypes yet. Here, we utilized a multidimensional approach considering social deficits in ASD alongside negative valence and empathy dysfunction to distinguish ASD from Neurotypicals (NT) and to generate ASD subtypes using machine learning approaches. 114 subjects were analyzed, with 70 being NT and 44 ASD, all male with an IQ greater than 70, with 5 domains of personality (NEO-PI-r) and Reading the...

Le Mon, 23 Feb 2026 06:00:00 -0500

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurological and developmental disorder that affects social and communicative behaviors. It emerges in early life and is generally associated with lifelong disabilities. Thus, accurate and early diagnosis could facilitate treatment outcomes for those with ASD. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a useful tool that measures changes in brain signaling to facilitate our understanding of ASD. Much effort is being made to identify ASD biomarkers using...

Le Mon, 23 Feb 2026 06:00:00 -0500

No abstract

Le Mon, 23 Feb 2026 06:00:00 -0500

In this study, we performed an integrative analysis of de novo tandem repeats (TRs) to unravel the missing heritability that may be hidden in 85,394 active cis-regulatory elements (cCREs) from ENCODE through target sequencing in a Spanish cohort of 200 ASD trios, using a robust bioinformatic pipeline. For the integrative analysis, we use data from 1,637 ASD simplex quad families from the Simons Simplex Collection (SSC). We then incorporated multiple layers of functional annotation, including...

Le Mon, 23 Feb 2026 06:00:00 -0500

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) can result from rare genetic variants interfering with brain development. Whether their effects converge on specific cortical cell types remains unresolved. Previous studies have focused on a narrow set of high-confidence ASD (hcASD) genes, which were enriched in neuronal cell types during prenatal development. By contrast, studies of postnatal cerebral cortex have repeatedly associated ASD with transcriptional changes in both neurons and glia. To comprehensively...

Le Mon, 23 Feb 2026 06:00:00 -0500

INTRODUCTION: ARHGAP32 gene (Rho GTPase Activating Protein 32) encodes a Rho GTPase activating protein, which is vital for the regulation of synaptic plasticity and cytoskeletal dynamics. ARHGAP32 (11q24.3) has been implicated as a candidate gene for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in Jacobsen syndrome, where a 243-kb terminal deletion encompasses its locus. A unique patient with de novo (DN) likely gene-disruptive mutation of ARHGAP32 has been reported so far in the medical literature. The...

Le Mon, 23 Feb 2026 06:00:00 -0500

CONCLUSION: Our findings add to growing evidence that sexual and gender identities are critical variables to consider in autism research. We observed substantial differences in mental health outcomes across groups, underscoring the need for further investigation to better understand the diverse needs of autistic adults.

Le Mon, 23 Feb 2026 06:00:00 -0500

Social media platforms like Reddit have become vital spaces for autistic individuals and caregivers to seek advice, share experiences, and discuss challenges. Simultaneously, Large Language Models (LLMs) are increasingly used to provide medical guidance. This study examines autism-related discussions on Reddit, comparing them with clinician-patient discussions and evaluating the effectiveness of an autism-specific Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) system. We applied BERTopic to identify key...

Le Mon, 23 Feb 2026 06:00:00 -0500

CONCLUSION: ASD-microbiome research has shifted from descriptive comparisons toward mechanism-oriented and intervention-relevant questions. Future progress will benefit from standardized protocols, longitudinal designs, and multi-omics integration, together with rigorously designed trials to evaluate microbiome-targeted strategies.

Le Mon, 23 Feb 2026 06:00:00 -0500

CONCLUSION: IGD is prevalent among individuals with ASD, with higher rates observed during adolescence. These findings highlight the urgent need to develop targeted intervention and counseling programs, as well as provide the necessary entertainment programs and activities, to help individuals with ASD reduce their gaming time.

Le Mon, 23 Feb 2026 06:00:00 -0500

Peer rejection is a distressing experience, which has been found to mediate the association between socio-emotional function and internalizing symptoms in neurotypical adolescents. To examine whether peer rejection statistically links socio-emotional function and internalizing symptoms in autistic adolescents, we measured their socio-emotional function (social skill, alexithymia, empathy), peer rejection, and internalizing symptoms. Autistic adolescents (N = 71), aged between 10 and 16 years (M...