Researchers Discover Molecular Difference in Autistic Brains

(medicine.yale.edu)

50 points | by amichail 3 hours ago

9 comments

  • roywiggins 7 minutes ago
    "many neurodivergent people aren’t hindered by autism"

    This is more or less not true. If it doesn't hinder a person in any aspect of their life, they don't fit the DSM-V criteria for a diagnosis.

    (Many neurodivergent people aren't hindered by autism because they have some other neurodivergence, but that's a different issue with this sentence)

    • tiberriver256 5 minutes ago
      Maybe they meant neurodivergent as a broader category? Like "some people are neurodivergent but don't have autism"

      That would be a bit weird though...

    • wizzwizz4 3 minutes ago
      The DSM-V criteria are not a good description of the natural category, and most people don't actually use them. They are, at best, a vague gesture in the direction of the natural category. The ICD-11 criteria (6A02) are better, but are still contradicted by, for instance, studies evidencing the double-empathy problem. Trained psychologists know which diagnostic criteria to take literally, and which to interpret according to the understanding of the authors.
  • tiberriver256 13 minutes ago
    16 "autistic brains" were scanned and they are thinking this applies generally to all people with autism?

    Shows how shockingly unaware even researchers are on how broad and nonspecific the diagnosis of autism is...

    Were these 16 people hypo or hyper sensitive? Which of their five senses were involved? All? Some? Were some senses hyper and others hypo?

    Need to start with categorization and specificity before we can make meaningful progress in research

    • SubiculumCode 6 minutes ago
      I have not read the paper as I am traveling, but just in case your opinion is based on the news article, let's not confuse that reporting with the actual research.claims or the actual views held by the scientists involved. This was likely a paper demonstrating the technique in preparation of a more comprehensive study.
  • ear7h 2 hours ago
    N=32 and

    > We want to start creating a developmental story and start understanding whether the things that we’re seeing are the root of autism or a neurological consequence of having had autism your whole life

    • jmward01 1 hour ago
      Yeah, how many studies are done a year? Random chance is the #1 explanation with that small of a sample size. It doesn't take a degree in stats say that the next thing that needs to be done is to replicate the study a few times before making any claims or searching for any publicity. This subject is so emotional for the families involved that publicizing without more confirmation is a bit irresponsible especially if it is easy to do follow-up studies.
      • jfengel 42 minutes ago
        Follow-up studies cost money, and you don't get any of that if you don't publish.
      • slashdave 1 hour ago
        It's a university press release. Hyperbole in practice.

        Wish I could read the paper.

  • ijustwork 1 hour ago
    The metabotropic glutamate receptor subtype 5 (mGlu5) is involved in the central mechanism of action of paracetamol (acetaminophen), where the bioactive metabolite AM404 activates the TRPV1 channel–mGlu5 receptor–PLC–DAGL–CB1 receptor signaling cascade in the periaqueductal grey, contributing to its analgesic effect.

    EDIT: The collective TDS of HN makes discussing this topic impossible. I encourage everyone to do their own research (AI is amazing for this and only getting better). Then try to explain the actions of every party involved and draw your own conclusions. Peace out and if you really care about preventing autism dont take Tylenol while pregnant and dont ever give it to your child!

    • mapontosevenths 8 minutes ago
      This was studied because it sounds reasonable on paper and several small studies showed a small link.

      However, they did a very large cohort study with hundreds of thousands of subjects. The link completely disappears when genetics are accounted for via sibling pairs.[0]

      It took almost two whole minutes of Googling for me to disprove this nonsense. Which shows that RFK did less than 2 minutes worth of research before panicking the world.

      [0] https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2817406

      • api 2 minutes ago
        But did you check the vibes?
    • tomerico 53 minutes ago
      Didn’t whole internet get angry for Trump’s administration publishing a warning that Tylenol during pregnancy may cause autosim?
      • ijustwork 46 minutes ago
        Of course they did. Plenty of propaganda mouthpieces for big pharma like PBS rushed to publish articles explaing how Trump was wrong and all the studies were being misinterpreted despite J&J jettisoning Tylenol from its portfolio in 2023.
        • perching_aix 21 minutes ago
          > propaganda mouthpieces

          Bit rich coming from a sockpuppet account created 57 minutes ago...

          - exclusively commenting on this thread

          - uncritically addressing it from a very specific angle

          - mentioning specific things that sound related while not actually connecting them to the overall story with the same rigor

          ...isn't it?

        • mapontosevenths 25 minutes ago
          Anything claimed without evidence can be dismissed without evidence.
      • MangoToupe 44 minutes ago
        Can you explain the logical leap you're making here? Unless this is RFK Jr we're talking to, you're comparing two wildly different contexts.
        • ijustwork 40 minutes ago
          What is so difficult for you to understand?
    • ijustwork 1 hour ago
      This could potentially explain why parents believe vaccines cause autism if the child was given excessive Tylenol for a bad vaccine reaction.
      • diydsp 44 minutes ago
        The vaccine autism hoax is traced back to one specific discredired researcher:

        https://time.com/5175704/andrew-wakefield-vaccine-autism/

        • ijustwork 38 minutes ago
          You are wrong and discounting the observed effects of many parents. Please dont use Time Magazine as a medical reference.

          EDIT: As expected I've already been rate limited. The scientific method starts with making observations. What do you suggest? Bribing the CDC to delete all the data from studies supporting a link? Having big pharma pay for propaganda studies to muddy the waters and then blasting them ad-nauseum at anyone who goes against your installed narrative? Because that is exactly what happened if you look beyond the headlines.

  • joshcsimmons 51 minutes ago
    Very interesting - wonder when this will be cost effective for testing!
  • NewUser76312 2 hours ago
    Interesting indeed. Does such a finding suggest any worthwhile easy-to-try 'treatments' that may help alleviate symptoms?

    I don't know much about the biochemistry here, I assume this is not something like GABA that can be directly supplemented. But maybe there are precursor nutritional and supplemental substances that can help these people upregulate how much of the glutamate molecule in question the body can produce.

    • GoatInGrey 51 minutes ago
      Unless you can get the blastocyst and fetus to take supplements, any treatment would be attempting to undo the effects that have already taken place.

      For now, your best options are ESDM, occupational therapy, modified CBT, ABA, or neurofeedback, depending on your circumstances and presentation. Except for neurofeedback, these are behavioral approaches, so the architectural and neural activity variations aren't directly addressed.

    • wizzwizz4 2 hours ago
      There isn't enough information to start doing that. Consider: UV exposure results in sunburn, cellular damage, and increased skin pigmentation. We have medication that reduces skin pigmentation. Should we give it to people who experience chronic sunburn?
    • esseph 1 hour ago
      The third paragraph:

      > Now, a new study in The American Journal of Psychiatry has found that brains of autistic people have fewer of a specific kind of receptor for glutamate, the most common excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain. The reduced availability of these receptors may be associated with various characteristics linked to autism.

      Reduce receptors. This might suggest a _developmental_ or genetic link. Think of this more like "height" or a particular "facial feature" of a person.

  • Uptrenda 37 minutes ago
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  • gerdesj 1 hour ago
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  • Hnrobert42 2 hours ago
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    • gchamonlive 2 hours ago
      It would also be interesting if there's no link to be found.
    • lez 1 hour ago
      [flagged]