Scientists seek early signs of autism

Biomarkers could aid diagnosis and lead to strategies for treatment

rapidly growing baby brains

EXPANDING BRAIN  High-risk babies — younger siblings of a child with autism — who will be diagnosed with autism themselves had more rapid growth in parts of their brains than low-risk babies who will not later get an autism diagnosis. Darker colors indicate a bigger difference in growth rate. 

H.C. Hazlett et al/Nature 2017

Soon after systems biologist Juergen Hahn published a paper describing a way to predict whether a child has autism from a blood sample, the notes from parents began arriving.