"Their brains are perceiving things differently. It really just shows that this is part of the biology of the condition," said Wang, who was not involved in the research.

For the study, researchers recruited 32 children and teens. Half the group had been diagnosed with autism. The others were typically developing kids who were matched in age to the autistic kids.

The scientists had them rest in a fMRI machine, a kind of scanner than can see brain activity in real time.

Then they touched the kids with a scratchy wool sweater, played loud traffic noises or did both at the same time. Each condition was repeated four times for 15 seconds.

The brains of children with autism reacted much more strongly to the sensory stimulation than did the brains of typically developing kids. The two areas that seemed to be the most hyperactive were the primary sensory cortex, which is responsible for initially processing sensory information, and the amygdala, which is involved in emotional regulation.

"To me, that says there are two different things going on here: They are kind of initially interpreting these stimuli differently and, also, they're not able to regulate their response," said study author Shula Green, a Ph.D. candidate in psychology at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA).

And there were other differences in how the normal and autistic kids reacted to the same kinds of stimulation.

"In typical kids, they have an initial response almost immediately, then by the second time around, that response goes way down. In kids with autism, that response really stays high throughout the scan. They're not getting used to it [the stimulus]," Green said.

What's more, the hyperactivity the researchers saw on the brain scans became most intense when kids with autism experienced the two sensations at the same time.

"I think something is really going on when there's more than one stimulus the brain has to deal with," Green said. "And that's what real life is, right? There's always more than one [stimulus] at a time."

Green said her study suggests that parents might avoid meltdowns if they try to keep things simple for autistic children.

"If a kid is having trouble being touched, maybe don't try to touch them in a loud movie theater. Wait until you're home and it's quiet," she said.

The study is to be presented Wednesday at the International Meeting for Autism Research in Atlanta.

Read more athttp://www.philly.com/philly/health/mental-health/HealthDay687727_20140514_Study_Probes_Why_Kids_With_Autism_Are_Oversensitive_to_Touch__Noise.html#g8HRpbt2EOgUkS6V.99

More and source: http://www.philly.com/philly/health/mental-health/HealthDay687727_20140514_Study_Probes_Why_Kids_With_Autism_Are_Oversensitive_to_Touch__Noise.html

In the growing conversation around mindfulness, we're constantly hearing about meditation in the workplace and tech CEOs who swear by the practice. But less attention is being paid to the quietly growing movement for mindfulness in the family, and the use of meditation to optimize the health, well-being and happiness of children.

It's not just adults that can stand to benefit from cultivating a focused awareness on the present moment. Research is beginning to shed light on the power of mindfulness as an intervention for a number of behavioral challenges that children face. We're also starting to recognize that mindfulness practices could be beneficial for children for the same reasons it helps adults, contributing to reduced stress,improved sleep quality and heightened focus.

At increasingly younger ages, kids are facing higher levels of stress, and it may be taking a significant toll on their health. Stressful events in childhood can increase the risk of developing health problems as an adult, but the impact may hit much earlier. A recent University of Florida study found that stressful events can impact a child's health and well-being almost immediately, and can contribute to the development of physical and mental health problems and learning disabilities.

Sonia Sequeira, Ph.D., a clinical researcher specialized in Investigational Therapies and director of the Institute for Meditation Sciences, has been practicing yoga and meditation for nearly 20 years, and has practiced with her own children for years. Now in her work as a mindfulness researcher, she's brought contemplative practices to children ages 3-18 who are struggling with autism, cancer, and other physical and mental health problems. Currently, she's using meditation and chanting to help relieve pain in children with cancer.

It may seem like a tall order to ask your kid to meditate -- given that it can be a struggle just to get a child to sit down or eat breakfast -- but Sequeira insists that in her years of working with children, she's found just the opposite.

"There's an initial resistance, which I think is cultural, and usually it occurs in the presence of the parent," Sequeira told The Huffington Post. "But it extinguishes very quickly. Teaching mindfulness to children has always been the easiest for me because there's no set patterns, or at least they're not set in stone yet. With adults its much more difficult."

Learning mindfulness practices -- including meditation, breathing exercises, yogaasana(postures) and chanting -- can have a significant long-term affect on a child's development.

"[In my research], what really mattered was finding practical tools that were not an on-off or intermittent practice for children, but something they could really grow with and that could affect their physiology as they grow from their young childhood into adolescence," says Sequeira.

Here's proof that children need mindfulness just as much as adults do.

Mindfulness can help kids to thrive at school.

More and source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/22/why-children-need-mindful_n_5354143.html

Many people who have been diagnosed with autism perform repetitive motions in order to soothe themselves and reduce stress when they become overwhelmed. These motions can include rocking back and forth, wringing hands, shaking their head, or flapping their arms, among many others. Researchers at NYU Langone Center recently realized that mice with autism-like symptoms also exhibit repetitive behavior, sometimes in the form of grooming. This allowed them to link two biological pathways with autism. The research was led by Gordon Fishell and the paper was published in Nature.

The study was originally exploring a particular genetic mutation which the researchers believed to be a precursor to Autism Spectrum Disorder. They bred hundreds of mice with this mutation for study. Months later when the mice had fully grown, they began to groom themselves excessively. This was very similar to the repetitive movements performed by those with autism. As a result, the patch of hair between their ears was spiked straight up, just like a mohawk. This was especially out of the ordinary, as mice tend to groom one another, not themselves.

These mice had been genetically altered to turn down the production of the protein Cntnap4, which plays a role in many aspects of the growth and development of neurons. Previously, the protein has been found in the interneurons (cells that connect and facilitate signals between sensory and motor neurons). When Cntnap4 was inhibited, it also affected dopamine and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), which inhibits neurotransmitters and plays a role in muscle tone. 

GABA and dopamine work differently, and their longevity has made for some peculiar results in the absence of Cntnap4. GABA is released and used quickly, so when it is inhibited, production production slows. This allows the brain to become overstimulated, as it cannot effective manage the signaling. Dopamine is much longer-lived, meaning that it will increase production when it becomes inhibited, increasing the happy feelings that become associated with repetitive behaviors.

"Our study tells us that to design better tools for treating a disease like autism, you have to get to the underlying genetic roots of its dysfunctional behaviors, whether it is overgrooming in mice or repetitive motor behaviors in humans," Fishell said in a press release. "There have been many candidate genes implicated in contributing to autism, but animal and human studies to identify their action have so far not led to any therapies. Our research suggests that reversing the disease's effects in signaling pathways like GABA and dopamine are potential treatment options.”

During the study, the researchers also noted that GABA and dopamine signaling do not remain constant throughout the mouse’s life. Understanding how these signaling pathways influence behavior could eventually lead to a targeted treatment for symptoms of autism.

More and source: http://www.iflscience.com/brain/mice-mohawks-reveal-two-biological-pathways-linked-autism-behaviors

Children with autism can be classified into one of four groups based on how they respond to stimuli such as taste, sound and even the orientations of their bodies in space, according to a study published 17 March inAutism Research¹.

The categories may help researchers understand the neural underpinnings of sensory differences common in children with autism, as well as the therapies useful for treating each group.

Clinicians collected data on 228 children between the ages 2 and 10 years while diagnosing them with autism.The children’s caregivers filled out the Short Sensory Profile, a 38-item survey that asks questions such as whether a child “avoids certain tastes or food smells,” “tires easily, especially when standing or holding a particular body position,” or “doesn’t seem to notice when face or hands are messy.”

Using an algorithm designed to detect clustering of traits, the researchers divided the children into broad groups based on the severity and types of their sensory symptoms.

The largest group, making up 40 percent of the children studied, shows acute sensitivity to taste and smell. A second group, comprising 10 percent of the children, has extremely low energy and difficulty maintaining an upright posture.Both of these groups have moderate trouble filtering sounds from noisy environments and seek sensation by touching objects or people and making noise. A third group, making up 12 percent of the children, shows all of these traits.

Surprisingly, the remaining 38 percent of children do not show clinically significant sensory differences.Previous work had suggested that up to 92 percent of children with autism show atypical sensory processing².

The researchers speculate that two main mechanisms underlie the sensory subtypes. The children with acute taste and smell sensitivity may have overactive nervous symptoms, giving their perceptions a heightened intensity.The children who struggle with posture and energy may have difficulty integrating information fromproprioception — the body’s feedback to the brain about its position and movements — and from their vestibular systems, which help with balance.

The researchers plan to use electroencephalography — a noninvasive technique that detects electrical activity in the brain — to determine how children of different subtypes respond to stimuli such as sounds and vibrations.

More & Source; http://sfari.org/news-and-opinion/in-brief/2014/cognition-and-behavior-sensory-subtypes-divide-autism-cases

(SACRAMENTO, Calif.) — Children with autism experience deficits in a type of immune cell that protects the body from infection. Called granulocytes, the cells exhibit one-third the capacity to fight infection and protect the body from invasion compared with the same cells in children who are developing normally.

More & source: http://www.healthcanal.com/infections/50636-study-confirms-mitochondrial-deficits-in-children-with-autism.html

April -- which annually serves as Autism Awareness Month -- brought showers of awareness on the condition and with it tremendous debate. Having completed a lot of research on the subject before putting pen to paper, I have come to the conclusion that a lot is known... about theunknownnature of the disease. Conflicting literature exists as to the definition, the prevalence, etiology and treatment options for the disorder.

So to begin, some basic information:

- What is autism? The definition hasevolvedover the decades to reflect a spectrum of neuro-developmental disorders characterized by varying degrees of intellectual disabilities, difficulties in verbal/nonverbal communication, poor social interactive skills and deficits in motor coordination.

- What is the prevalence of autism? While numbers vary considerably pending the source, the estimated number of children affected in the U.S. by autism spectrum disorder 1 in 88 children, with a 4:1 male vs. female preponderance. [1]

- What causes autism? Herein lies the rub; no definitive etiologic factor has been identified to date, no test exists to diagnose it either prenatally or during childhood.

So, who's the culprit in the genesis of the disease: Mother Nature (internal cause), or Mother Nurture (external cause)? Let's evaluate some internal components.

- Genetics: Autism tends to run in some families.Studies looking at identical twins have noted when one twin has the disease, in the vast majority of cases, so does the other. [2] Several genes have beenidentifiedthat potentially may be linked to autism. [3]

- Immunologic: Researchers have identified certain molecules within the immune system that may impact, negatively, the developing fetal brain, causing autism. [4]

- Parental age: Mothers, but particularlyfathers of advanced age, have a higher chance of having a child with autism. [5]

What about external components?

- Environmental: There is a lot of research that looks at pesticides, plastics, metals (ex. lead, mercury), air pollution as afactor; the commonality here is they all in some fashion negatively impact the normally functioning hormonal or genetic systems within the body. [6]

- Drugs: Anti-seizure meds (ex. Valproic acid), anti-depressive medications, particularlySSRIs(like Paxil, Prozac) have been associated with potentially impacting the fetal brain during development and increasing autism's risk. [7]

- Inflammation: Certain disease processes like obesity and diabetes reflect a chronic inflammatory state within the body -- again associated with anincreasing riskof autism in the offspring of those so affected. [8]

So in the final analysis, what are we really seeing, and what can be done? Let me introduce another topic -- that of epigenetics -- basically the concept that non-genetic factors influence the way that genes express themselves. Is autism a symptom of this Pandora's Box? It gets "curiouser and curiouser."

More and source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kecia-gaither-md-mph-facog/autism_b_5201406.html