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Research

Eye Gaze in Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Review of Neural Evidence for the Eye Avoidance Hypothesis

Reduced eye contact early in life may play a role in the developmental pathways that culminate in a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder. However, there are contradictory theories regarding the neural mechanisms involved. According to the amygdala theory of autism, reduced eye contact results from a hypoactive amygdala that fails to flag eyes as salient. However, the eye avoidance hypothesis proposes the opposite-that amygdala hyperactivity causes eye avoidance. This review evaluated studies that measured the relationship between eye gaze and activity in the 'social brain' when viewing facial stimuli.

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An investigation of a novel broad autism phenotype: increased facial masculinity among parents of children on the autism spectrum

The broad autism phenotype commonly refers to sub-clinical levels of autistic-like behaviour and cognition presented in biological relatives of autistic people. In a recent study, we reported findings suggesting that the broad autism phenotype may also be expressed in facial morphology, specifically increased facial masculinity.

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Characterizing the interplay between autism spectrum disorder and comorbid medical conditions: An integrative review

We review medical conditions that have been repeatedly highlighted as sharing the strongest associations with ASD-epilepsy, sleep, as well as gastrointestinal and immune functioning

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A national guideline for the assessment and diagnosis of autism spectrum disorders in Australia

The Guideline aims to create greater consistency in diagnostic practices across the country to ensure individuals on the autism spectrum can receive the optimal care

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Maternal pre-pregnancy weight and autistic-like traits among offspring in the general population

This study provides further evidence that maternal pre-pregnancy obesity is associated with autism-like behaviors in offspring

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No relationship between autistic traits and salivary testosterone concentrations in men from the general population

The current data add to the increasing evidence for the lack of relationship between autistic traits and postnatal levels of testosterone in men

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Are autistic traits in the general population stable across development?

There is accumulating evidence that autistic traits (AT) are on a continuum in the general population.

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Unpacking the complex nature of the autism epidemic

The etiology of autism spectrum disorders is unknown but there are claims of increasing prevalence in many countries.

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Do children with autism 'switch off' to speech sounds? An investigation using event-related potentials

Autism is a disorder characterized by a core impairment in social behaviour. A prominent component of this social deficit is poor orienting to speech.

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Evidence against poor semantic encoding in individuals with autism

This article tests the hypothesis that individuals with autism poorly encode verbal information to the semantic level of processing, instead paying greater...