Latest news with #NatalieSauerwald
Straits Times
3 days ago
- Health
- Straits Times
Discovery of 4 different subtypes of autism paves way for personalised care
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Each subtype exhibits distinct developmental, medical, behavioural and psychiatric traits, and different patterns of genetic variation. The discovery of four different subtypes of autism is a major step toward understanding the condition's genetic underpinnings and improving care, researchers reported in Nature Genetics. According to researchers, the four autism subtypes can be categorised as: Behavioural Challenges, Mixed Autism Spectrum Disorder with Developmental Delay, Moderate Challenges, and Broadly Affected. Each subtype exhibits distinct developmental, medical, behavioural and psychiatric traits, and importantly, different patterns of genetic variation, the researchers said. The findings are drawn from a study of more than 5,000 children with autism, ages four to 18, and nearly 2,000 of their non-autistic siblings. The study looked for nearly 240 traits in each individual, from social interactions to repetitive behaviours to developmental milestones. While the four subtypes may share some traits – like developmental delays and intellectual disability - the genetic differences suggest distinct mechanisms are behind what appear on the surface to be similar characteristics. The timing of genetic disruptions and the effects on brain development differ with each subtype, researchers found. As a result, some of the genetic impact of autism may occur before birth, while other effects may emerge as children grow, according to the study. 'What we're seeing is not just one biological story of autism, but multiple distinct narratives,' study co-leader Natalie Sauerwald of the Flatiron Institute in New York said in a statement. 'This helps explain why past genetic studies (of autism patients) often fell short,' she said. 'It was like trying to solve a jigsaw puzzle without realising we were actually looking at multiple different puzzles mixed together. We couldn't see the full picture, the genetic patterns, until we first separated individuals into subtypes.' REUTERS
Reuters
5 days ago
- Health
- Reuters
Health Rounds: New autism discovery paves way for personalized care
July 11 (Reuters) - The discovery of four different subtypes of autism is a major step toward understanding the condition's genetic underpinnings and improving care, researchers reported in Nature Genetics, opens new tab. According to researchers, the four autism subtypes can be categorized as: Behavioral Challenges, Mixed Autism Spectrum Disorder with Developmental Delay, Moderate Challenges, and Broadly Affected. Each subtype exhibits distinct developmental, medical, behavioral and psychiatric traits, and importantly, different patterns of genetic variation, the researchers said. The findings are drawn from a study of more than 5,000 children with autism, ages 4 to 18, and nearly 2,000 of their nonautistic siblings. The study looked for nearly 240 traits in each individual, from social interactions to repetitive behaviors to developmental milestones. While the four subtypes may share some traits – like developmental delays and intellectual disability - the genetic differences suggest distinct mechanisms are behind what appear on the surface to be similar characteristics. The timing of genetic disruptions and the effects on brain development differ with each subtype, researchers found. As a result, some of the genetic impact of autism may occur before birth, while other effects may emerge as children grow, according to the study. 'What we're seeing is not just one biological story of autism, but multiple distinct narratives,' study co-leader Natalie Sauerwald of the Flatiron Institute in New York said in a statement. 'This helps explain why past genetic studies (of autism patients) often fell short,' she said. 'It was like trying to solve a jigsaw puzzle without realizing we were actually looking at multiple different puzzles mixed together. We couldn't see the full picture, the genetic patterns, until we first separated individuals into subtypes.' WEARABLES MAY IMPROVE CARE OF CHILDREN AFTER SURGERY Young children recovering at home after surgery might someday wear fitness trackers to speed detection of complications, new research suggests. Presently, surgeons must rely on the children themselves, or their parents, to describe new symptoms after hospital discharge. As a result, complications are not always caught at early stages. At the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, 103 children each received a Google Fitbit - a commercially available activity, sleep and heartbeat monitor worn on the wrist like a watch - to wear for three weeks starting immediately after appendectomy. Rather than just monitoring the usual metrics captured by the Fitbit, the researchers modified the devices' algorithms to look for deviations from the circadian rhythms of a child's activity and heart rate patterns. The new algorithms were 91% accurate at flagging early signs of postoperative complications, up to three days before the children's doctors would later diagnose them, the researchers found upon reviewing the data. The devices were 74% accurate at identifying kids who were free of complications, they reported in Science Advances, opens new tab. Eventually the researchers hope to develop a real-time system that analyzes data automatically and sends alerts to children's clinical teams. 'By using widely available wearables, coupled with this novel algorithm, we have an opportunity to change the paradigm of postoperative monitoring and care — and improve outcomes for kids in the process,' study coauthor Dr. Fizan Abdullah said in a statement. (To receive the full newsletter in your inbox for free sign up here)
Time of India
5 days ago
- Health
- Time of India
New autism discovery paves way for personalized care
London: The discovery of four different subtypes of autism is a major step toward understanding the condition's genetic underpinnings and improving care, researchers reported in Nature Genetics. According to researchers, the four autism subtypes can be categorized as: Behavioral Challenges, Mixed Autism Spectrum Disorder with Developmental Delay, Moderate Challenges, and Broadly Affected. Each subtype exhibits distinct developmental, medical, behavioral and psychiatric traits, and importantly, different patterns of genetic variation, the researchers said. The findings are drawn from a study of more than 5,000 children with autism , ages 4 to 18, and nearly 2,000 of their nonautistic siblings. The study looked for nearly 240 traits in each individual, from social interactions to repetitive behaviors to developmental milestones. While the four subtypes may share some traits - like developmental delays and intellectual disability - the genetic differences suggest distinct mechanisms are behind what appear on the surface to be similar characteristics. The timing of genetic disruptions and the effects on brain development differ with each subtype, researchers found. As a result, some of the genetic impact of autism may occur before birth, while other effects may emerge as children grow, according to the study. "What we're seeing is not just one biological story of autism, but multiple distinct narratives," study co-leader Natalie Sauerwald of the Flatiron Institute in New York said in a statement. "This helps explain why past genetic studies (of autism patients) often fell short," she said. "It was like trying to solve a jigsaw puzzle without realizing we were actually looking at multiple different puzzles mixed together. We couldn't see the full picture, the genetic patterns, until we first separated individuals into subtypes." WEARABLES MAY IMPROVE CARE OF CHILDREN AFTER SURGERY Young children recovering at home after surgery might someday wear fitness trackers to speed detection of complications, new research suggests. Presently, surgeons must rely on the children themselves, or their parents, to describe new symptoms after hospital discharge. As a result, complications are not always caught at early stages. At the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, 103 children each received a Google Fitbit - a commercially available activity, sleep and heartbeat monitor worn on the wrist like a watch - to wear for three weeks starting immediately after appendectomy. Rather than just monitoring the usual metrics captured by the Fitbit, the researchers modified the devices' algorithms to look for deviations from the circadian rhythms of a child's activity and heart rate patterns. The new algorithms were 91% accurate at flagging early signs of postoperative complications, up to three days before the children's doctors would later diagnose them, the researchers found upon reviewing the data. The devices were 74% accurate at identifying kids who were free of complications, they reported in Science Advances. Eventually the researchers hope to develop a real-time system that analyzes data automatically and sends alerts to children's clinical teams.
The Independent
6 days ago
- Health
- The Independent
Major autism breakthrough could revolutionise treatments and care
Researchers have taken a 'transformative step' towards understanding the biology underlying autism after discovering four subtypes of the genetic condition. Scientists at Princeton University and the Simons Foundation analysed data from 5,000 children in SPARK, an autism cohort study, to group individuals based on their combination of traits. Instead of searching for genetic links to certain traits, researchers considered a range of over 230 traits in each individual, from social interactions to repetitive behaviours to developmental milestones. From this analysis, they were able to identify four subtypes of autism with different patterns of genetic variation. 'What we're seeing is not just one biological story of autism, but multiple distinct narratives," said Natalie Sauerwald, associate research scientist at the Flatiron Institute and co-lead author. 'This helps explain why past genetic studies often fell short—it was like trying to solve a jigsaw puzzle without realizing we were actually looking at multiple different puzzles mixed together. We couldn't see the full picture, the genetic patterns, until we first separated individuals into subtypes.' The four subtypes were Social and Behavioral Challenges, Mixed ASD with Developmental Delay, Moderate Challenges, and Broadly Affected. The first type relates to children reaching developmental milestones at a similar pace to children without autism, but they often experience co-occurring conditions like ADHD, anxiety or depression. The second type showed a delay in reaching developmental milestones but with no signs of co-occurring conditions. The third type, Moderate Challenges, shows core autism-related behaviours but less strongly than other groups, reaching milestones at a similar pace to children without autism and with no co-occurring conditions. The fourth type faces the most extreme and wide-ranging challenges. The first and third types were the most common, with 37 per cent and 34 per cent of participants found to be in each group, respectively, while the second and fourth types were the least common, with 19 per cent and 10 per cent of participants in each group. The findings highlight how genetic differences 'suggest distinct mechanisms behind superficially similar clinical presentations'. For example, children in both the Broadly Affected and Mixed ASD groups share some important traits, such as developmental delay and intellectual disability, but the former group showed the highest proportion of de novo mutations, which are not inherited from either parent, whereas the latter group was more likely to carry rare inherited genetic variants. The findings do not mean there are only four subtypes of autism; they establish the discovery of a data-driven framework showing there are at least four, and that they are meaningful both for clinical work and research at the genome level. For families navigating autism, knowing which subtype of autism their child has can offer new clarity, tailored care, support and community.
Axios
7 days ago
- Health
- Axios
Researchers identify four distinct types of autism
There are four distinct varieties of autism, each linked to unique genetic profiles — a discovery that could offer new insights into the neurodevelopmental condition, according to a new study in Nature Genetics. Why it matters: The findings come as Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy is pushing federal efforts to identify an " environmental" cause for increased autism incidence by September. Driving the news: A Princeton-led research team examined data from more than 5,000 children in SPARK, an autism cohort study funded by the Simons Foundation. After analyzing more than 230 traits including social interactions and repetitive behaviors, they identified four subtypes: "social and behavioral challenges," "mixed ASD with developmental delay," "moderate challenges" and "broadly affected." They then linked the subtypes to distinct genetic mutations, identifying divergent biological processes in each. For example, children in the "broadly affected" group showed the highest proportion of mutations not inherited from either parent, while the "mixed ASD with developmental delay" group was more likely to carry rare inherited genetic variants. Autism is known to be highly heritable, with many implicated genes. But the researchers said standard genetic testing only explains about 20% of cases. What they're saying:"What we're seeing is not just one biological story of autism, but multiple distinct narratives," said Natalie Sauerwald, associate research scientist at the Flatiron Institute and co-lead author, in a statement.
