SCIENCE
April 24, 2013 | By Melissa Healy
Pregnant women who took the anti-seizure drug valproate during pregnancy increased the odds that their baby would have autism, and were roughly twice as likely to give birth to a child who would go on to be diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder, according to a large study that captured 10 years of births in Denmark. Valproate, often known by its commercial name Depakote, is widely prescribed in the treatment of epilepsy and a wide range of psychiatric conditions. It is one of a class of drugs that has been linked to a child's delayed cognitive development and to some congenital malformations.
SCIENCE
April 10, 2013 | By Geoffrey Mohan, Los Angeles Times
Scientists have created a way to make a human brain transparent, enabling them to take deep three-dimensional tours through the mysterious organ and trace its circuitry down to the molecular level. The recipe for transforming cadaver brains into see-through research tools stands to accelerate investigations of Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia and a host of other brain maladies, and already has led to a significant insight into the peculiar characteristics of neurons associated with Down syndrome and autism.
ENTERTAINMENT
April 8, 2013 | By Randy Lewis, Los Angeles Times
On his own and as a member of Crosby, Stills & Nash (and sometimes Young), two-time Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Stephen Stills has taken part in many a benefit concert over the last four decades, but usually his role has been that of rock singer and guitarist. That changes with the Light Up the Blues benefit concert on Saturday for Autism Speaks, which CSN is headlining and also features Lucinda Williams, Rickie Lee Jones, Don Felder, Ryan Adams and several others at Club Nokia.
ENTERTAINMENT
April 4, 2013 | By Mark Olsen
The debut feature from writer-director Alonso Mayo, "The Story of Luke" is about a young man who is grappling with autism and the first steps toward independent living. Having long lived with his grandparents, Luke (Lou Taylor Pucci) is abruptly placed with other relatives (Cary Elwes, Kristin Bauer) who don't exactly know what to do with him. Luke is set on a course of self-discovery that he has always been made to feel was beyond him. In the lead role, Pucci, always a thoughtful, compelling actor (he can also be seen in a very different role in the new "Evil Dead")
ENTERTAINMENT
April 2, 2013 | By Randy Lewis
Crosby, Stills & Nash, Lucinda Williams, Ryan Adams, Rickie Lee Jones and former Eagles guitarist Don Felder top the list of musicians taking part in a benefit for Autism Speaks on April 13 at Club Nokia in Los Angeles. Actor-comedian Jack Black will emcee. The Light Up the Blues concert is being spearheaded by Stills and his wife, Kristen, who have an autistic son. Stills previously has enlisted longtime cohorts David Crosby and Graham Nash for other Autism Speaks events. Tickets are $38.50 to $125, with proceeds benefiting Autism Speaks, the 8-year-old advocacy organization with offices in Los Angeles, New York and Princeton, N.J. The event aims to highlight Autism Speaks' Light It Up Blue annual global awareness and fundraising campaign going on throughout April.
SCIENCE
March 20, 2013 | By Alan Zarembo, Los Angeles Times
U.S. schoolchildren are being diagnosed with some form of autism at a record rate of 1 in 50, according to a new government study. That rate of 2% is based on a survey involving tens of thousands of children between the ages of 6 and 17. A similar survey in 2007 found a rate of 1.2%. Though the increase is likely to fuel speculation that an expanding environmental threat is behind the rise in autism cases, the authors said their report did not support that view. Rather, better detection appears to be driving the surge, according to the researchers, from the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Health and Human Services.