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developmental neuroscience

This shows a brain and an unkempt child standing alone.

·August 29, 2025·5 min read

Child Neglect Alone Alters Brain Pathways

A new neuroimaging study reveals that child neglect alone, without other forms of abuse, can alter critical brain pathways. Researchers found abnormalities in white matter regions tied to movement, attention, language, and emotional regulation.

This shows a family consulting with a doctor about treatments.

Autism Featured Neuroscience

·August 28, 2025·5 min read

Most Alternative Autism Treatments Unproven

A sweeping review of 248 meta-analyses on complementary and alternative medicines (CAIMs) for autism found no strong evidence to support their use. Researchers assessed 19 types of interventions, from music therapy to probiotics, but results were generally unreliable and safety evaluations were scarce.

Featured Neuroscience

·August 28, 2025·5 min read

Immune Cells Found to Shape Teen Brain Circuits

Adolescence is a critical period for the brain’s frontal cortex, where executive functions mature and vulnerabilities to psychiatric disorders emerge. A new study shows that microglia, the brain’s immune cells, directly shape dopamine circuits during this time by strengthening axonal connections.

This shows a mom and toddler looking at a tablet.

Featured Neuroscience

·August 26, 2025·5 min read

Baby Toolbox Transforms Early Infant Development Assessment

The NIH Baby Toolbox is a groundbreaking assessment system designed to evaluate infants’ and toddlers’ development from just 16 days old to 42 months. Using gaze-based learning and tablet-based tools, it allows clinicians and researchers to measure cognitive, motor, language, and social-emotional skills with unprecedented precision.

Featured Genetics Neuroscience

·August 20, 2025·5 min read

AI Tool Shows Exactly When Genes Turn On and Off

Researchers have developed an AI-powered tool called chronODE that models how genes turn on and off during brain development. By combining mathematics, machine learning, and genomic data, the method identifies exact “switching points” that determine when genes reach maximum activity.

This shows a pregnant woman and a brain surrounded by pills.

Autism Featured Neuroscience

·August 18, 2025·5 min read

Prenatal Acetaminophen Linked to Higher Autism, ADHD Risk

A new study has raised concerns about the safety of acetaminophen use during pregnancy, linking prenatal exposure to higher risks of autism and ADHD. Using the gold-standard Navigation Guide review method, the team analyzed 46 studies with over 100,000 participants, finding that stronger studies more consistently showed a connection.

This shows a pregnant woman in a field surrounded by "danger" signs.

Featured Neuroscience

·August 18, 2025·6 min read

Prenatal Pesticide Exposure Linked to Lasting Brain Damage in Children

A new study provides the strongest evidence yet that prenatal exposure to the insecticide chlorpyrifos (CPF) disrupts brain development, leaving children with structural abnormalities and impaired motor control well into adolescence. Using brain imaging and behavioral assessments of over 270 New York City children, researchers found that higher CPF exposure levels were directly linked to widespread changes in brain structure, function, and metabolism.

This shows a brain surrounded by microbes.

Featured Neuroscience

·August 14, 2025·4 min read

Microbes in the Womb and at Birth Help Sculpt the Newborn Brain

New research reveals that microbes play a crucial role in shaping a newborn’s brain both before and after birth. Using a mouse model, scientists showed that the absence of maternal microbes during pregnancy led to fewer neurons in the PVN—a brain region essential for stress, social behavior, and body regulation—regardless of whether the newborn later received microbial exposure.

Featured Genetics Neuroscience

·August 13, 2025·4 min read

Genetic Switch May Be Key to Human Brain’s Unique Abilities

Researchers have identified a genetic region, HAR123, that may help explain what makes the human brain unique. Acting as a transcriptional enhancer, HAR123 influences the development of neural progenitor cells, which give rise to neurons and glial cells, and plays a role in determining their ratio.

This shows a pregnant woman and a brain.

Autism Featured Genetics Neuroscience

·August 12, 2025·4 min read

Pre-Pregnancy Obesity Linked to Autism Risk

A new study reveals how maternal obesity before pregnancy can program autism-related behaviors in offspring through lasting epigenetic changes in egg cells. Using IVF and embryo transfer in mice, researchers isolated the pre-conception effects, finding altered DNA methylation patterns that disrupted genes such as Homer1.

This shows the outline of a sad child, a child looking into the mirror and an ominous adult in the background. There are chains tying the child to the adult.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·August 11, 2025·5 min read

Early Abuse Shapes Adult Sexual Behavior

A new study has found that sexual narcissism mediates the link between childhood trauma and compulsive sexual behavior. Researchers compared individuals with and without compulsive sexual behavior, measuring trauma history, sexual narcissism, and hypersexuality.

This shows a couple at a crossroads. One way shows a bright future, the other, a darker future.

Featured Neuroscience

·August 10, 2025·6 min read

How Upbringing Shapes Risk Decisions

A new study suggests that the way you take risks as an adult may depend less on how risky you are by nature and more on the types of resources you had growing up. Researchers found that people who were “socially rich” (strong social support, less money) and “economically rich” (more money, less social support) took similar risks but used different brain regions to get there.

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developmental neuroscience

Child Neglect Alone Alters Brain Pathways

Most Alternative Autism Treatments Unproven

Immune Cells Found to Shape Teen Brain Circuits

Baby Toolbox Transforms Early Infant Development Assessment

AI Tool Shows Exactly When Genes Turn On and Off

Prenatal Acetaminophen Linked to Higher Autism, ADHD Risk

Prenatal Pesticide Exposure Linked to Lasting Brain Damage in Children

Microbes in the Womb and at Birth Help Sculpt the Newborn Brain

Genetic Switch May Be Key to Human Brain’s Unique Abilities

Pre-Pregnancy Obesity Linked to Autism Risk

Early Abuse Shapes Adult Sexual Behavior

How Upbringing Shapes Risk Decisions

Healthy Plant-Based Eating Lowers Dementia Risk

Estrogen Levels at the Moment of Trauma Predict PTSD

Toddler Habits Predict Teenage Fitness

Brain’s Endurance Program: Hypothalamus Remembers Exercise

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