2023

Featured Talks / Presentations

Science Minds (18 min)

Host Andrew Dakopolos in conversation with Christine Wu Nordahl (2023)

Infographic for the IQ trajectories article. Section 1: MRIs can be challenging for autistic individuals with intellectual disability. This means less is known about their brain development. Section 2: Out of 47,400 autistic individuals in the National Database for Autism Research, only 11% had an IQ less than 85. Less than 1% of those had brain scans. Section 3: The Autism Phenome Project at the UC Davis MIND Institute is a research study that is following a group of autistic children as they grown up from age 3 to age 12 30% of participants are autistic children with intellectual disability. The study team developed techniques to collect MRI scans on individuals with all levels of intellectual ability. Section 4: The researchers found 3 groups of kids: IQs in the average range throughout childhood. IQs in the intellectual disability range throughout childhood. IQs in the intellectual disability range as toddlers and the average range by age 8. Section 5: The study used MRIs to look at networks in the brain. Networks are parts of the brain that work together to do a job. Researchers found a network that is different between those whose IQ changed over time and those whose IQ stayed the same over time. Section 6: This research might help us to predict patterns of IQ change across childhood and develop targeted interventions to help children with intellectual disability.

Featured Publications / Publications

IQ trajectories in autistic children through preadolescence

The study team developed techniques to collect MRI scans on individuals with all levels of intellectual ability. We found a brain network that is different between children whose IQ changed over time and those whose IQ stayed the same over time.

Our research program is part of
the UC Davis MIND Institute

Featured Talks & Presentations

Why autism brain studies matter (37 min)
Women and Girls on the Spectrum (30 min)
Science Minds (18 min)
What neuroscience tells us about autism in children (50 min)
The Autism Phenome Project: Identifying subgroups of autism (45 min)

Featured Publications

Autism, Big Brains, and Zebrafish?
Looking at gastrointestinal symptoms in autistic children over time
Sex differences in trajectories of cortical development in autistic children from 2–13 years of age
Why do we need sex-balanced studies of autism?
IQ trajectories in autistic children through preadolescence