We don't know exactly what causes autism spectrum disorder or how to treat it. But researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) have just found a promising lead that, at least in mice, reduces the neuronal hyperexcitability associated with autism and mitigates certain autistic behaviors. In a study published on July 23, 2026 in Nature Communications, They show that these abnormalities could be caused by chronic brain inflammation. And that a drug already exists that can reduce this inflammation and thus normalize brain activity.
By Nicolas Gutierrez C. THE Subscribers
A study in mice shows that autism could be caused, at least in part, by chronic inflammation of the brain.
Autism is characterized in part by neuronal hyperexcitability, which is normalized with treatment.
Photo by THOM LEACH / SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRA / TLE / SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY VIA AFP
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