Autistic children lack a key brain activity that helps others understand people’s feelings and intentions, according to a new study by researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles.The study, published Sunday in the journal Nature Neuroscience, supports evidence that neurological defects cause the social problems associated with autism, according to the researchers."It opens the way for new ideas and treatments and insights into autism,” said Mirella Dapretto, the study’s lead author and an assistant professor at UCLA’s Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior.The UCLA researchers compared 10 high-functioning autistic children aged 10 to 14 with 10 normally developing children by measuring brain activity using magnetic resonance imaging.Each child was asked to imitate and observe 80 photographs depicting various emotions. Unlike their normally developing peers, the autistic children had virtually no activity in the mirror neuron system - the part of the brain that scientists believe leads people to understand intentions and emotions.Educators said the study will help treat autism early on and could help fund additional research into the condition.
