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Autism & Epilepsy

When kids' autistic brains can't calm down. One third of children who have autism spectrum disorder also have epilepsy. It's related to an autism risk gene. But scientists didn't now why the mutation, catnap2, caused seizures. Now scientists have discovered the mutation shrinks the neurons' dendrite arbors and synapses that enable brain cells to relay vital messages. The 'Calm down!' message gets lost in the brain, causing neurons to spin out of control. Drugs could soon be tested to reverse seizures, language delay and intellectual disability. Source 8r.

Epilepsy and Autism

A possible new pathway for treating epileptic seizures in patients with autism. Researchers have discovered that in Nav1.2 deficient neurons, the expressions of many potassium channels are surprisingly reduced. The Nav1.2 deficiency itself doesn't cause seizures; the issue arises when the potassium channels over-compensate for the sodium channels' deficiency by shutting down too many potassium channels, making the neuron hyperexcitable, which causes seizures. Source 3i.

Autism & Epilepsy Health & Special Psychology

Children with ASD are somewhat more likely to have epilepsy than those without, and children with epilepsy are more likely to have autism than the general population. Therefore, it is common for autism and epilepsy to coincide in the same person.