Childhood experiences shape the brain’s white matter with cognitive effects seen years later, study shows

Mass General Brigham investigators have linked difficult early life experiences with reduced quality and quantity of the white matter communication highways throughout the adolescent brain. This reduced connectivity is also associated with lower performance on cognitive tasks. However, certain social resiliency factors like neighborhood cohesion and positive parenting may have a protective effect.

Twins grow more slowly in early pregnancy than previously thought

Twins—smaller at birth, on average, than singletons—start out smaller in pregnancy than was previously known, according to a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The ultrasound study revealed that twins have less fat tissue and less muscle mass than singletons beginning at 15 weeks of pregnancy. If results are confirmed by additional research, the findings could provide information to guide physicians in monitoring and managing twin pregnancies.

VR system developed to simulate environments for early detection of autism

A team from the Human-Tech Institute-Universitat Politècnica de València has developed a new system for the early detection of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) using virtual reality and artificial intelligence. The system has achieved an accuracy of over 85%, thus surpassing traditional methods of detecting autism in early childhood, which are usually based on psychological tests and interviews carried out manually. The results of the work of the UPV team have been published in the Expert Systems with Applications journal.

Gene discovery reveals potential for growing new heart arteries

Most people have right-dominant hearts—which to a doctor or a researcher means they have an artery that extends from the right side of their hearts to supply oxygenated blood to the back side. For some people, this artery, called the posterior descending artery, comes from the left side or from both directions. A study has found that the gene CXCL12 is connected to this artery’s formation and that its directional pattern is set very early in human development.