What causes autism?

A useful and timely summary of our knowledge so far about autism has been published in The

Hepingting/Flickr, CC BY

Conversation today. Andrew Whitehouse, Winthrop Professor at the Telethon Kids Institute, University of Western Australia has authored What causes autism? What we know, don’t know and suspect.  He discusses some past theories about the cause of the condition - from power lines to cold mothers - and writes that scientists now believe that "A variety of genetic factors are likely to be the ultimate cause of most cases of autism. These may work by themselves, or in combination with environmental factors, to lead a child’s brain to develop differently and result in autistic behaviours."

Whitehouse goes on to explain what we know about the genetics of autism, mainly from twin studies, the complexity of contributing environmental factors, the study of the brain, and some other biological factors such as testosterone in the womb.