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School of Neuroscience
Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience

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Autism spectrum disorder

Many genetic alterations can cause autism spectrum disorder and related intellectual disabilities, however we are yet to understand how this happens. We combine models with clinical observations to study how specific mutations change cells and their connections, and how this affects behaviour. The effect of these cellular and neural network alterations are studied to find ways to gain insights into this complex condition.

Our key questions:

  • What are the disease mechanisms underlying autism spectrum disorder?
  • Are there different gene mutations disrupting a final common pathway during brain development?
  • How do genes code the wiring diagram of the developing brain? And how is this disrupted in autism spectrum disorder?
  • How can we link clinical observations with cellular and neural network alterations caused by specific mutations in autism spectrum disorder?

Autism spectrum disorder is a key research theme of the MRC Centre for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, which brings together world-leading researchers across King's College London.

Click people profiles to discover their research:

Early life and development

Neuroscience and mental health

Our research

Our research

Leading the world in understanding brain function and finding new treatments for patients

What is neuroscience?

What is neuroscience?

Neuroscience is the study of the nervous system, from structure to function, in health and disease

Discover more about Neuroscience at King’s

Centres

Centres

Specialist neuroscience centres, world-leading in understanding the brain at all stages of life

Facilities & Resources

Facilities & Resources

World-class neuroscience facilities & resources, including MRI, neuroimaging equipment, and King's…

PhD

PhD

Join a lively community of PhD students, learning from world-leading neuroscience researchers

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