When a helpful brain signal gets stuck: An autism-linked chain reaction
Medical Xpress
March 4, 2026
Think of the brain as a city with traffic lights that keep signals flowing smoothly. In a new study, researchers followed a clue about nitric oxide, a common chemical messenger, and found that, in some forms of autism, if it increases, it may act less like a helpful signal and more like a "stuck button." When nitric oxide sets off this chain reaction, a key safeguard protein called TSC2 gets lost, and a major control system in cells, mTOR, which helps manage growth and protein-making, can surge into abnormal overdrive. The encouraging twist: when the researchers interrupted that specific step, the system calmed down, pointing to a more concrete "where to look" in the biology of autism and a possible direction for future therapies.
Verticals
healthmedical
Originally published on Medical Xpress on 3/4/2026