Title: Questions for Robert Joseph: How extreme prematurity ups autism risk | Spectrum | Autism Research News
Headings: Questions for Robert Joseph: How extreme prematurity ups autism risk
Questions for Robert Joseph: How extreme prematurity ups autism risk
Robert Joseph

Content: S: What is the new thinking? J: These children are born at a time when central nervous system development is still vulnerable. We know that these infants lack neuroprotective proteins that would be more abundant if they were born later. And we believe that in the absence of these neuroprotective factors, certain prenatal environmental exposures and events, and the inflammatory processes that accompany them, can lead to brain injury. S: A mother may go into preterm labor for many reasons. How might these reasons influence autism risk? J: