Autism Is Not One Thing: Subtypes and How to Determine Your Child's Subtype

About this episode

This episode explores the concept of autism subtypes and the latest research on understanding autism as a spectrum of distinct conditions.

In this episode, I'm taking you inside one of the most important shifts happening in autism science right now: subtyping. I walk you through the latest research on why autism is best understood as many different conditions under one umbrella, not a single biology with a single path. We look at a landmark 2025 study from Princeton, published in Nature Genetics, that identified four distinct subtypes of autism across more than 5,000 children, each with shared behavioral profiles and shared genetics. I also cover biological subtypes including mitochondrial dysfunction (which my team at Columbia was the first to identify directly in the brain) and maternal autoantibody-related autism (MAR autism), an immune-driven subtype studied extensively by Dr. Judy Van de Water at UC Davis. This episode is for you if: you've been told your child "has autism" but no one has helped you understand what kind, your child's profile doesn't seem to match other autistic children you've met and you want to know why, you want to understand the genetics and biology behind your child's development, or you're looking for a science-backed framework that goes beyond one-size-fits-all treatment…

People in this episode

Host: Dr. Suzanne Goh

Topics covered

• autism subtypes
• genetics
• biological profiles
• child development
• autism research
• supporting unique paths

Keywords

• autism
• subtypes
• genetics
• behavioral profiles
• mitochondrial dysfunction
• maternal autoantibody-related autism
• child development
• research
• support
• unique paths

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Columbia, UC Davis, Princeton, Nature Genetics

More episodes of Magnificent Minds: Demystifying Autism with Dr. Suzanne Goh, MD, BCBA

• A Caregivers Guide to Sensory Processing and Autism: Understanding How your Child Sees the World with Christine Adintori · June 8, 2026 · 33 min
• Autism and Language: What Every Parent Needs to Know with Laura Bierck, SLP-BCBA · May 25, 2026 · 33 min
• Mental Health in Autism: Supporting the Whole Family · May 11, 2026 · 26 min
• Medical Testing for Children with Autism · April 27, 2026 · 26 min
• Preparing Your Autistic Child for Adulthood with Dr. Haley Masterson and Meaghan O'Dea Johnson · March 30, 2026 · 27 min
• The Early Autism Awareness Questionnaire for Parents of Infants and Toddlers · March 9, 2026 · 18 min