Neuronal calcium sensor-1 (NCS-1; also called frequenin) is a 190-residue protein (Fig. 1a), belonging to the NCS subfamily of EF-hands that potentiates neurotransmitter release [24, 28, 29] and it has been linked to several human disorders including autism and schizophrenia [26, 30]. Here, NCS1 is linked to autism.