Prepulse inhibition (PPI) may useful for exploring the proposed shared neurobiology between idiopathic autism and autism caused by FXS. We compared PPI in four groups: typically developing controls (n = 18), FXS and autism (FXS+A; n = 15), FXS without autism spectrum disorder (FXS-A; n = 17), and idiopathic autism (IA; n = 15). Relative to controls, the FXS+A (p less than 0.002) and FXS-A (p less than 0.003) groups had impaired PPI. The FXS+A (p less than 0.01) and FXS-A (p less than 0.03) groups had lower PPI than the IA group. Prolonged startle latency was seen in the IA group. The differing PPI profiles seen in the FXS+A and IA indicates these groups may not share a common neurobiological abnormality of sensorimotor gating. (Contains 3 tables and 4 figures.)