Autism News and Research

Latest Autism News and Research

Research rules out link between MMR vaccines and autism

A new article recently published in the Journal for Specialists in Pediatric Nursing explored vaccination history, vaccine safety monitoring systems in the U.S., and the two most publicized theoretical vaccine-related exposures associated with autism - the vaccine preservative thimerosal and the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine.

9 Oct 2009

Johns Hopkins researchers identify several genetic links to autism

About 90 percent of autism spectrum disorders have suspected genetic causes but few genes have been identified so far. Now, leading an international team, Johns Hopkins researchers have identified several genetic links to autism, chief among them a variant of semaphorin 5A, whose protein product controls nerve connections in the brain.

8 Oct 2009

Family and population based approaches sheds new light on the potential roles of common and rare forms of human genetic variation

In one of the first studies of its kind, an international team of researchers has uncovered a single-letter change in the genetic code that is associated with autism. The finding, published in the October 8 issue of the journal Nature, implicates a neuronal gene not previously tied to the disorder and more broadly, underscores a role for common DNA variation.

8 Oct 2009

Help Group Summit 2009 on autism, learning disabilities and ADHD

The Help Group Summit 2009 - Advances and Best Practices in Autism, Learning Disabilities and ADHD took place on Friday, October 2nd and Saturday, October 3rd at The Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles. This cutting edge conference featured more than 20 leading experts from across the country.

7 Oct 2009

Autism rates among U.S. children is one in 91, says new report

A new report out yesterday places autism rates among U.S. children at one in 91, with autism now affecting one in 58 boys. These new numbers, from Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, are prompting outrage from parents and autism advocates over inaction from government health agencies in addressing the crisis affecting hundreds of thousands of American families.

7 Oct 2009

PBS launches new website to support "This Emotional Life" documentary

PBS, Vulcan Productions and the WGBH/NOVA Science Unit launched a new website today to support the upcoming This Emotional Life documentary, which premieres on PBS in early 2010. The documentary series is hosted by Daniel Gilbert, Harvard psychologist and best-selling author of Stumbling on Happiness, and weaves the latest scientific research with compelling personal stories through deeply personal interviews with ordinary people, such as returning veterans and new parents, as well as celebrities.

7 Oct 2009

Scientists expand their fleet of genomic next-generation sequencing technology to study about cancer

Scientists from the Baylor College of Medicine Human Genome Sequencing Center (HGSC) are expanding their fleet of advanced genomic next-generation sequencing technology from Applied Biosystems, part of Life Technologies Corporation to accelerate their studies of the genetic underpinnings of cancer and other complex human diseases.

6 Oct 2009

Kennedy Krieger Institute announces the results of largest ever twin study of ASDs

Kennedy Krieger Institute announced today new study results from the largest ever twin study that confirm the role genetics plays in autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), but also suggest that environmental factors play a role.

6 Oct 2009

New findings reinforce the urgency of autism as a major global public health crisis

Autism Speaks together with Autism Speaks Canada, North America's largest autism science and advocacy organization, today responded to a new study published in the American Academy of Pediatrics' journal Pediatrics that found a parent-reported autism prevalence rate of one in every 91 American children, including one in 58 boys.

6 Oct 2009

IAN Project launches the Grandparents of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders Survey

Since its launch in 2007, the Interactive Autism Network (IAN) has helped to accelerate the pace of autism research by gathering valuable information online from individuals on the autism spectrum and their parents. Today, the IAN Project launches the Grandparents of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders Survey, giving grandparents a well-deserved voice in the autism research community.

6 Oct 2009

Autistic patients have underlying medical disorders that are amenable to treatment

The National Children's Health Survey published results from a 2007 telephone survey in Pediatrics today in which 78,000 households in the US were asked if their child (ages 2-17) was known to "currently have autism, Asperger's Disorder, pervasive development disorder, or other autism spectrum disorder." The survey showed that 1% of children (one in 100) now have the disorder. Previous estimates from the CDC had reported a prevalence rate of one in 150.

5 Oct 2009

Construction of $50 million campus to address the crisis of a growing and aging population with autism begins

Marking a new chapter in the realization of life quality for those with autism and other developmental disabilities, the Training, Education & Research Institute (TERI, Inc.) today officially broke ground on construction for the Charles R. Cono Center for Research & Life Planning. Set on 20 acres in North San Diego County, the $50 million campus will directly address the crisis of a growing and aging population with autism and other developmental disabilities by providing a comprehensive array of services and support programs covering their entire lifespan in a dynamic location.

3 Oct 2009

NIMH awards USC scientists $9M for mapping gene expression during human brain development

Two University of Southern California (USC) neuroscientists have been awarded nearly $9 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds to map how genes are expressed in different regions of the human brain throughout development.

3 Oct 2009

IRSF awards $2M for research into a cure for Rett syndrome

The International Rett Syndrome Foundation (IRSF) announced today that it is awarding grants totaling $2 million to support 18 innovative research projects in 2009. Each project will explore bold new ideas that have the potential to drive the field forward and speed the translation of research into treatments and a cure for Rett syndrome.

3 Oct 2009

New study underscores lack of appropriate government action to ensure safety of vaccines

A new study in the leading scientific journal NeuroToxicology lends further credence to parents and scientists concerned about an increasingly aggressive childhood vaccine schedule and toxic vaccine components.

2 Oct 2009

Grand Opportunity grant to pursue "whole-genome" sequencing of patients with autism

Children's Hospital Boston, with the Broad Institute and Harvard Medical School, has been awarded a Grand Opportunity grant from the National Institute of Mental Health as part of the federal stimulus package, to pursue "whole-genome" sequencing of patients with autism, using new technologies for rapid DNA sequencing to better understand autism's causes.

1 Oct 2009

Pfeiffer Treatment Center opens new Alzheimer’s care center in Illinois

Pfeiffer Treatment Center proudly announces that it has opened the Pfeiffer Center for Alzheimer’s care in Illinois.

1 Oct 2009

ARRA stimulus funds fuel research projects across America

The Association of American Universities (AAU), the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU), and The Science Coalition (TSC) today released highlighted examples of the important scientific work happening across the country as a result of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). The brief report summarizes just a handful of the thousands of projects benefiting from stimulus dollars.

30 Sep 2009

Life Technologies Foundation awards grants for advancements in science

The Life Technologies Foundation, a non-profit arm of Life Technologies Corporation dedicated to advancing science education and scientific discovery, has awarded approximately $1.7 million in new grants that include the creation of an online biology textbook, and building a museum exhibit about the human cell.

30 Sep 2009

Study: Role of genetics and environment in autism spectrum disorders

Researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston and the University of the West Indies have joined forces to launch a study of Jamaican children that they hope will unlock the secrets of how genetics and environment may interact to cause autism spectrum disorders.

29 Sep 2009

Autism News and Research

Latest Autism News and Research

Research rules out link between MMR vaccines and autism

Johns Hopkins researchers identify several genetic links to autism

Family and population based approaches sheds new light on the potential roles of common and rare forms of human genetic variation

Help Group Summit 2009 on autism, learning disabilities and ADHD

Autism rates among U.S. children is one in 91, says new report

PBS launches new website to support "This Emotional Life" documentary

Scientists expand their fleet of genomic next-generation sequencing technology to study about cancer

Kennedy Krieger Institute announces the results of largest ever twin study of ASDs

New findings reinforce the urgency of autism as a major global public health crisis

IAN Project launches the Grandparents of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders Survey

Autistic patients have underlying medical disorders that are amenable to treatment

Construction of $50 million campus to address the crisis of a growing and aging population with autism begins

NIMH awards USC scientists $9M for mapping gene expression during human brain development

IRSF awards $2M for research into a cure for Rett syndrome

New study underscores lack of appropriate government action to ensure safety of vaccines

Grand Opportunity grant to pursue "whole-genome" sequencing of patients with autism

Pfeiffer Treatment Center opens new Alzheimer’s care center in Illinois

ARRA stimulus funds fuel research projects across America

Life Technologies Foundation awards grants for advancements in science

Study: Role of genetics and environment in autism spectrum disorders

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

Autism News and Research

Latest Autism News and Research

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

Newsletters you may be interested in