Made possible by a generous grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, Autism Speaks is pleased to announce its first round of Dennis Weatherstone PreDoctoral Fellowships awarding eight Fellows a combined $448,000 in research grants over the next two years. Established in 2008 in memory of Sir Dennis Weatherstone, the former Chairman and CEO of J.P. Morgan, the intent of the fellowship program is to encourage the most promising young scientists to establish autism research as their chosen career path. The fellowship awards will provide highly qualified candidates with exceptional research training opportunities in all areas related to the study of autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Specifically, Dennis Weatherstone Fellows will work directly with mentors who are leading scientists in the field of autism research to support the growth of a promising cadre of young autism scientists.

Eight applicants were chosen to be among the first class of Dennis Weatherstone Fellows, selected from the 55 proposals received from highly qualified candidates in response to this years request for applications. The thorough and competitive review process confers distinction on those awarded a fellowship grant. Research topics for this years award recipients focus on various aspects of autism science ranging from neurobiology, genetics, and immunology to behavior, communication, and computerbased language tools.

“We are extremely pleased to launch this new fellowships program made possible through a generous gift to Autism Speaks,” says Geraldine Dawson, chief science officer for Autism Speaks. “We were especially impressed with the quality and diversity of the fellows whose research spans genetics, neuroscience, and clinical research. Jumpstarting the careers of these young scientists, not only with research funds but with mentor relationships with leading scientists, is one of the best investments we can make.”

In a computer science project entitled “Visualizing Voice,” Joshua Hailpern, under mentor Karrie Karahalios, Ph.D. of the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, aims to develop a computerbased program for children with ASD that will “paint” an individuals voice onto the screen, showing volume and pitch changes in real time in order to teach language skills such as multisyllabic word production.

Jennifer FossFeig, with mentor Wendy Stone, Ph.D. at Vanderbilt University, will investigate the underlying neural mechanisms involved in the processing of complex sensory information using noninvasive measures of brain electrical activity.

Meaghan Parladé, with mentor Jana Iverson, Ph.D. at the University of Pittsburgh, will investigate early risk indicators for autism such as gestures, eye contact, facial expressions, and communicative vocalizations in very young siblings of affected children.

At the University of Colorado Denver with mentor of Donald Rojas, Ph.D., Lisa Wilson will use advanced imaging techniques including magnetoencephalography and magnetic resonance imaging to examine how language is processed in parents of children with autism and in adults with autism.

At the University of Illinois at Chicago with mentor John Sweeney, Ph.D., AnnaMaria DCruz will study abnormalities in brain function that may contribute to Insistence on Sameness, a core feature of autism characterized by routine, stereotyped and repetitive behaviors.

With mentor Paul Patterson, Ph.D. at the California Institute of Technology, Elaine Hsiao will use a mouse model of maternal viral infection to investigate the role of Interleukine6 in the development of autismrelated behaviors in the offspring.

Bradford Elmer, with mentor A. Kimberly McAllister, Ph.D. from the University of California at Davis, will study the role of immune molecules but in the formation of brain connections (or synaptogenesis) and possible alterations that might result in neurodevelopmental disorders.

Examining the genetic causes of autism, M. Ali Bangash with mentor Paul Worley, M.D. at Johns Hopkins University, will refine a mouse model to study the gene SHANK3 and investigate its implications for autism using biochemical and behavioral tests. Mutations of this gene have recently been implicated in a subset of individuals with autism.

Source
Jane Rubinstein

The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) applauds the American Medical Association (AMA) for reaffirming its policy in support for universal vaccination.

Leadership at the AMA has agreed to continue its ongoing efforts to assist physicians and other health care professionals to effectively communicate to patients, parents, and policy makers that vaccines do not cause autism and that the decreasing immunization rates have resulted in a resurgence of vaccinepreventable diseases and deaths.

“Even though there is still need for the scientific understanding for the increased incidence of autism, there is not a causal relationship that is supported by science regarding vaccines and autism,” said Louis Kraus, M.D., AACAP Alternate Delegate to the AMA House of Delegates and a member of the AMAs Council on Science and Public Health.

“The AMA has spoken clearly on this issue. Theres no evidence that vaccines cause autism, and there is evidence that more kids are getting seriously ill from preventable diseases as a result of decreased rates of immunization,” said David Fassler, M.D., AACAP Delegate to the AMA House of Delegates.

Despite public education initiatives, many parents remain concerned about the safety of vaccines. “It is important that the medical community reassure parents that vaccinating their children is the right thing to do,” said Dr. Kraus.

Autism is a neuropsychiatric disorder characterized by patterns of delay and deviance in the development of social, communicative, and cognitive skills. The cause of autism remains unknown, although current theories indicate a problem with the structure or function of the central nervous system.