FW: INTERNATIONAL COALITION TO FUND AUTISM GENETICS RESEARCH

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Slow but steady.

Marcus Whitlow

Parent Mentor

Fulton County

School System

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Sent: Wednesday, December 29, 2004

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Whitlow,

Subject: Fwd: INTERNATIONAL

COALITION TO FUND AUTISM GENETICS RESEARCH

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

NIH News

National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)

http://www.nimh.nih.gov/

National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)

http://www.ninds.nih.gov/

National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)

http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/

National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)

http://www.nichd.nih.gov/

National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)

http://www.niehs.nih.gov/

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Tuesday, December 28, 2004

CONTACT:

Loukissas

NIMH press office

301-443-4536

NIMHpress@...

INTERNATIONAL COALITION TO FUND AUTISM GENETICS RESEARCH

An international public/private partnership of government health agencies

and private advocacy organizations has committed more than $21 million for

research to identify the genes associated with autism spectrum disorders, a

range of developmental disorders that impair communication and other mental

abilities. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is spearheading the

coalition, whose members include the Canadian and Irish governments and

three private autism foundations.

The coalition recently issued a Request for Applications (RFA), " Identifying

Autism Susceptibility Genes, " which has an application receipt date of April

15, 2005. Applications will undergo peer review during July 2005. The

coalition will award funding for the research project in the fall of 2005

and expects to fund two to three organizations to participate in the 5-year

project.

" NIMH appreciates the challenge of leading this impressive team, " said

R. Insel, M.D., director of the NIMH, the lead organization in the

effort. " This remarkable partnership shows what can be accomplished when

public/private efforts join forces. This international approach can advance

the autism field by leaps and bounds. "

With three to six new cases per 1,000 children, autism is more common than

several other disabling but better-understood diseases of childhood, such as

type 1 diabetes and cystic fibrosis. Symptoms of autism, a complex

neuropsychiatric syndrome, include varying degrees of impairment in

communication and social skills, and restricted, repetitive, and stereotyped

patterns of behavior. While heredity, in the form of multiple genes, appears

to be a major determinant of whether a particular individual develops

autism, experts believe that environmental influences also play a

significant role.

Researchers have already reported progress on the genetic underpinnings of

autism. There are reports of several chromosomal regions associated with the

disorder, but few specific genes have been identified. The RFA is intended

to advance knowledge of the relation between genetics and autism by

examining existing data for genes and gene variants that confer

susceptibility to autism. The RFA also requires researchers to assess the

functional significance of autism-associated genetic variants. This research

may provide a means to subdivide autism spectrum disorders into

identifiable, distinct disorders, with different molecular mechanisms.

The organizations participating in the project are the National Institute of

Mental Health (NIMH), National Institute for Neurological Disorders and

Stroke (NINDS), the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communications

Disorders (NIDCD), the National Institute of Child Health and Human

Development (NICHD), and the National Institute of Environmental Health

Sciences (NIEHS), all from the NIH; the Canadian Institutes of Health

Research; the Health Research Board, Ireland; and the Southwest Autism

Research and Resource Center, Cure Autism Now, and the National Alliance for

Autism Research, all private organizations.

For more information please visit:

Autism on the NIMH website

http://www.nimh.nih.gov/healthinformation/autismmenu.cfm

To go to the RFA

http://grants1.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-MH-05-007.html

NINDS

www.ninds.nih.gov <http://www.ninds.nih.gov>

NIDCD

www.nidcd.nih.gov <http://www.nidcd.nih.gov>

NICHD

www.nichd.nih.gov <http://www.nichd.nih.gov>

NIEHS

www.niehs.nih.gov <http://www.niehs.nih.gov>

##

This NIH News Release is available online at:

http://www.nih.gov/news/pr/dec2004/nimh-28.htm

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