OMRDD Institute for Basic Research Scientist Awarded

ALBANY, NY (05/28/2008)(readMedia)-- Scientists from OMRDD’s Institute For Basic Research (IBR) have been awarded a $1.9 million program project grant from the federal Department of Defense Autism Spectrum Disorders Research Program (ASDERP) that will fund a first-of-its-kind study to examine how autism changes the brain throughout life.

The aim of this research is to establish correlations between structural and biochemical abnormalities in the brain in autism and the clinical symptoms of the disease. The study will result in the detection of brain abnormalities in autism, improvement of early diagnosis, and development of an approach to designing early treatments to prevent progression of developmental changes and reducing the severity of symptoms in autism.

“OMRDD remains at the forefront of autism treatment, thanks to the cutting-edge research being done at IBR,” said OMRDD Commissioner Diana Jones Ritter. “This study will allow our scientists to examine these changes in the brain – the most direct way of determining how potential treatments may be helpful. We are very thankful to ASDERP for awarding IBR the grant to do this very important work.”

IBR scientists Jerzy Wegiel, Ph.D.; W. Ted Brown, MD, Ph.D.; Abha Chauhan, Ph.D.; and Thomas Wisniewski, MD, will lead a study of postmortem brains of individuals with and without autism to identify structural and chemical abnormalities across different age subgroups that may represent different phases of the disease. The large number of brains being studied will provide ample material for the first study of age subgroups representing different phases of the disease process.

For more information about the study or IBR, contact Kara Smith, Director of Public Information, OMRDD, (518) 474-6601.

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