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Funded Projects

SFARI supports more than 250 investigators each year and has committed over $525 million to autism research since 2006.

  1. A non-human primate autism model based on maternal infection

    Funded Work
    Viral infection during pregnancy raises the risk of autism in the offspring, suggesting a connection between the maternal immune system and fetal brain development.

  2. A systems biology approach to autism genetics

    Funded Work
    Each person with autism has a unique set of abilities and disabilities, and this heterogeneity has made the finding the genetic causes of the disorder difficult.

  3. Relevance of NPAS1/3 balance to autism and schizophrenia

    Funded Work
    Many children with autism have enlarged brains, often caused by an abnormally high density of neurons in the forebrain.

  4. A functional genomic analysis of the cerebral cortex

    Funded Work
    Although autism is highly heritable, its heterogeneity has challenged gene-finding efforts.

  5. Novel models to define the genetic basis of autism

    Funded Work
    Genetic studies have identified several loci, or stretches of chromosomal DNA, that are defective in individuals with autism.

  6. Identifying and understanding the action of autism susceptibility genes

    Funded Work
    Autism is a heritable disease, but the contribution of genetic factors is not straightforward.

  7. Neural and cognitive mechanisms of autism

    Funded Work
    Numerous genes have been linked to autism, but it is not entirely clear how mutations in individual genes translate to the social deficits seen in people with the …

  8. Using fruit flies to map the network of autism-associated genes

    Funded Work
    The genetics of autism has proven to be as complex as the genetics of other diseases in people.