Events

Upcoming Events

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Past Events

Headshot of Investigator Pawan Sinha.Headshot of SFARI Investigator Dagmar Sternad.

The predictive impairment hypothesis in autism: An empirical assessment

Pawan Sinha, Ph.D.Professor, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Dagmar Sternad, Ph.D.Professor, Northeastern University

On December 12, 2018, Pawan Sinha and Dagmar Sternad reviewed a recently proposed hypothesis about the nature of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) that posits that the common traits of the disorder are manifestations of an individual’s difficulty in making predictions about cause and effect.

Headshot of SFARI Investigator André Fenton.

Rethinking autism and animal models: A systems perspective

André Fenton, Ph.D.Professor, Center for Neural Science, New York University

On November 28, 2018, André Fenton discussed work with mouse genetic models of fragile X syndrome (FXS) – the most common single-gene cause of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) symptoms – and focused on the utility of such models to evaluate hypotheses for understanding ASD. He evaluated distinct hypotheses by assessing synapse function and the action potential discharge of knowledge-expressing hippocampus “place cells” during behaviors that require varying cognitive effort.

Headshot of SFARI Investigator Evdokia Anagnostou.

Thinking differently about neurodevelopmental disorders and autism: Lumping vs. splitting

Evdokia Anagnostou, M.D.Director and Vice President of Research, Bloorview Research Institute
Senior Clinician Scientist, Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital
Professor, Department of Pediatrics, University of Toronto

On September 26, 2018, Evdokia Anagnostou discussed the challenge of rethinking classification systems and diagnostic labels for autism and related neurodevelopmental disorders in light of recent findings from research and clinical studies.

Autism genetics: Where have we been and where are we going?

Matthew State, M.D., Ph.D.Oberndorf Family Distinguished Professor and Chair, University of California, San Francisco

On April 10, 2018, Matthew State reviewed the progress that has been made in autism genetics over the past 10 years and the role that the Simons Simplex Collection (SSC) played in this (r)evolution. He also addressed the potential contribution of ongoing genomic studies including whole-genome sequencing as well as the challenges and opportunities of leveraging the genetic findings to identify pathophysiological mechanisms.

Portrait of Investigator Shafali Spurling Jeste.

On the road to precision health: Brain-based biomarkers in autism spectrum disorder

Shafali Spurling Jeste, M.D.Chief, Division of Neurology, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles
Professor of Neurology and Pediatrics, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California

On 7 February 2018, Shafali Spurling Jeste provided a topical overview of the current state of research in autism biomarkers. She shared data from studies of autism biomarkers in three key areas: early risk prediction (studies of high-risk infants), heterogeneity within the autism spectrum and genetically defined subgroups within autism. Finally, she discussed the challenges around clinical trial design and development and considered how more objective measures of brain function can improve clinical trials.

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