A new program from Simons hopes to speed autism research. | Courtesy of Shutterstock
+ Technology/Innovation
Amanda Rupp | Apr 29, 2016

New SFARI program to speed autism research

The Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative (SFARI) recently announced that it has launched SPARK, an online initiative that will engage 50,000 people who have autism and their families and involve them in a program to speed autism research.

This online initiative will gather medical information as well as DNA saliva samples from the people with autism and from their family members. These samples can be used to analyze medical and behavioral information.

“Efforts like SPARK continue to underscore the critical nature of genetic data in understanding the roots of autism and developing more effective therapies for it,” Mathew Pletcher, Autism Speaks' interim chief science officer, said. “SPARK should prove to be an important complement to our own MSSNG program. Together, these two programs have great potential to open an era of personalized and precision medical care and services for all of those with autism.”

SPARK (Simons Powering Autism Research for Knowledge) will unite families who have autism, giving them opportunities to help researchers make progress in understanding autism.

“SPARK will help researchers make new discoveries that will ultimately lead to the development of new supports and treatments to improve the lives of people living with challenges,” Wendy Chung, the project’s principal investigator and SFARI’s director of clinical research, said. “Together we can 'spark' a movement in autism research.”

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