Autism Speaks geneticist Mathew Pletcher appeared on panel discussing ways precision medicine is guiding and improving health care.
+ Technology/Innovation
Ruth de Jauregui | Mar 9, 2016

Autism Speaks recognized at Precision Medicine Initiative Summit

The one-year anniversary of the Precision Medicine Initiative was recognized by President Barack Obama at the Precision Medicine Initiative Summit on Feb. 25.

The White House hosted the event where researchers -- such as Autism Speaks' interim chief science officer and geneticist, Mathew Pletcher --  patient advocates and the president discussed precision medicine and the efforts to offer treatments and preventative care tailored to a patient's genetic profile.

“This is an extraordinarily exciting time for the sciences,” Obama said. “Much of this traces back to the mapping of the human genome, which at the time was enormously expensive. With the advance of computers and big data, we are now seeing a rapid acceleration in making that process cheaper, spurring new understanding.”

Autism Speaks recently collaborated with Google on a pilot program to sequence 1,000 genomes of autism-affected families. The MSSNG program is now moving forward and sequencing the DNA of an additional 10,000 families.

New discoveries have already been made using the first 1,000 genomes. With 10,000 genomes mapped, researchers can use the results to seek precision treatments for autistic patients, including behavioral therapies and medical services. 

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