ASF Announces Grant to Provide Critical Support for the Work of the Baby Siblings Research Consortium

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NEW YORK, NY (January 23, 2017) – The Autism Science Foundation, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to advancing innovative autism research, today announced that it is providing $63,000 in funding over the next year for essential work to ensure the continuing viability of the Baby Siblings Research Consortium (BSRC) database, which scientists from around the world rely upon for a range of important autism research initiatives.

The BSRC database contains longitudinal behavioral assessment data for more than 5,000 infant siblings from over 30 separate research projects worldwide. Each year, all of the BSRC member sites contribute data to the database, steadily expanding its size and power. This resource has led to findings and discoveries that have had a substantial impact on the lives of families with autism. These include: recurrence risk in autism families, the role of head size in autism diagnosis, stability of diagnosis, and early behavioral predictors and developmental outcomes in those without an ASD diagnosis.

“The BSRC database has fundamentally advanced our knowledge of autism, and it will continue to do so as long as we carry out the necessary work to keep it growing, organized and accurate,” said ASF Chief Science Officer Alycia Halladay, PhD, who will now work closely with the BSRC on this project. “The Autism Science Foundation is pleased to be able to step up to help ensure that the database remains as useful and current as possible, and that existing data are leveraged in new ways to inform innovative ASD research. Longitudinal research studies provide information about the journey that families take, and the BSRC is one of the few resources that can address questions about our families’ futures.”

“The BSRC database represents the best in collaborative research, and we are so grateful to ASF for their generous support in helping us to continue this work and maintain such a precious resource,” said Gregory Young, PhD, associate research scientist at the UC Davis MIND Institute. “And, of course, that means we now have the opportunity to continue giving back to the families and individuals who have made it all possible in the first place.”

About the Autism Science Foundation:
The Autism Science Foundation (ASF) is a 501(c)(3) public charity. Its mission is to support autism research by providing funding to scientists and organizations conducting autism research. ASF also provides information about autism to the general public and serves to increase awareness of autism spectrum disorders and the needs of individuals and families affected by autism. To learn more about the Autism Science Foundation or to make a donation, visit www.autismsciencefoundation.org.
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