Autism BrainNet University of Texas at Southwestern Medical School, Dallas – is a group of research institutes involved in launching “It Takes Brains,” a new website announced recently by the Simons Foundation, Autism Speaks, and the Autism Science Foundation.
The Bio Texas News website states that the website will be part of the Autism BrainNet academic site conglomerate, of which UT Southwestern is an inaugural member.
The website will gather academic and technical material to help researchers identify and understand the differences in autistic behavior.
Dr. David Amaral of the University of California MIND Institute and Director of the Autism BrainNet said:
“This research takes us important steps closer to effective treatments that will lessen disability for affected individuals.”
Previous research has shown that autistic brains are structurally different and that there are mutations in the gene expression.
Researchers have also hypothesized that autism presents with higher levels of inflammation in the brain.
Marta Benedetti, Senior Scientist at the Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative said:
“Autism BrainNet will allow researchers to replicate previous findings using new, better-characterized and larger sets of tissue. Human brain structure and function is the key to understanding behavior — and identifying differences in the brains of individuals with autism is essential for advancing our understanding of autistic behaviors,”
The full and original article by Leonor Ferreira on the Bio News Texas website can be read here