Episode Details

A large-scale, multi-country autism study involving more than 175,000 individuals is hoping to find interplay between genes and the environment that may influence autism diagnosis and symptoms. But proposed NIH funding cuts could imperil the study’s future. In this episode: A look at an NIH-funded study that hopes to improve the quality of life for people with autism and their caregivers, and find better tools for diagnosis and treatment.

Christina Ladd-Acosta is the vice director at the Wendy Klag Center for Autism and Developmental Disabilities, and associate director for epigenomic analysis at the Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes, Data Analysis Center (ECHO-DAC).

Heather Volk is an epidemiologist and professor of mental health at the Wendy Klag Center for Autism and Developmental Disabilities.

Stephanie Desmon, MA, is a former journalist, author, and the director of public relations and communications for the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs, the largest center at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

• NIH funding makes large scale Johns Hopkins autism study possible—The Hub

• Discovering How Environment Affects Autism—Hopkins Bloomberg Public Health Magazine

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