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The Collaborative Programs of Excellence in Autism (CPEAs) What are the CPEAs? In 1997, the NICHD, in collaboration with the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) , started a five-year, $45 million, international Network on the Neurobiology and Genetics of Autism. The Network included 10 Collaborative Programs of Excellence in Autism (CPEAs) that would conduct research to learn about the possible causes of autism, including genetic, immunological, and environmental factors. In 2002, the NICHD and NIDCD renewed funding for the CPEA Network, agreeing to provide $60 million over a period of five years. The CPEAs link 129 scientists from 23 universities in the United States, Canada, Britain, and five other countries, and more than 2,000 families of people with autism. In fact, as a result of the CPEAs, researchers now have data on the genetics and outward characteristics of the largest group of well-diagnosed persons with autism in the world. BACK What are the sites involved in the CPEA?
To learn more about the CPEA sites and their research, search by: In 2003, the CPEA Network launched a Data Coordinating Center in Medford, Massachusetts, to provide data management and statistical support for Network activities. The Center will also maintain a Web site to ease communication and coordinate activities among the CPEAs. Three groups are managing different tasks in the Data Coordinating Center: DMSTAT, Inc.; the Boston University Statistics and Consulting Unit; and the Department of Biostatistics at the Boston University School of Public Health. The Center will provide combined support for the CPEA Network and for the eight sites of the Studies to Advance Autism Research and Treatment (STAART) Centers Program, a five-year, $65 million effort supported by five NIH Institutes, including the NICHD. Such support will allow more data to be processed quickly and compared, which may increase the speed of discoveries from these research efforts.
BACK What collaborative projects have been supported by the CPEAs? The table below lists several CPEA projects, the sites involved, and the scientific publications that resulted from each. Project Title | Lead Site | Resulting Scientific Publication | Effectiveness of secretin for autism | University of Washington
(NICHD/NIDCD initiated in response to public health needs) | Unis AS, Munson JA, Rogers SJ, Goldson E, Osterling J, Gabriels R. Abbott RD, & Dawson G. (2002). A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of porcine versus synthetic secretin for reducing symptoms of autism. [Comment]. Journal of the Am Acaf of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. 41(11):1315-21. | Study of porcine secretin treatment of autism | University of California, Irvine
(Funding from the M.I.N.D. Institute and support from CPEA) | Owley T, McMahon W, Cook EH, Laulhere T, South M, Mays LZ, Shernoff ES, Lainhart J, Modahl CB, Corsello C, Ozonoff S, Risi S, Lord C, Leventhal BL, & Filipek PA. (2001). Multisite, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of porcine secretin in autism. Journal of the Am Acad of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 40(11):1293-1299. | Regression and vaccines in autism | University of Michigan
(NICHD/NIDCD initiated in response to public health needs) | Luyster R, Richler J, Risi S, Han-Ling H, Dawson G, Bernier E, Dunn M, Hepburn S, Hyman SL., McMahon W, Nice-Gougie J, Minshew NJ, Rogers S, Sigman M, Spencer MA, Tager-Flusberg H, Volkmar FR, & Lord C. (In press). Early regression in social communication in autism spectrum disorders: A CPEA study. Developmental Neuropsychology.
Richler J, Luyster R, Risi S, Hsu WL, Dawson G, Bernier R, Dunn M, Hyman S, McMahon W, Goudie J, Minshew N, Rogers S, Sigman M, Spence M, Tager-Flusberg H, Volkmar F, & Lord C. (In press). Is there a regressive "phenotype" of Autism Spectrum Disorder associated with the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine? A CPEA study. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. | DNA collection on autism probands | Genetics subcommittee(NICHD/NIDCD initiated in response to public health needs) | Ongoing data collection for next five years. | HOXA gene and autism | University of Pittsburgh
University of Washington | Devlin B, Bennett P, Cook EH Jr., Dawson G, Gonen D, Grigorenko EL, McMahon W, Pauls D, Smith M, Spence MA, Schellenberg GD, & the CPEA Genetics Network. (2002). No evidence for linkage of liability to autism to HOXA1 in a sample from the CPEA network. [Journal Article. Multicenter Study] American Journal of Medical Genetics, 114(6):667-72. | Reelin gene and autism | University of Pittsburgh
University of Washington | Devlin B, Bennett P, Dawson G, Figlewicz D, Grigorenko EL, McMahon W, Minshew NJ, Pauls D, Smith M, Spencer MA, Rodier PM, Stodgell C, Schellenberg GD, & the CPEA Genetics Network. (2004). Alleles of a reelin CGG repeat do not convey liability to autism in a sample from the CPEA network. American Journal of Medical Genetics Part B: Neuropsychiatric Genetics,126B:46-50. | Genetic sibling linkage study of autism | University of Washington | Yu CE, Dawson G, Minson J, D'Souza I, Osterling J, Estes A, Leutenegger AL, Flodman P, Smith M, Raskind WH, Spencer MA, McMahon W, Wijsman EM, & Schellenberg GD. (20020. Presence of large deletions in kindreds with autism. American Journal Human Genetics, July; 71(1):100-115.
(Ongoing data collection years 05-10) | Head circumference in autism | University of Utah | Data analysis in progress. | Cognitive profiles in preschool aged children with autism | University of Washington
University of California, Davis
University of California, Los Angeles | Manuscript in preparation. | Executive functions in autism | University of Utah | Ozonoff S, Cook I, Coon H, Dawson G, Joseph RM, Klin A, McMahon WM, Minshew NJ, Munson JA, Pennington BF, Rogers SJ, Spence MA, Tager-Flusberg H, Volkmar FR, & Wrathall D. (2004). Performance on Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery Subtests sensitive to frontal lobe function in people with autistic disorder: Evidence from the Collaborative Programs of Excellence in Autism Network. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 34(2);139-150. | Language function in autism | Boston University | Tager-Flusberg H, McGrath L, Cook E, Dawson G, Dunn M, Hyman S, Lord C, Rodier P, McMahon W, Minshew NJ, Sigman M, Spence S, Williams D, & Volkmar F. (Under revision). A CPEA study of developmental history and language outcomes in autism, asperger syndrome and pervasive developmental disorder-not otherwise specified. | Cognitive Profiles in Children | Boston University | Joseph RM, Tager-Flusberg H, & Lord C. (2002). Cognitive profiles and social-communicative functioning in children with autism spectrum disorder. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 43:6; 807-821. |
BACK Who are the CPEA Scientific Advisors? Peter Szatmari, M.D., MSc Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences Associate Member, Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics McMaster University, Faculty of Health Sciences Hamilton Health Sciences Corporation Chedoke Site, Patterson 207 Hamilton, Ontario L8N 3Z5 Email: szatmar@mcmaster.ca
Alan C. Evans, Ph.D. McConnell Brain Imaging Centre Montreal Neurological Institute 3801 University St Montreal, QC CANADA, H3A 2B4 Email: alan@bic.mni.mcgill.ca
Nick Lange, Sc.D. Associate Professor in the Department of Biostatistics Laboratory for Statistical Neuroimaging McLean Hospital 115 Mill Street, Room 312 Belmont, MA 02478 Email: lange@mclean.harvard.edu Marshalyn Yeargin-Allsopp, M.D. Medical Epidemiologist National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities Centers for Disease Control and Prevention MS F-15, 4770 Buford Hwy NE Atlanta, GA 30341-3724 E-mail: mxy1@cdc.gov
Eric London, M.D. Vice President - Medical Affairs; National Alliance for Autism Research 99 Wall Street Princeton, NJ 08540 E-mail: naarlondon@patmedia.net
Raquel E. Gur, M.D. Professor University of Pennsylvania Department of Psychiatry 10 Gates Building Philadelphia, PA 19104-4283 Email: raquel@bbl.med.upenn.edu assistant stacem@bbl.med.upenn.edu | | Peter C. Mundy, Ph.D. University of Miami Department of Psychology PO Box 249229 Psychology Annex Coral Gables, FL 33124-0721 Email: pmundy@miami.edu
Steve Warren, Ph.D. University of Kansas Life Span Institute 1000 Sunnyside Ave Lawrence, KS 66045 Email: sfwarren@ku.edu
Eric Fombonne, M.D. Department of Psychiatry Montreal Children's Hospital 4108 Ste-Catherine West Montreal, Cancad H3Z 1P2 Email: Eric.fombonne@mcgill.ca Linda Daly 342 N. Bowling Green Way Los Angeles, CA 90049 E-mail: LindaDaly03@aol.com Portia Iversen Cure Autism Now 5455 Wilshire Blvd. Suite 715 Los Angeles, CA 90036 Email: Portia@CureAutismNow.org |
BACK How can I get more information on the CPEAs? For more information about the CPEAs, or about NICHD-supported research on autism, please contact:
Alice Kau, Ph.D. Mail: 6100 Executive Boulevard, Room 4B09F, MSC 7510, Bethesda, MD 20892-7101 Phone: (301) 496-1383 FAX: (301) 496-3791 E-mail: kaua@mail.nih.gov
You can also contact the NICHD Information Resource Center at:
Phone: 1-800-370-2943 TTY: 1-888-320-6942 FAX: (301) 984-1473 Mail: P.O. Box 3006, Rockville, MD 20847 E-mail: NICHDInformationResourceCenter@mail.nih.gov BACK NICHD Autism Research Home
CPEA Centers
CPEA Centers
Table is sorted by Center Name.
Site Name |
Location |
Principal Investigator |
Research Focus |
Contact Info |
Boston University |
Boston, Massachusetts |
Helen Tager-Flusberg, Ph.D. |
Social-communicative abilities in autism;
Language delays and problems in autism; and
Brain pathology underlying social-communicative and language impairments in autism, using structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging.
Read project abstract |
Laboratory of Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience
Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology,
Boston University School of Medicine
715 Albany Street, L-814
Boston, MA 02118-2526
617-414-1312 or htagerf@bu.edu |
University of California, Davis |
Sacramento, California |
Sally Rogers, Ph.D. |
Imitation and motor function in autism;
Measurement, predictors, course, causes, and external validity of regression in autism; and
A longitudinal study of the developmental course of autism.
Read project abstract |
U.C. Davis M.I.N.D. Institute
2825 50th Street
Sacramento, CA 95817
1-888-883-0961 or 916-703-0268 or
sjrogers@ucdavis.edu |
University of California, Los Angeles |
Los Angeles, California |
Marian Sigman, Ph.D. |
How social, communication, and language deficits in autism start and develop;
Follow-up and extension of certain treatments for autism;
Phenotype and genotype in inversion and duplication of chromosome 15; and
Neuroimaging and deficits in social communication in autism.
Read project abstract |
UCLA Center for Autism Research and Treatment (CART)
760 Westwood Plaza
Los Angeles, CA 92868
info@autism.ucla.edu or
www.autism.ucla.edu or 310-825-0180 |
University of Pittsburgh |
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
Nancy Minshew, Ph.D. |
Organizing information into concepts in persons with high-functioning autism and Asperger syndrome;
Visual perception and visual processing in persons with high-functioning autism and Asperger syndrome;
Sensory, motor, and executive problems in persons with high-functioning autism and Asperger syndrome; and
Functional brain imaging of language and cognition in persons with high-functioning autism and Asperger syndrome.
This research is done in conjunction with Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Illinois, Chicago.
Read project abstract |
University of Pittsburgh Autism
Research Program
Webster Hall, Suite 300
3811 O'Hara Street
Pittsburgh, PA 15213
1-866-647-3436 or autismrecruiter@upmc.edu
http://www.pitt.edu/~nminshew |
University of Rochester Medical Center |
Rochester, New York |
Patricia Rodier, Ph.D. |
Animal models and mechanisms of injury in autism;
Behaviors that distinguish autism from other disorders; and
Mutations in genes involved in early development and influences on gene function.
This research is done in conjunction with the University of Rochester Medical Center's Departments of Pediatrics and Neurology, the Hospital for Sick Children (Toronto), Cornell Medical College, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Read project abstract
|
University of Rochester Medical Center
610 Elmwood Avenue
Box 603
Rochester, NY, 14642
716-275-2582 or
Patricia_Rodier@mrmc.rochester.edu |
University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (Affiliated Program) |
Houston, Texas |
Katherine Loveland, Ph.D. |
Development of communication and social behavior and its relationship to brain function in autism;
Abnormalities in brain structure related to autism; and
Animal studies of brain structure, injury, and behavior.
Read project abstract |
The Autism Research Laboratory
Center for Human Development Research
University of Texas Mental Sciences Institute
1300 Moursund Street
Houston, Texas, 77030
http://www.uth.tmc.edu/schools/med/ psychiatry/msi/chdr2/autism.htm or 713-500-2580
|
University of Utah |
Salt Lake City, Utah |
William McMahon, M.D. |
Genetics and genetic susceptibility of autism;
Brain development; and
Serotonin function and immune system functioning in autism.
Read project abstract
|
Utah Autism Research Project
421 Wakara Way
Suite 143
Salt Lake City, UT 84108
801-585-9098 |
University of Washington |
Seattle, Washington |
Geraldine Dawson, Ph.D. |
The relationships between the brain and behavior in autism;
Language problems characteristic of autism;
Early diagnosis of autism and resulting outcomes;
Neuroimaging studies of autism; and
The genetics of autism.
Read project abstract
|
Autism Research Program Project
Autism Center at the Center for
Human Development and Disability
Box 357920
University of Washington
Seattle, WA 98195
http://depts.washington.edu/uwautism/ research/index.html
or 1-800-994-9701 or cbrock@u.washington.edu |
Yale University |
New Haven, Connecticut |
Fred Volkmar, M.D. |
Genetics of persons with autism;
The genetics of persons with autism and Asperger syndrome, their families, and family members with related disorders;
Changes to the nervous system in autism; and
Behavior problems, epilepsy, and puberty in adolescents with autism.
This CPEA also supports regression studies that seek to define the phenomena, predict outcomes, and evaluate medical factors that may play a role, such as vaccines, seizures, and prenatal conditions.
This research is done in conjunction with the University of Michigan, the University of Chicago, and Harvard University.
Read project abstract
|
Yale Child Study Center
230 South Frontage Road
New Haven, CT 06520-7900
http://info.med.yale.edu/chldstdy/ or 203-785-5930 |
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