Autism Genetic Resource Exchange

The Autism Genetic Resource Exchange (AGRE) is a DNA biobank funded by Autism Speaks. It exists to provide DNA specimens to geneticists who are researching autism.

History

Autism Speaks funds the Autism Genetic Resource Exchange (AGRE), a DNA repository and family registry of genotypic and phenotypic information that is available to autism researchers worldwide.[1] The AGRE was established in the 1990s by a predecessor organization, Cure Autism Now.[2]

Cure Autism Now was a Los Angeles-based non-profit organization founded in 1995 by Jonathan Shestack and Portia Iversen, the parents of a child with autism whose story is told in the book Strange Son. It was an organization of parents, doctors and scientists devoted to research to prevent, treat and cure autism.[3] In 1997 Cure Autism Now established AGRE despite initial resistance from scientists to begin a project which conflicted with existing practices.[4]

Projects

In October 2011 AGRE announced a plan to create the world's largest library of sequenced human genomes of individuals with autism-related genes, representing 2000 families and 10000 individuals. To do this, AGRE will provide specimens to the Beijing Genomics Institute, who will perform the sequencing.[5]

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References
  1. Geschwind DH, Sowinski J, Lord C, et al. (2001). "The Autism Genetic Resource Exchange: a resource for the study of autism and related neuropsychiatric conditions". Am J Hum Genet. 69 (2): 463–6. doi:10.1086/321292. PMC 1235320. PMID 11452364.
  2. Painter K (2004-01-12). "Science getting to roots of autism". USA Today. Retrieved 2008-11-16.
  3. "How does the autistic brain work?". PBS. 2003-04-06. Archived from the original on 25 October 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-21.
  4. Coukell A (Winter 2006). "You can hurry science". proto. Massachusetts General Hospital. pp. 26–31. Archived from the original on 2011-07-15. Retrieved 2009-01-11.
  5. "Autism Speaks Funds Creation of World's Largest Autism Genome Library | Autism Speaks". autismspeaks.org. 11 October 2011. Retrieved 28 November 2011.


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