On June 14, 2019, Alistair Ward and Chase Miller introduced SFARI Viewer and showed how this online platform can be used to visualize and analyze genomic and phenotypic data from the SSC and SPARK.
This issue of the SFARI newsletter includes: (1) SPARK update, (2) Autism BrainNet establishes collaboration with the Douglas-Bell Canada Brain Bank, (3) SFARI Gene: New data release, (4) SFARI Investigators elected to the National Academy of Sciences, (5) SFARI Investigators elected to the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, (6) SFARI fall 2018 science meeting report, (7) A Conversation with SFARI Bridge to Independence Investigator Seth Shipman, (8) 2019 Bridge to Independence Award – Request for applications, (9) Highlights of SFARI-funded research, (10) Upcoming webinar: “SFARI Viewer – an online platform to visualize and analyze SFARI genomic data”, (11) Past lecture: David Van Essen, “Mapping human cerebral cortex: Structure, function, connectivity, development and evolution”, (12) Recent media coverage of SFARI.
On June 14, 2019, Alistair Ward and Chase Miller will introduce SFARI Viewer and show how this online platform can be used to visualize and analyze genomic and phenotypic data from the SSC and SPARK.
SFARI held its fourteenth science meeting September 30–October 2, 2018. SFARI investigators, collaborators and foundation staff came together to discuss recent findings in autism genetics, molecular and system-level mechanisms, as well as clinical studies. The meeting featured keynote and session presentations, in addition to demo sessions of online platforms for visualizing and analyzing data sets relevant for autism research.
SFARI Investigators and SFARI science staff will be giving a number of oral presentations at the International Society for Autism Research (INSAR) 2019 Annual Meeting in Montreal, Canada (May 1-4).
This issue of the SFARI newsletter includes: (1) New SPARK clinical sites announced, (2) Genomic Analysis for Autism Risk Variants in SPARK awardees announced, (3) Additional family meetings of rare genetic developmental disorders planned for summer 2019, (4) Creation of induced pluripotent stem cells from SFARI biospecimen samples – Request for information, (5) SFARI workshop: Coordinating animal- and human-based research on sensory alterations in autism spectrum disorders, (6) Highlights of SFARI-funded research, (7) Summer 2019 Pilot Award – Request for applications, (8) Upcoming lecture: David Van Essen, “Mapping human cerebral cortex: Structure, function, connectivity, development and evolution”, (9) Upcoming lecture: David Ginty, “Altered somatosensory processing in autism spectrum disorders: Mechanisms and emerging therapeutic opportunities”, (10) Recent media coverage of SFARI.
SFARI Viewer, an online platform to visualize and analyze SFARI genomic data, was recently launched. This tool was developed through a collaboration between the SFARI Informatics team, Frameshift and the University of Utah, with the goal to facilitate data exploration and analysis from SFARI collections. These include the Simons Simplex Collection and SPARK.
New data were recently added to SFARI Gene. This data release included updated gene scores for candidate autism risk genes, as well as the addition of new genes and copy number variant loci associated with autism. New mouse and rat models were also added.