PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Coalition of Autism Scientists critiques US Department of Health and Human Services Autism Research Initiative

2025-04-25
(Press-News.org) Coalition of Autism Scientists Critiques U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Autism Research Initiative

Boston, MA, April 25, 2025 – The newly formed Coalition of Autism Scientists today issued a statement in response to remarks and actions taken by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) regarding the study of autism. Led by Helen Tager-Flusberg, Ph.D., Professor Emerita, Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Director of the Center for Autism Research, Boston University, this growing group of experienced research scientists from across the United States came together to reject Mr. Kennedy’s false narrative about the incidence and causes of autism, instead urging HHS to focus on established, research approaches that already inform the global understanding of autism.

Dr. Tager-Flusberg said, “The Coalition of Autism Scientists came together to demand respect for autism research.  Instead of focusing on questions that have been asked and answered, limited and valuable research dollars must focus on what we don’t yet know about autism so that we can meet the urgent needs of autism individuals and their families.”

Full Statement from the Coalition of Autism Scientists

“For more than three decades, the National Institutes of Health has invested substantial resources into research to advance knowledge about autism spectrum disorder. As scientists dedicated to this venture, we have witnessed many remarkable achievements in our field revealing the complexity of autism.  These include: discovery of hundreds of genes associated with autism; identification of environmental factors that may interact with genetic predisposition; knowledge about differences in brain architecture and function; documenting the significant prevalence rates across the globe; divergent presentations and highly variable outcomes; early development of brain and behavioral signs in infants; and the development and evaluation of innovative interventions that improve autism symptoms and enhance quality of life for individuals and their families.  

Considering these advances, we were deeply troubled to hear the Secretary of Health & Human Services dismiss past research, downplay the causal role of genes, and portray autistic people in ways that counter our experiences and demean their value to society. We are unified in our commitment to conduct the highest quality research and build mutual respect and trust with the public.  This trust is seriously threatened by the Secretary’s interpretation of the rising prevalence rates and his plans to carry out a study that will deliver findings within a few months on an environmental toxin that causes autism.  We fully support genuine advances in the field, so we urge the Secretary to register the planned study protocol, provide time for public comment, include independent data analysts, and make the data available to the scientific community. Following these widely accepted scientific practices that ensure research integrity, will allow the planned study to build on the strong foundation of prior research and help guide future work to unravel the causes of this complex disorder and lead to new approaches in how we support individuals and their families.”

A full list of signatories is available at this link: Coalition of Autism Scientists Signatories List

About the Coalition of Autism Scientists

The Coalition of Autism Scientists formed in 2025 and is comprised of the leading autism researchers across the United States. It is led by Helen Tager-Flusberg, Ph.D., Professor Emerita, Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Director of the Center for Autism Research, Boston University. Shortly, the Coalition of Autism Scientists will launch a website at https://coalitionofautismscientists.org

Media Contact: Jessica Daitch, JLD Communications, LLC, Jessica@jldcommunications.com, 917-816-6712

 

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Structure dictates effectiveness, safety in nanomedicine

2025-04-25
Historically, the vast majority of pharmaceutical drugs have been meticulously designed down to the atomic level. The specific location of each atom within the drug molecule is a critical factor in determining how well it works and how safe it is. In ibuprofen, for example, one molecule is effective as a pain reliever, but the mirror image of that same molecule is completely inactive. Now, Northwestern University and Mass General Brigham scientists argue that this precise structural control, which is applied to traditional medicines, should be harnessed to usher in a new class of potent nanomedicines that can ...

Mission accomplished for the “T2T” Hong Kong Bauhinia Genome Project

2025-04-25
The 25th April is International DNA Day, and this year it marks the completion of a decade-long project to sequence the DNA of Hong Kong’s floral emblem, the Hong Kong Orchid Tree Bauhinia x blakeana Dunn. The study, published today in the Open Science journal GigaScience and led by scientists from Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), presents a complete, gapless sequence of the Bauhinia genome, spanning from one end of a chromosome to the other (from telomere-to-telomere or T2T). Featured on the Hong Kong flag and currency, this beautiful ornamental Bauhinia species - admired for its striking purplish orchid-like flowers - can be traced back to a chance discovery ...

Study identifies how malaria can lead to childhood cancer

2025-04-25
New data published in The Journal of Immunology uncovered the role of Plasmodium falciparum infection (malaria) in the development of Burkitt lymphoma (BL), the most common childhood cancer in equatorial Africa and New Guinea. BL has been associated with P. falciparum malaria since 1958, but the underlying mechanism of how this led to cancer remained a mystery.    “Knowing that malaria has a direct role in increasing childhood cancer risk means that measures to reduce the burden of P. falciparum malaria in Africa could also reduce the ...

An earth-abundant mineral for sustainable spintronics

2025-04-25
In 2023, EPFL researchers succeeded in sending and storing data using charge-free magnetic waves called spin waves, rather than traditional electron flows. The team from the Lab of Nanoscale Magnetic Materials and Magnonics, led by Dirk Grundler, in the School of Engineering used radiofrequency signals to excite spin waves enough to reverse the magnetization state of tiny nanomagnets. When switched from 0 to 1, for example, this allows the nanomagnets to store digital information; a process used in computer memory, and more broadly ...

What makes successful learners? How Minecraft can helps us understand social learning

2025-04-25
The ability to learn socially from one another is a defining feature of the human species. Social learning enables humans to gradually accumulate information across generations. And although we are able to build cities full of skyscrapers, send people into space, and collectively develop cures for diseases, most studies investigating social learning mechanisms focus on relatively simple, abstract tasks that bear little resemblance to real-world social learning environments. As a result, little is known about how humans dynamically integrate asocial and social information in realistic, real-world contexts. To investigate this, an international team of scientists from the Cluster ...

Researchers create ‘super stem cells’, seeing potential for improved fertility treatment

2025-04-25
Imagine if reducing your caloric intake could make you younger? This is almost the case with stem cells. In a new study, researchers from the University of Copenhagen have successfully created stem cells that are better at developing into other cell types, like a younger, fitter version of themselves – by changing their diet. These stem cells are better than normal stem cells at creating specialized cells like liver, skin or nerve cells, which is a core trait of stem cells. “We show that by changing their diet, the stem cells can rejuvenate and turn into ‘super stem cells’. It forces them to metabolize their energy in a different way than they normally would, and ...

Empathic comforting varies more within bonobo and chimpanzee species than between them

2025-04-25
Psychologists from Durham University, UK, observed the behaviour of 90 sanctuary-living apes to establish whether bonobos were more likely than chimpanzees to comfort others in distress.  The study, led by Dr Jake Brooker, found that both species consoled their peers at similar rates, with the greatest variation actually occurring within each species.  This challenges long-held assumptions that bonobos are the more empathic ape and instead highlights the variation within each species.  It is the first time that the two species’ consolation tendencies have been directly compared.  The ...

AACR 2025: Colon cancer risk reduction, predicting melanoma spread and new drug therapies among Ohio State findings

2025-04-25
COLUMBUS, Ohio – A new targeted drug treatment for small cell lung cancer, understanding how obesity drives endometrial cancer, and predicting early-stage melanoma spread are among the research topics being presented by scientists with The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC – James) at the American Association for Cancer Research® (AACR) Annual Meeting April 25-30 in Chicago. A focal point for the cancer research community, the ...

Landmark 20-year screening program drives down colorectal cancer cases, deaths

2025-04-25
BETHESDA, MD. (April 25, 2025) — A 20-year initiative that offered flexible options for colorectal cancer screening at a major integrated health system doubled colorectal cancer screening rates, cut cancer incidence by a third, halved deaths, and brought racial differences in outcomes to nearly zero, according to a study to be presented at Digestive Disease Week® (DDW) 2025. “By offering an effective screening approach equally to everyone, we were able to eliminate much of the disparity,” said lead researcher Douglas Corley, MD, PhD, from the Kaiser Permanente ...

Can a baby’s DNA predict future disease? This study says it might

2025-04-25
BETHESDA, MD. (April 25, 2025) — The umbilical cord may become a crystal ball of sorts, helping doctors predict the future of children at risk for long-term health problems, including diabetes, stroke, and liver disease. DNA changes found in cord blood could offer early clues about which infants are at higher risk — opening the door to earlier and potentially life-saving interventions, according to research to be presented at Digestive Disease Week® (DDW) 2025. “We’re seeing kids develop metabolic problems earlier and earlier, which puts them at higher risk for serious complications as adults,” said ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Fig trees convert atmospheric CO2 to stone

Intra-arterial tenecteplase for acute stroke after successful endovascular therapy

Study reveals beneficial microbes that can sustain yields in unfertilized fields

Robotic probe quickly measures key properties of new materials

Climate change cuts milk production, even when farmers cool their cows

Frozen, but not sealed: Arctic Ocean remained open to life during ice ages

Some like it cold: Cryorhodopsins

Demystifying gut bacteria with AI

Human wellbeing on a finite planet towards 2100: new study shows humanity at a crossroads

Unlocking the hidden biodiversity of Europe’s villages

Planned hydrogen refuelling stations may lead to millions of euros in yearly losses

Planned C-sections increase the risk of certain childhood cancers

Adults who have survived childhood cancer are at increased risk of severe COVID-19

Drones reveal extreme coral mortality after bleaching

New genetic finding uncovers hidden cause of arsenic resistance in acute promyelocytic leukemia

Native habitats hold the key to the much-loved smashed avocado’s future

Using lightning to make ammonia out of thin air

Machine learning potential-driven insights into pH-dependent CO₂ reduction

Physician associates provide safe care for diagnosed patients when directly supervised by a doctor

How game-play with robots can bring out their human side

Asthma: patient expectations influence the course of the disease

UNM physician tests drug that causes nerve tissue to emit light, enabling faster, safer surgery

New study identifies EMP1 as a key driver of pancreatic cancer progression and poor prognosis

XPR1 identified as a key regulator of ovarian cancer growth through autophagy and immune evasion

Flexible, eco-friendly electronic plastic for wearable tech, sensors

Can the Large Hadron Collider snap string theory?

Stuckeman professor’s new book explores ‘socially sustainable’ architecture

Synthetic DNA nanoparticles for gene therapy

New model to find treatments for an aggressive blood cancer

Special issue of Journal of Intensive Medicine analyzes non-invasive respiratory support

[Press-News.org] Coalition of Autism Scientists critiques US Department of Health and Human Services Autism Research Initiative