Nationally recognized autism experts to speak at free OHSU lecture Friday

06/26/13  Portland, Ore.

What

Two of the country’s foremost experts on autism will give a free public lecture on the latest advances in autism research and treatment at Oregon Health & Science University.

David G. Amaral, Ph.D., and Sally J. Rogers, Ph.D., with the UC Davis MIND Institute, will

  • Present new research findings that point to the role of prenatal autoimmune factors that lead to abnormal brain development in children who develop autism.
  • Describe new early intervention programs that work in young children and may help resume normal developmental trajectories when applied early and with adequate intensity.

A question-and-answer session will follow each talk.

Amaral and Rogers are coming to OHSU at the invitation of Eric Fombonne, M.D., F.R.C.P., an internationally renowned psychiatrist and autism specialist recently recruited by Oregon Health & Science University to oversee its interdisciplinary autism research programs.

Fombonne received an OHSU School of Medicine grant to facilitate this talk.

When

5 p.m. Friday, June 28, 2013

Where

OHSU Auditorium, 3181 S.W. Sam Jackson Park Road, Portland, OR 97239

Details

Amaral’s research includes studies of the postmortem autistic brain and MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) studies of children with autism spectrum disorders. He currently is coordinating a comprehensive and multidisciplinary analysis of children with autism called the Autism Phenome Project to define biomedical characteristics of different types of autism that will lead to more effective treatments. Amaral is research director and professor of psychiatry and behavioral neuroscience at the UC Davis MIND Institute.

Rogers conducts developmental research into autism and other developmental disorders. She works with children with developmental disabilities and their families, especially young children with autism, and specializes in early intervention for children with autism, developing treatment and educational interventions for persons with autism of all ages, and social skills groups for adults with autism. Rogers is a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the UC Davis MIND Institute.

About OHSU

Oregon Health & Science University is the state's only public academic health and research university. As one of Oregon's largest employers with more than 14,000 employees, OHSU's size contributes to its ability to provide many services and community support not found anywhere else in the state. OHSU serves patients from every corner of Oregon and is a conduit for learning for more than 4,400 students and trainees. OHSU is the source of more than 200 community outreach programs that bring health and education services to each county in the state.