National Alliance for Autism Research

The National Alliance for Autism Research (NAAR), based in Princeton, New Jersey, is a non-profitadvocacyorganization, founded by parents of children with autismconcerned about the limited funding available for research.

Origins and activities

NAAR was founded in 1994as an attempt to stimulate biomedical research and science-based approaches to understanding, 'treating', and 'curing' autism spectrumdisorders. The founders comprised a small group of parents, including two psychiatrists, a lawyer and a chemistry professor.

NAAR has raised money to provide research grants focusing on autism, and has committed an excess of $20 million to over 200 autism research projects, fellowships and collaborative programs - more than any other non-governmental organization. NAAR has focused intently on its role in establishing and funding the Autism Tissue Program, a post-mortem brain tissue donation program designed to further autism research studies at the cellular and molecular level. Other major programs include the 'High Risk Baby Sibling Autism Research Project', and the 'NAAR Genome Project'. NAAR also publishes the NAARRATIVE [1], a newsletter on autism biomedical research.

Controversies

NAAR funded the controversial Danish epidemiological study, along with the Centers for Disease Control, that concluded no link could be found between MMRvaccinesand autism. Detractors contend the study was flawed on a number of grounds, and that the study was conducted by researchers compromised by conflicts of interest.

NAAR has encountered criticism that it is influenced by the pharmaceutical industry. "These statements are simply false", according to a statement on the NAAR.org website, which contends inaccurate and misleading information has been circulated. Their rebuttal of such attacks was endorsed by the Wall Street Journal [2].

Controversy has also arisen over the objectives promoted by groups including NAAR and Cure Autism Now, largely over the notion autism needs to be 'cured'. Some members of the autistic community, along with a number of their supporters, contend autism is not a disorderat all, and does not need a cure.

See also

• Controversies in autism
• Ethical challenges to autism treatment
• M.I.N.D. Institute

External links

• Aspires-Relationships.com- 'The Autism Autoimmunity Project (TAAP) is disappointed in the NBC TV series on autism'
• AutismTools.org- ISAAC (Internet System for Assessing Autistic Children)
• NAAR.org- National Alliance for Autism Research homepage
• NAAR.org- 'Pharmaceutical Industry & NAAR: The truth about NAAR's relationship with the pharmaceutical industry and vaccine research focusing on autism'
• PsychiatricTimes.com- 'A Psychiatrist's Journey from Parent to Founder of Research Advocacy Organization', Eric London, M.D. Psychiatric Times, Vol 14, No 11, November, 1997

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It uses material from the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National+Alliance+for+Autism+Research Wikipedia article National Alliance for Autism Research.