The Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative, in conjunction with genetic analysis software company WuXi NextCODE, has made its detailed autism data set, the Simons Simplex Collection (SSC), freely available to researchers. SSC contains genetic samples from 2,600 families that have a child diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder. The data set allows researchers to analyze the genetic, phenotypic, and biological information of individuals or families in order to aid autism research. Genetic data is particularly valuable for autism research because it can provide researchers with insight into the complicated underlying causes and mechanisms of autism spectrum disorders.
Image: Micah Baldwin.
