Center News

Anna Catherine Henley, also known as A.C., has been working at the Autism Center since 2023. Originally from Charlotte, A.C. developed an interest in working with autistic individuals while serving as the director for the ACEing Autism program in Charlotte. A.C. led the program designed to coach tennis clinics for autistic children, while in high school. After high school, A.C. completed her bachelor’s degree at the University of Alabama, where she worked with various scholars on ADHD related research.

A team including Duke’s Sam Brandsen, Geraldine Dawson, and Madhav Swaminathan (Anesthesiology) gives tailored recommendations for caring for neurodivergent patients before, during and after surgery in the newest issue of eClinicalMedicine. Read the full open access text at https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589537024004255

Researchers at the Duke Center for Autism and Brain Development continue the search for an objective brain-based measure linked to autism in a second round of studies led by Yale University. Harvard, the University of Washington, and the Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles are also part of the study.

On the Drug Discovery News Podcast, Dr. Geraldine Dawson discusses how the SenseToKnow app uses smartphone cameras and algorithms to check for signs of neurodivergence in children.

https://www.drugdiscoverynews.com/seeing-into-the-future-of-autism-detection-16064 

People with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) face barriers in finding neurodiversity-affirming clinical care that is suited to their communication style and needs. In this chapter, by Drs. Sam Brandsen, Tara Chandrasekhar and Lauren Franz offer practical suggestions for creating a safe, accessible, and effective clinical care approach for individuals with IDD.

Originally, from Freiburg Germany, Jürgen Henn grew up in the foothills of the Black Forrest Mountains. After finishing high school in Stuttgart Germany, Jürgen traveled through Europe, and North and West Africa, before returning to Germany to study English at Freiburg University. However, during his travels in Togo West Africa, he met his now wife, Laura, who was stationed there as a PeaceCorps volunteer. Laura moved to Durham after leaving the PeaceCorps, and Jürgen visited her in 1994, marrying her two weeks later.

Sam Brandsen, PhD, a Duke Center for Autism and Brain Development staff member, was interviewed recently on Charlotte's Spectrum News 1 as well as WPTF Radio in Raleigh about his experience as an autistic person and the father of an autistic child.

He discusses an emotional moment at the Democratic National Convention that put a spotlight vice presidential nominee Tim Walz's son expressing support for his father.

“Our children are not sequences of letters. They are smiling, happy, giving, loving people,” said Duke University professor of mathematics Samit Dasgupta, PhD, opening the first International Conference on FOXP1 Syndrome, as he displayed a slide showing an alphabetical code representing the DNA sequence of this rare genetic condition.

Duke Global Health Institute master’s student is working with Duke Center for Autism and Brain Development interim director Lauren Franz in South Africa on a new strategy to help caregivers of children with autism.