The unifying of theme of the Center for Childhood Neurotoxicology and Assessment is to determine the influence exposure to neurotoxicants on child neurological health and development, with autism and related learning disabilities as a focus. The objectives of the Center are to detect, understand and prevent environmental health problems as they relate to children. These objectives are achieved by facilitating interdisciplinary research, enhancing community and advocacy group involvement, and disseminating results to the public through publications, conferences and community outreach. The multidisciplinary research of the Center is based on three main project areas. The Basic Sciences Projects examine facets of brain development, beginning with neurogenesis and proceeding through to behavior in the intact animal. The Clinical Sciences Projects are interactive with community groups representing children with learning disabilities and their families, with particular emphasis on autism. These projects explore the linkage between environmental neurotoxicants, clinical course of autism, regional brain growth and a possible new gene-environment interaction with autism. The Exposure Assessment and Intervention Project (EAIP) will characterize the personal, residential and general community of exposure of children selected by the Clinical Sciences Projects. The EAIP will then determine the need for interventions to reduce neurotoxicant exposure among learning disabled children and assess the impact of such interventions. The Exposure Assessment Facility Core will provide innovative video techniques to assess the relationship between the behavior of the child with autism and his/her potential to contact with neurotoxicants. The overall mission of the Center is to improve environmental and public health of children through research, assessment, treatment and outreach.
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