Aspies For Freedom

http://i-newswire.com/pr9228.html
[bold by me- TheASman]
The University of Iowa Center for Statistical Genetics Research (CSGR) has been awarded a three-year, $471,000 grant from the Roy J. Carver Charitable Trust of Muscatine, Iowa to develop new statistical and computational methods to identify genes influencing cleft lip and palate.

i-Newswire, 2005-03-06 - The grant will support development of a dedicated computer cluster and specialized statistical programming techniques, which will be used to analyze the complex genetic data required to precisely locate cleft lip and palate genes on a map of the human genome.

"These investigations will provide the most complete picture to date of the genomic architecture of this devastating birth defect," said Veronica J. Vieland, Ph.D., director of the CSGR, professor and head of the Program in Public Health Genetics and professor in the UI Department of Psychiatry.

The CSGR is jointly supported by the UI College of Public Health and the UI Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine.

Cleft lip and palate is one of the most common structural birth defects, occurring in one out of every 500 to 1,000 live births. Correction of cleft lip and palate requires multiple surgeries, orthodontics and speech therapy, with estimated rehabilitation costs in excess of $100,000 per individual. In addition, higher rates of illness and death at all stages of life, as well as adverse psychological and social impacts, have been noted for individuals with cleft lip and palate.

"It is believed that cleft lip and palate involves multiple genes in interaction with environmental factors. The condition also tends to run in families," Vieland said.

Although a number of studies have been conducted to identify the genes involved, the cause of the majority of cases is still unknown. As a result, researchers worldwide, including some at the UI, are now trying to collect larger quantities of genomic data from more families.

Two UI researchers and collaborators on the Carver grant, Jeffrey C. Murray, M.D., professor of pediatrics and biological sciences, and Andrew Lidral, D.D.S., Ph.D., associate professor of orthodontics, are part of a multi-site data collection effort that is the largest study to date of families with cleft lip and palate. The study pools genetic data from more than 600 families from around the world. An additional collaborator, Mary Marazita, Ph.D., is at the University of Pittsburgh.

"One of the major challenges of the Human Genome Project is how to make sense of the massive quantities of genomic information it has generated," Murray said. "Through their new statistical approaches, Dr. Vieland and her colleagues in the CSGR are playing a major role in helping us understand and analyze this information. Ultimately, their work will help us to prevent or treat genetic disorders."

Vieland expects that the computational methods developed on this project can be subsequently applied to other complex genetic disorders, such as autism, schizophrenia and cardiovascular disease.

The Carver Trust has been supporting the UI since the trust began its grant-making activities in 1987, and it has made gifts to UI programs every year since that time. Carver Trust gifts and pledges to the university, in addition to gifts made by the late Roy Carver and his widow, Lucille Carver, exceed $109 million to date. The trust has distributed its generous support throughout the UI campus. In addition to gifts to the College of Education, the trust has supported the UI Carver College of Medicine; the UI Colleges of Dentistry, Engineering, Law and Liberal Arts and Sciences; UI Libraries; Hancher Auditorium; UI athletics; student aid; and other UI programs.

The Carver Trust grant to the UI's CSGR was made through the UI Foundation and is part of the UI's $1 billion comprehensive campaign, which will run through 2005 and is being conducted under the guidance of the UI Foundation. Named "Good. Better. Best. Iowa: The Campaign to Advance Our Great University," the seven-year effort is raising private funds to help launch a variety of initiatives across the university, substantially increase the number of UI scholarships and endowed faculty positions, support new educational and research facilities, build the UI's endowment and fund outreach and service programs to benefit Iowans.

The UI acknowledges the UI Foundation as the preferred channel for private contributions that benefit all areas of the university. For more information about the "Good. Better. Best. Iowa" campaign, visit its Web site at http://www.GoodBetterBestIowa.org.

STORY SOURCE: University of Iowa College of Public Health Office of Communications, 4257 Westlawn, Iowa City, Iowa, 52242

MEDIA CONTACT: Kate Gleeson, 319-384-4277, kate-gleeson@uiowa.edu

These people are out of control. Now pre-natal testing for cleft lip??

there has been many productive members of society that has cleft  lip and palate.    Now that population is a mere burden to society???? the parallels to the autism claptrap is scary.  The first step always seems to be present those people as burdens.  genetic nazism will come to be seen as the great evil to be fought in this new century. in the 1800's and the 1900's hasnt the eugenics movement caused  enough pain?? Or was the lesson that the pain was too apparent?? when you abort the wrong kind of humans , the pain is not apparent. the victims cant speak for themselves. They cant cry for the life they might have had.

Oh yeah another thought.

If you watch some shows on early societies.  They find sometimes a member that was crippled and obviously cared for.  Now in those days survival was very iffy. They laud how advanced they were in caring for the less fortunate despite the burden.   Nowadays, Cost is measured in dollars. and apparently there is a cutoff.  

     If our society was just advanced maybe we would tolerate and care for the downs baby, the autistic baby, or even the cleft lip despite the cost.

The irony is so sad.  We are on the right side of history. We will be validated by history. Maybe not in 5, 10 or even 25 years, but rest assured this fight is not a fight for the autistic right to exist but in the end many others, I remember the old saying. - when they came for jews i did nothing, they came for the catholics, I did nothing, When they came for me there was no one left to stand for me.

Here the new version for  this century.

They came for the downs syndrome. It was allright. None had an IQ above 100.
They came for the autistics. It was allright. None of them had a lick of common sense.
They came for the cleft lip and palate.  It was allright. They were hard on eyes.
Then they came for those that %50 percent chance of developing diabetes within their lifetime based on theirs genes. That was me.  

Everybody had an IQ above 100 to see the logic. Everybody valued being a member of the group so much not  to risk ostracization by standing up. Everybody was too busy admiring themselves in the mirror for they were beautiful.  No one was left that would stand for me.

"These people are out of control. Now pre-natal testing for cleft lip?? "

Joe, sorry to say this, babies are already aborted for having cleft lips in the UK, no other reason at all.
This has been protested against in the media, but it continues.
As cleft lip can often be treatable, and the end result be more cosmetic than a hindrance to a person, it is shocking that they allow it.

And other countries too.  It's visible on the ultrasound picture.  Some people don't want a baby unless it's perfect in every way.