Autism

3D wireframe brain made of connected nodes and network lines glowing over an orange and blue tech background
Neuroscience

36 Grace Hopper Superchips Coming to UVA to Support Brain Data Research

UVA Professor John Van Horn secured a competitive NIH High-End Instrumentation Grant to purchase 36 NVIDIA Grace Hopper Superchips, creating one of the nation’s most powerful university-based neuroscience computing resources. The GPU cluster will accelerate brain data analysis, supporting research into Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and autism while fostering interdisciplinary collaboration across UVA schools.

Boy in red shirt wearing eye-tracking glasses sits across small table from female clinician during autism research session
Genome Sciences

Autism Research Tool Uncovers How Nature, Nurture Shape Children’s Risk

UVA researcher Ziqiao Wang and Johns Hopkins colleagues developed PGS-TRI, a statistical tool analyzing family DNA trios to separate genetic and environmental influences on autism risk. Tested on over 18,000 families, it confirmed polygenic score accuracy varies by ancestry, linked maternal genetics to autism risk, and identified the CADM2 gene as a potential prevention target.