The main goal of the autism biobank is to build the infrastructure for high quality groundbreaking research into the biological basis of the development of autism spectrum disorders. The Israel Autism Biobank and Registry was founded in 2015 in the Bar Ilan University Faculty of Medicine. This biobank was approved by the Israeli ministry of health as a national biobank. The main components of this registry and biobank include: 1.) biobank of serum, plasma, saliva, and stool 2.) epidemiological questionnaire 3.) clinical records including ADOS. Currently, more than 160 families have been recruited into this biobank. Biological material are stored at the Bar Ilan University Faculty of Medicine. Dr. Julie Carmel is the manager of this project, and apart from her previous experience in clinical research, has now collected eight years of knowledge in autism biobanking in Israel.

The biobank and registry has lead to groundbreaking research into the biological basis of autism, as recently published in two manuscripts that have found new evidence of the role of gut microbiome in autism. Current research using the biobank and registry samples are aimed at further unraveling the connection between the immune system, the metabolome and the microbiome in the development of autism spectrum disorders. We aim to develop high quality data that will directly inform future therapeutic interventions.

Biobank collaborators:

Department of Psychiatry - Ziv Hospital

Child Development - Ziv Hospital

Clalit HMO child development - Ziv Hospital

Child development - Schneider children's hospital

Child Development - Hospital of Western Galilee (Nahariya)

Genetics Unit - Hospital of Western Galilee (Nahariya)