UW-Madison spin-off organization Stemina Biomarker Discovery is attempting to create a biological method to diagnose autism by screening blood samples.
CEO Elizabeth Donley and UW-Madison professor in the Department of Animal Sciences Gabriela Cezar founded the company in 2006, according to a university release.
The company received $2.7 million from the National Institute of Mental Health in August 2015 to fund the study, which is titled the Children’s Autism Metabolome Project.
The CAMP study examines the blood of 1,500 children between 18 and 48 months old to identify and validate the markers of autism. The company has previously found six potential metabolic subtypes, according to the release.
The company originally focused on how chemicals affect developing humans, even as early as in the embryo stage.
“Embryonic stem cells allowed us to understand disruptions in human development in a way we never could before,” Donley said in the release.
Donley said that earlier diagnosis of autism can help with improving treatment.
“A test for these subtypes of metabolism could become the equivalent of the heel stick for PKU,” Donley said in the release. “That would be an earthshaking opportunity to change outcomes for some of these kids.”
