The Center for Autism and Related Disorders, a provider of early intensive behavioral intervention for individuals with autism spectrum disorder, will now offer Lineagen's FirstStepDx test as a service to CARD patients and their families.
Based in Los Angeles, CARD maintains 23 centers globally, and offers ASD treatment services. Patients receiving care in its Skills program, which according to CARD's website is focused on "minimizing challenging behaviors" and "maximizing skill acquisition," and is geared toward patients aged zero to eight, will have access to Lineagen's array-based test.
Two years ago, the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics recommended that arrays replace karyotyping as the first-tier genetic test for patients with suspected genetic abnormalities (BAN 9/28/2010). Doreen Granpeesheh, CARD's founder and executive director, cited those recommendations as a factor in the center's adoption of FirstStepDx.
"Recent scientific literature and clinical guidelines have recommended genetic testing and counseling for children with ASDs," Granpeesheh said. She said the center selected FirstStepDx over other products because it "includes the most advanced technology complemented with the personal service similar to that provided by CARD to each patient and family."
Salt Lake City-based Lineagen launched FirstStepDx last year. The service, which includes genetic testing and personalized counseling, is run on chromosomal microarrays manufactured by Affymetrix. Though Lineagen originally required a blood sample to conduct its analysis, it recently introduced a saliva-based version of the test called FirstStepDx Buccal. Earlier this year, Lineagen announced plans to update FirstStepDx with new content identified by researchers at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia's Center for Applied Genomics and at the University of Utah's department of human genetics (BAN 5/22/2012). The company has not yet launched the updated array, according to its website.