SickKids and Holland Bloorview granted up to USD $17.25 million international research grant
Summary:
Funding supports Canadian-led autism and neurodevelopmental research.
The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) and Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital (Holland Bloorview) have been awarded a grant of up to USD $17.25 million from Aligning Research to Impact Autism (ARIA).
The funding supports a multi-year study, positioning the two sites as part of a global clinical trial readiness program designed to accelerate the development of new therapies for autism and related neurodevelopmental conditions, including rare genetic disorders. The teams are joining the ARIA Innovative Medicine and Precision Approaches to Clinical Trials (IMPACT) Network, an international collaborative of sites working together to accelerate clinical trial readiness and therapeutic development for autism and related conditions.
The collaboration brings together two institutions with a long history of partnership—Holland Bloorview and SickKids—working as a unified team to support future therapeutic development. Together, the institutions combine strengths in genomics, biomarker science, neuroimaging and clinical trials to support children and youth with autism and related conditions, including those with the most complex needs who have been historically underrepresented in clinical research.
A defining moment for Canadian leadership in clinical trials
“This is a landmark moment for Canada and our institutions,” said Dr. Evdokia Anagnostou, principal investigator for Toronto and vice president of research and director of the Bloorview Research Institute at Holland Bloorview. “This investment recognizes Holland Bloorview and SickKids as global leaders in autism and neurodevelopmental research, and ensures clinical trial research includes participants that represent the Canadian population’s diversity. Importantly, it will enable us to expand therapeutic development for children with profound autism and rare genetic conditions who have historically had limited access to clinical trials.”
Other investigators at Holland Bloorview include Drs. Danielle Baribeau (co-lead), Jessica Brian (psychology lead) and Azadeh Kushki (data science lead).
“Canada’s paediatric research ecosystem is uniquely positioned to link genomic insights we’re discovering in the lab with clinical trials and care, building upon long-standing investments across SickKids and Holland Bloorview that already support thousands of children across the autism spectrum,” says Dr. Stephen Scherer, lead investigator and chief of research at SickKids. “Through this investment from ARIA, we can better align discovery, data and clinical research to advance Precision Child Health at scale, in close partnership with individuals and families with lived experience. By generating deeply characterized, cohort-level data, we will be able to more precisely match biology to interventions for children with profound autism and rare genetic conditions today and in the future.”
At SickKids, investigators alongside Dr. Scherer include Drs. Jacob Vorstman (biomarker clinician lead), Louise Gallagher (biomarker clinician lead) and Gregory Costain (medical geneticist lead).
Building infrastructure for robust clinical research and trials
Participating in the ARIA IMPACT Network’s multi-site natural history study will strengthen Holland Bloorview and SickKids’ capacity to conduct clinical research and, in the future, deliver clinical trials. The partnership will:
- Advance research in both autism and rare neurodevelopmental genetic conditions
- Support characterization of a large, deeply phenotyped cohort
- Integrate genomics, neuroimaging, EEG, and real-world clinical data
- Expand capacity to conduct trials for children with profound and complex needs
The team builds on extensive Canadian expertise in multi-site and international trials, as well as established platforms that combine longitudinal cohort data with interventional studies. Dr. Danielle Baribeau, child psychiatrist and clinician scientist at Holland Bloorview who co-leads this site team says the IMPACT Network’s approach to research is critical to ensuring research translates into meaningful care.
“This funding allows us to build future trials around the realities of families’ lives, using an approach that could link each child’s biology with real-world care,” said Dr. Baribeau. “It helps to ensure that scientific advances translate into meaningful care for all children—not just those who are easiest to recruit.”
Advancing global collaboration in clinical trials
ARIA is an initiative to accelerate scientific discovery and create more therapeutic opportunities for people with profound autism and people on the spectrum who seek additional support. Through the ARIA IMPACT Network, discoveries from this collaboration will contribute to coordinated international efforts across North America and Europe, helping to standardize and accelerate clinical trial readiness in neurodevelopmental conditions.
The investment reinforces the status of Holland Bloorview and SickKids as global leaders in paediatrics neurodevelopmental research, with the capacity to integrate clinical care, research, and innovation at scale.
