Latest news with #LurieAutismInstitute
Reuters
4 days ago
- Health
- Reuters
Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie donates $50M to autism center
June 10 - With a $50 million donation to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and Penn Medicine on Tuesday, Philadelphia Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie announced the creation of the Lurie Autism Institute in Philadelphia. "This first-of-its kind Institute aims to be a global hub for autism research that connects scientists, clinicians, families, students, and donors," per an Eagles press release. According to the release, Lurie's single donation is the largest toward autism research made to U.S. hospitals. The Lurie family has supported autism research going back to 1977, when Lurie's mother founded the Nancy Lurie Marks Family Foundation. That foundation led to the establishment of the The Lurie Center for Autism at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston in 2009. In 2018, Jeffrey Lurie started the Eagles Autism Foundation, which has raised more than $40 million, including over $10 million in 2025. --Field Level Media
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Lurie family makes $50 million donation for autism research
The Philadelphia Eagles have intensified their commitment to fighting autism with a massive donation aimed at making new advances. The family of owner Jeffrey Lurie will donate $50 million to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and Penn Medicine for the creation of the Lurie Autism Institute, which will "drive discoveries with transformative impact for those living with autism spectrum disorder." 'We established the Lurie Autism Institute to spark a new era of scientific discovery in autism," Lurie said in a press release. "CHOP and Penn Medicine bring unmatched expertise and a proven record of innovation, and together, they have the tools to unlock answers that have eluded the field for far too long. By investing in cutting-edge science and the infrastructure to move it forward, we're aiming not just to understand autism more deeply — but to transform what's possible for individuals and families worldwide.' More than 75 million people worldwide live with ASD. In the United States, the condition affects one in 31 children and one in 45 adults. The enormous commitment from Lurie and his family is the latest example of Lurie's efforts to help those with ASD. In 2018, Lurie founded the Eagles Autism Foundation. You can make your own donation to the effort here, if you like.
NBC Sports
4 days ago
- Health
- NBC Sports
Lurie family makes $50 million donation for autism research
The Philadelphia Eagles have intensified their commitment to fighting autism with a massive donation aimed at making new advances. The family of owner Jeffrey Lurie will donate $50 million to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and Penn Medicine for the creation of the Lurie Autism Institute, which will 'drive discoveries with transformative impact for those living with autism spectrum disorder.' 'We established the Lurie Autism Institute to spark a new era of scientific discovery in autism,' Lurie said in a press release. 'CHOP and Penn Medicine bring unmatched expertise and a proven record of innovation, and together, they have the tools to unlock answers that have eluded the field for far too long. By investing in cutting-edge science and the infrastructure to move it forward, we're aiming not just to understand autism more deeply — but to transform what's possible for individuals and families worldwide.' More than 75 million people worldwide live with ASD. In the United States, the condition affects one in 31 children and one in 45 adults. The enormous commitment from Lurie and his family is the latest example of Lurie's efforts to help those with ASD. In 2018, Lurie founded the Eagles Autism Foundation. You can make your own donation to the effort here, if you like.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Eagles owner gifts $50M to CHOP and Penn Medicine to open the Lurie Autism Institute
Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie is putting his money where his mouth is, this time with a $50 million gift to open the Lurie Autism Institute in partnership with Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and Penn Medicine. The gift, from the Lurie family, is the largest single donation to U.S. academic medical centers focused on autism research across the lifespan. Develop a better understanding of the genetics and complex biological processes underlying autism, including the role of environmental and epigenetic factors in its development; Uncover how the diverse behaviors among the autism spectrum manifest and evolve across the lifespan; Develop more advanced lab models to understand how autism impacts brain function across the lifespan; Explore why some individuals with autism have minimal speaking ability, using insights from brain and language science; Use AI to analyze large-scale biological and behavioral data to identify new treatment targets and existing drugs that may be repurposed for ASD. Conduct research to study autism-related genes and their potential as therapeutic targets; Prepare to launch clinical trials that prioritize both behavioral and pharmacological interventions for ASD. Launch the Next-Generation Program in Autism Bioscience, a certificate program for PhD trainees and postdocs; Serve as global conveners for the best ideas in the field by hosting an annual International Symposium and awarding the new Lurie Autism Institute Prize for ASD Research. Lurie announced the launch of the Lurie Autism Institute this morning. This unique center will be the first-of-its-kind institute, located in Philadelphia, and aims to be a global hub for autism research and care. 'We established the Lurie Autism Institute to spark a new era of scientific discovery in autism. CHOP and Penn Medicine bring unmatched expertise and a proven record of innovation, and together, they have the tools to unlock answers that have eluded the field for far too long,' said Jeffrey Lurie, Chairman and CEO of the Philadelphia Eagles and founder of the Eagles Autism Foundation. 'By investing in cutting-edge science and the infrastructure to move it forward, we're aiming not just to understand autism more deeply—but to transform what's possible for individuals and families worldwide.' Powered by Penn Medicine and CHOP's long history of partnering on transformative breakthroughs for the care of both children and adults, the Lurie Autism Institute is poised to make fresh discoveries that will reshape how we understand and treat autism. This article originally appeared on Eagles Wire: Eagles owner donates $50M to open the Lurie Autism Institute
USA Today
4 days ago
- Health
- USA Today
Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie launches Lurie Autism Institute in Philadelphia
Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie launches Lurie Autism Institute in Philadelphia Show Caption Hide Caption Greg Olsen expresses excitement for upcoming Olympic flag football Former TE Greg Olsen is excited for some NFL players to showcase their skills in the upcoming 2028 Summer Olympics and the debut of flag football. Sports Seriously Philadelphia Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie is donating $50 million to the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and Penn Medicine to create a joint initiative of autism spectrum disorder research, the three parties announced Tuesday, June 10. According to a press release, the $50 million gift that will launch the Lurie Autism Institute (LAI) is "the largest single donation to U.S. academic medical centers focused on autism research across the lifespan." The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), perhaps obviously, focuses its efforts in autism research with children, while Penn largely works with the adult community. One of LAI's main goals is to combine the work of CHOP and Penn and aid researchers in painting a broader picture of autism's effects over a lifetime. As LAI Interim Director Dr. Dan Rader put it, the work they do will help researchers "better understand the condition, the heterogeneity, and how we can actually ultimately use the research to make a difference in their lives." In addition, the new institute and its funding will aim to incentivize other doctors and researchers — those not currently working on autism-related work — to join in supporting the work of CHOP and Penn Medicine. To that end, LAI will launch a certificate program from PhD trainees and postdocs called the "Next-Generation Program in Autism Bioscience," the press release said. What are the goals for the Lurie Autism Institute? "This is a time when we've seen so many advances in neuroscience, genetics, imaging, molecular pathways, processes and artificial intelligence," Lurie told USA TODAY in an exclusive interview. "It's opening up an entirely new world of possibilities for autism research." Both Rader and Lurie emphasized that a big part of LAI's work will be determining how translational therapeutics might be effective in treating individuals on the spectrum, in part with the aid of the latest in artificial intelligence. In other words, LAI's efforts will consist of collecting data from existing and ongoing research and then, using new technology and AI, figuring out how that data can be translated into a form of treatment. That treatment, according to Lurie, could consist of repurposing certain drugs or gene editing. "The complex part of autism is there's no single gene, there's no single reason," Lurie said. "So it's very research-based in order to get to the therapeutics." As LAI focuses largely on research, the clinical efforts at CHOP and Penn will continue and "likely expand" in the wake of LAI's launch, Rader said. Then, as those two organizations diagnose and work with more individuals on the spectrum, they could "recruit" those individuals as "partners in the research to better understand this complex condition." In addition, Lurie said one of the main visions he has for LAI is to become a "catalyst" for more worldwide funding and research to tackle the complexities of understanding autism. As part of those efforts, the institute will host an annual international symposium and award a prize for autism research, according to the press release. Lurie family has long history of autism research philanthropy Lurie and his family are not newcomers to advocating for autism research and awareness. 'My brother is autistic. So for my family and me, we've been supporting the autism community for ... decades," Lurie said. "That's really where it all originated from. "My mother has really led the way over all these decades as the primary investor in autism research, and the rest of the family has followed suit. What I've done is just re-emphasize that over the decades, over the years." Lurie's mother, Nancy Lurie Marks, founded the Nancy Lurie Marks Family Foundation (NLMFF) in 1977 to aid individuals with autism. In 2009, the NLMFF established the Lurie Center for Autism at Massachusetts General Hospital. In 2018, Jeffrey Lurie started the Eagles Autism Foundation. And in 2019, the Eagles, the NFL team Lurie has owned since 1994, opened the NFL's first in-stadium sensory room, "a dedicated space designed by medical professionals for those who may need a quieter and more secure environment," according to the team's official website. "And wherever we go, whether it's Brazil or the Super Bowl, we bring it along with us," Lurie said. "And (sensory-inclusive efforts have) become adopted by so many sports teams. It's gratifying." Indeed, many sports teams across various leagues — MLB, MLS, the NBA and the NHL — have adopted similar sensory rooms and other tools. The Buffalo Bills, for example, offer sensory inclusion kits that include things like noise-canceling headphones and fidget toys to help make their games and events more inclusive to their neurodiverse fans. Said Lurie: "I've always grown up in an atmosphere of acceptance and inclusivity, so when we have done things with the Eagles like we do with different organizations ... we want to try to create inclusive atmospheres for autistic people no matter if they're young or old." Increased efforts in autism research now 'more important than ever' The topic of autism research on a national level has gained steam in recent months. That has been inspired in part by U.S. health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — who in the past has promoted scientifically discredited theories that autism is linked to childhood vaccines — declaring in April that the U.S. will find the cause of autism by September. As part of those efforts, Kennedy announced "a massive testing and research effort" that will "involve hundreds of scientists from around the world." An HHS official told USA TODAY in late April that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is using $50 million to invest in autism research. Other efforts headed by NIH — namely launching a real-world data platform using public data from federal agencies and data collected from private sector sources like smart watches and fitness trackers — and lack of clarity surrounding those efforts have resulted in heightened privacy concerns. "The use of registries and registry data in general can be a valuable tool in helping to understand the causes of diseases and disorders, but in this case, the lack of clarity around how data will be collected, shared, maintained and tested for accuracy raises red flags," a statement from the Autism Science Foundation read. Despite the relevant timing, the launch of the LAI is not an event that is happening in response to Kennedy and the HHS's recent initiative, Lurie clarified. "This notion of merging CHOP and Penn — I've been looking for where to do this for about three years," he said. "It just came to be probably about two years ago, and we've been talking ever since of how to make this great. So, no, it had nothing to do with anything else but trying to impact the lives of those with autism with all these new technologies and discoveries as best as possible." That doesn't take away from the significance of the timing, says Rader. "There's a lot of confusion right now about what are the causes of autism, what should we be doing about it, how might we better prevent it," he said. "It's more important than ever to bring this information together in a synthetic way that allows us to really better understand this complex condition. "So, I think, yes, the rationale for this got even greater over the last few months." Kinsey Crowley contributed to this report.
