My primary research interests are the development of methods to construct and extend clinical phenotypes of individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders. Better understanding of subtle clinical phenomena, in turn, enhances the ability of our group to identify salient genetic loci. My research has focused on children with autism and related disorders with a special interest in the etiology of repetitive phenomena. However, I am equally interested in disorders that have overlapping clinical features such as language disorders, mental retardation, ADHD, trichotillomania, Tourettes disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder and various neuropsychiatric conditions. The identification of features that are distinct as well as common to the varied neurodevelopmental disorders will greatly enhance our ability to dissect the genetic etiology of these complex conditions.
