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About Meet Our Leadership Ami Klin

Ami Klin, PhD

Ami Klin

Director, Marcus Autism Center

Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar, Professor and Division Chief, Emory University School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics

Ami Klin, PhD, is the Director of Marcus Autism Center and a Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar Professor, as well as the Division Chief of Autism and Developmental Disabilities at Emory University School of Medicine. Dr. Klin obtained his doctorate from the University of London and completed clinical and research post-doctoral fellowships at the Yale Child Study Center. He directed the Autism Program at the Yale Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, until 2010 where he was the Harris Professor of Child Psychology and Psychiatry.

Dr. Klin’s primary research activities focus on the social mind and brain and the developmental aspects of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) from infancy through adulthood. These studies include novel techniques, such as the eye-tracking laboratories co-directed with Warren Jones, PhD, that allow researchers to see the world through the eyes of individuals with autism. These techniques are now being applied in screening toddlers who are at risk for autism.

Marcus Autism Center is one of the largest autism centers in the country providing clinical care and a broad range of diagnostic and treatment services. The center has collaborative partnerships with multiple other programs and institution including Emory University, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Emory National Primate Research Center and numerous community-level agencies. Marcus Autism Center also provides training in a broad range of disciplines and is strongly committed to advocacy at the local, national and international levels.

Publications

Dr. Klin is the author of more than 230 publications in the field of autism and related conditions.

  • Constantino, J.N., Abbacchi, A.M., May, B.K., Marrus, N., Klin, A., & Geschwind, D.H. (2023). Prospects for leveling the playing field for black children with autism. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, S0890-8567(23)00243-5. doi: 10.1016/j.jaac.2023.05.005.
  • Klaiman, C., White, S., Richardson, S., McQueen, E., Walum, H., Aoki, C., Smith, C., Minjarez, M., Bernier, R., Pedapati, E., Bishop, S., Ence, W., Wainer, A., Moriuchi, J., Tay, S-W, Deng, Y., Jones, W., Gillespie, S., & Klin, A. (2022) Expert clinician certainty in diagnosis autism spectrum disorder in 16-30-month-olds: a multi-site trial secondary analysis. Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders, 2022 Nov 17;1-16. doi: 10.1007/s10803-022-05812-8.
  • Ryberg, R., Wiggins, L., Moore, K.A., Daily, S., Piña, G., & Klin, A. (2022). Measuring state-level infant and toddler well-being in the United States: Gaps in data lead to gaps in understanding. Child Indicators Research. DOI: 10.1007/s12187-021-09902-4.
  • Constantino, J.N., Abbacchi, A.M., Saulnier, C., Klaiman, C., Zhang, Y., Hawks, Z.W., Bates, J., Klin, A., Mandell, D., Shattuck, P., Molholm, S., Fitzgerald, R., Roux, A., Lowe, J.K., Geschwind, D.H. (2020). Timing of the Diagnosis of Autism in African Americans. JAMA Pediatrics, 146(3):320193629. Doi:10.1542/peds.2019-3659. [PMID:32839243].
  • McDonald, N.M., Senturk, D., Scheffler, A., Brian, J.A., Carver, L.J., Charman, T., Chawarska, K., Curtin, S., Hertz-Piccioto, Jones, E.J.H., Klin, A., Landa, R., Messinger, D.S., Ozonoff, S., Stone, W.L. Tager-Flusberg, H., Webb, S.J., Young, G., Zwaigeanbaum, L., & Jeste, S.S. (2019). Developmental trajectories of infants with multiplex family risk for autism: a Baby Siblings Research Consortium study. JAMA Neurology, doi: 10.1001/jamaneurol.2019.3341. [PMID: 31589284].
  • Micheletti, M., McCracken, C., Constantino, J., Mandell, D., Jones, W., & Klin, A. (in press). Outcomes of 24-36-month-old children with ASD vary by ascertainment strategy: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Child Psychology & Psychiatry.
  • Klin, A., & Jones, W. (2018). An agenda for 21st century neurodevelopmental medicine: Lessons from autism. Revista de Neurologia, 66 (S01), S3-S15.
  • Shultz, S., Klin, A., & Jones, W. (2018). Neonatal Transitions in Social Behavior and Their Implications for Autism. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 22 (5), 452-469.
  • Sifre, R., Olson, L., Gillespie, S., Klin, A., Jones, W., & Shultz, S. (2018). A Longitudinal Investigation of Preferential Attention to Biological Motion in 2- to 24-Month-Old Infants. Scientific Reports, 8 (1), 2527. PMCID: PMC5802706
  • Moriuchi, J. M., Klin, A., & Jones, W. (2017). Mechanisms of Diminished Attention to Eyes in Autism. The American Journal of Psychiatry, 174 (1), 26-35. PMCID: PMC5842709
  • Constantino, J.N., Kennon-Mcgill, S., Weichselbaum, C., Marrus, N., Haider, A., Glowinski, A.L., Gillespie, S., Klaiman, C., Klin, A., & Jones, W. (2017). Infant viewing of social scenes is under genetic control and is atypical in autism. Nature, 547 (7663), 340-344. PMID: 28700580
  • Burger-Caplan, R., Saulnier, C., Jones, W., & Klin, A. (2016). Predicting social and communicative ability in school-age children with ASD: A pilot study of the Social Attribution Task –Multiple Choice. Autism. doi: 10.1177/1362361315617589 PMID: 27121244
  • Klin, A., Shultz, S., & Jones, W. (2015). Social visual engagement in infants and toddlers with autism: Early developmental transitions and a model of pathogenesis. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews, 50, 189-203.
  • Jones, W., & Klin, A. (2013). Attention to eyes is present but in decline in 2-6 month-olds later diagnosed with autism. Nature, 504 (7480), 427-431. [NIHMS527415] [DOI10.1038/nature12715] [PMID: 24196715]
  • Rice, K., Moriuchi, J., Jones, W., & Klin, A. (2012). Parsing heterogeneity in autism spectrum disorders: Visual scanning of dynamic social scenes in school-age children. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, (51) 3, 238-248. [PMCID: PMC3306820]
  • Shultz, S., Klin, A., & Jones, W. (2011). Inhibition of eye blinking reveals subjective perceptions of stimulus salience. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 108 (52), 21270-5. [PMCID: PMC3248475]
  • Jones, W., & Klin, A. (2009). Heterogeneity and homogeneity across the autism spectrum: The role of development. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 48 (5), 471-3. [PMID: 19395902]
  • Klin, A., Lin, D.J., Gorrindo, P., Ramsay, G., & Jones, W. (2009). Two-year-olds with autism fail to orient towards human biological motion but attend instead to non-social, physical contingencies. Nature, 459, 257-261. [PMCID: PMC2758571] [PMCID: PMC2758571]
  • Jones, W., Carr, K., & Klin, A. (2008). Absence of preferential looking to the eyes of approaching adults predicts level of social disability in 2-year-olds with autism. Archives of General Psychiatry, 65 (8), 946-54. [PMID: 18678799]

Speaking Engagements

2023

  • Autism Global Day, Keynote: “Increasing Access to Early Diagnosis and Assessment of ASD via Objective and Cost-Effective Eye-tracking-based Tools”. Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, and broadcast via zoom to 900 attendees from 7 countries, including Brazil, Portugal, Angola and others. Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, May 20, 2023.
  • American Academy of Pediatric Neuropsychology, 2023 Annual Meeting, invited presentation: “Objective, standardized and quantitative eye-tracking-based biomarkers for the early diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder.” Virtual, April 28, 2023.
  • XXV Congreso Internacional de Actualización en Trastornos del Neurodesarrollo, “Nuevos biomarcadores objectivos y estandarizados para el diagnóstico y tratamiento temprano de niños prequeños con autism”. Keynote, Valencia, Spain, (Virtual), March 4, 2023.

2022

  • The Autism Science Foundation Annual Meeting of the Baby Sibs Research Consortium: “Toward objective and cost-effective early diagnosis and assessment of ASD”. Minneapolis, November 4, 2022.
  • International Collaboration for Diagnostic Evaluation of Autism, invited presentation: “Toward objective and cost-effective early diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder.” Virtual, October 26, 2022.
  • 2022 Georgia Research Alliance Academy of Scholars Annual Meeting, invited keynote: “Science- and Technology-based Solutions for Diagnosis and Treatment Monitoring of Infants and Toddlers with Autism.” Atlanta, Georgia, August 10, 2022.
  • Diagnostic and developmental characterization of ASD via objective, standardized, quantitative and cost-effective technology leveraging developmental social neuroscience. Invited presentation to SFARI scientists, New York City, NY, (Virtual), January 30, 2022.

 

2021

  • National Autism Conference, Invited Presentation: “Recent advances in research and community solutions focused on early development of social responding in infants and toddlers with autism.” Penn State University, State College, PA, (Virtual), August 2, 2021.
  • Alliance for Early Success, Annual Conference, invited keynote: “Redefining autism: A new framing for more effective early childhood interventions and policy.” Washington, DC (virtual). May 19, 2021.
  • Swiss National Centre Competence in Research NCCR-SYNAPSY, National Center of Excellence, Swiss National Fund: Keynote: Developmental social neuroscience meets public health challenge: a community-viable healthcare delivery system for infants and toddlers with autism spectrum disorder. Geneva, Switzerland (virtual), March 29, 2021.
  • The 2021 Israeli Meeting for Autism Research (I-MAR): Keynote: A community-viable system of healthcare delivery for infants and toddlers with autism spectrum disorder. Ben Gurion University, Be’er Sheva, Israel (virtual), March 16, 2021.

2020

  • National Autism Conference, Invited Presentation: “Development of eye contact and its relation to social skills development in infants and toddlers with autism.” Penn State University, State College, PA, (Virtual), August 2, 2020.
  • National Autism Conference, Invited Presentation: “Recent advances in research and community solutions focused on early development of social responding in infants and toddlers with autism.” Penn State University, State College, PA, (Virtual), August 2, 2020.
  • Domus Instituto de Autismo, Congreso Internacional de Autism: De La Ciencia a la Práctica. Invited Expert for International Panel Discussion. Mexico City, Mexico, (Virtual), July 24, 2020.

2019

  • 13th International Congress on Early Onset Scoliosis (ICEOS), Invited keynote: “Disruptive clinical concepts, science and technology: the case of autism.” Atlanta, Georgia, November 22, 2019.
  • 53rd Annual Convention of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT), invited keynote: “Developmental social neuroscience meets public health challenge: Autism in infants and toddlers.” Atlanta, Georgia, November 22, 2019.
  • Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, invited grand rounds: “Developmental social neuroscience meets public health challenge: The next generations of children with autism.” New York City, September 24, 2019.
  • 12th Autism-Europe International Congress 2019, closing invited keynote: “Les neurosciences du développement social répondent à un défi de la santé publique pour les prochaines generations d’enfants autistes”. Nice, France, September 15, 2019.
  • Pan-Caribbean 3rd Annual Autism Spectrum Disorder Conference, Turks and Caicos Islands Government, Keynote and Opening Address: “A community viable system of healthcare delivery for infants and toddlers with autism spectrum disorder.” Providenciales, Turks & Caicos Islands, April 12, 2019.

2018

  • Klin, A. (2018, November 15). Early social development in autism: Building a social world differently. Invited inaugural lecture at the XIX Congreso AETAPI (XIX Congress of the Spanish Association of Autism Professionals), AutismoS, entendiendo la diversidad, Cartagena, Spain.
  • Klin, A. (2018, October 26) Imagining a better world for children with autism. Brain & Behavior Research Foundation, International Awards Dinner, Ruane Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Child & Adolescent Psychiatric Research, New York, NY.
  • Klin, A. (2018, June 4). Marcus Autism Center/Emory University Autism Center of Excellence: Cycles of social contingency in brain-behavior development in human and model systems. Presented at NIH, Annual Autism Centers of Excellence Principal Investigator Meeting, Bethesda, MD.
  • Klin, A. (2018, April 26) The Georgia early brain experiment: Launching Talk With Me Baby in Tennessee. First Lady Keynote, the Three Branches Institute, Nashville, TN.
  • Klin, A. (2018, March 17) Developmental social neuroscience meets public health challenge: A new system of healthcare delivery for infants and toddlers with autism spectrum disorder. Opening keynote, the 11th Annual Autism Spectrum Disorder Update: Autism Through the Life Span, Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, CA.
  • Klin, A. (2018, March 9 and 10) Conquistar el abismo entre la genética molecular y el comportamiento: soluciones para la investigación en transtornos del espectro autista (Conquering the chasm between molecular genetics and behavior in autism spectrum disorder) y Las próximas generaciones de niños con trastornos del espectro autista y el future de la medicine del neurodesarrollo (The next generations of children with autism spectrum disorder and the future of neurodevelopmental medicine). Conferencia inaugural y de clausura (inaugural and closure keynote addresses), XX Congreso Internacional de Actualización en Trastornos del Neurodesarrollo (the 20th International Conference on Neurodevelopmental Disorders), Instituto Valenciano de Neurologia Pediatrica, Colegio Oficial de Médicos de Valencia, Valencia, Spain.
  • Klin, A. (2018, February 26). Community-viable, high-throughput systems for ASD-biomarker screening in the first year of life: Challenges and opportunities. All-Institute NIH Webinar on Autism Spectrum Disorder Early Screening (<1 year), Washington, D.C.

2017

  • Klin, A. (2017, December 12). Promoting relational health: Dyadic neuroscience meets public health. U.S. Health Resources & Services Administration, Washington, D.C.
  • Klin, A. (2017, November 15). Promoting relational health: Dyadic neuroscience meets public health. Invited keynote, Thrive by Three Foundations Forum, U.S. Health Resources & Services Administration, Washington, D.C.
  • Klin, A. (2017, October 2). Towards conquering the chasm between molecular genetics and behavior: Beginning high-throughput quantitative behavioral phenotyping. The 2017 Annual Investigators’ Meeting, Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative, New York, NY. 
  • Klin, A. (2017, September 22). Optimizing outcomes, moment-by-moment: The next generations of children with autism spectrum disorder. The 2017 Annual Meeting, U.S. Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, Washington, D.C.
  • Klin, A. (2017, May 13). Developmental endophenotypes to quantify the emergence of autism in infancy. The 2017 keynote address, International Meeting for Autism Research, International Society for Autism Research, San Francisco, CA.
  • Klin, A. (2017, January 26). In search of a performance-based, quantitative, mediating phenotype of autism spectrum disorder in infants & toddlers. Keynote address, Autism Biomarkers Consortium for Clinical Trials, All Investigators Meeting, NIH and Foundation for NIH, Los Angeles, CA.
  • Klin, A. (2017, January 19). 21st century healthcare: identify & intervene early – advancing preventive medicine. Meeting of the Board of Trustees, Georgia Research Alliance, Atlanta, GA.

2016

  • Klin, A. (2016, September 16-17) Déficits no engajamento social em lactantes com TEA: redefinindo o autism para pesquisas em genėtica e neurociência (Social engagement in infants and toddlers with autism spectrum disorder: redefining autism for genetics and neuroscience research) y Uma nova perspectiva do cuidade à saúde em crianças com TEA: capacitação de famílias, atenção primária e intervenção precoce (A new system of healthcare delivery for children with autism spectrum disorder: mobilizing families, the medical home and early intervention). Conferencia inaugural y de clausura (inaugural and closure keynote addresses), Terceiro Congresso Internacional Sabará de Saúde Infantil (3rd International Congress Sabará of Child Health), São Paulo, Brazil. 
  • Klin, A. (2016, May 27). The ontogeny of social visual engagement in infants and toddlers with autism spectrum disorder. Keynote address, XX Biennial International Conference on Infant Studies, New Orleans, LA.
  • Klin, A. (2016, May 15). Towards universal screening and improved access to early intervention in autism spectrum disorder. American Psychiatric Association, Atlanta, GA.

2015

  • Klin, A. (2015, October 16). Un nuevo sistema de prestación de asistencia sanitaria a los lactantes y niños pequeños con trastorno del espectro autista: trabajo con las familias, los médicos de atención primaria y los proveedores de intervención temprana. Keynote address, 11a Reunió Annual, Societat Catalana de Psiquiatria Infanto-Juvenil, Girona, Spain.
  • Klin, A. (2015, September 17). Why an innovative public health approach is needed to address early brain development. Keynote address, Georgia’s Early Brain Development Initiative, Georgia Department of Public Health, Atlanta, GA.
  • Klin, A. (2015, July 23). To change the narrative of autism from debilitating disability to welcome diversity: Fred’s contributions to our collective promise. Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Symposium Honoring Fred Volkmar, MD, Yale Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT.
  • Klin, A. (2015, May 24). A frontier for Applied Behavior Analysis: Altering the natural platform of social brain development in infants and toddlers with autism. Keynote address, B.F. Skinner Lecture, Association for Behavior Analysis International 41st Annual Convention, San Antonio, TX. 
  • Klin, A. (2015, April 17). Developmental social neuroscience meets public health challenge: Is a screening and diagnostic device in the horizon? Inaugural keynote address, Congresso Internacional de Autism na Vida Adulta: Ciência, sociedade e realidade, São Paulo, Brazil.
  • Klin, A. (2015, March 14). The social brain: from the chemistry of relationships to autism spectrum disorder. American Society for Neurochemistry, Atlanta, GA. 
  • Klin, A. (2015, March 7). Un Nuevo sistema de prestación de asistencia sanitaria a los lactantes y niños pequeños con TEA: El trabajo con las familias, medicos de atención primaria y atención temprana. Closure keynote, XVII Curso Internacional de Actualización en Neuropediatría y Neuropsicología Infantil, Valencia, Spain.
  • Klin, A. (2015, March 6). Déficits sociales de compromise en los lactantes y niños pequeños con TEA: Redefiniendo el autism para la investigación genetica y la neurociencia. Inaugural keynote, XVII Curso Internacional de Actualización en Neuropediatría y Neuropsicología Infantil, Valencia, Spain.
  • Klin, A. (2015, January 21). Towards a new system of healthcare delivery for infants & toddlers with ASD: Novel tools for community-viable early detection and treatment. First Annual Autism Symposium, the University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA.

 

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Leadership Team
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