DAVENPORT, Iowa – Researchers say they will focus efforts to get brain tissue for autism studies from subjects in Maine, Iowa and two other states.

The brain tissue program, founded in 1998, seeks donors among autistic people and their families in a quest to find causes and treatments for the disorder, which affects more than 1 million people in the United States.

“We need to study the brain at a cellular level,” said Dr. Jane Pickett, coordinator of the Autism Tissue Program.

Rob Beck, executive director of the Autism Society of America, said 40 to 60 people have donated brain tissue after their deaths.

The tissue is being used in 30 research projects around the world, Pickett said, and scientists already have made discoveries from the donations.

Iowa was selected – along with Maine, Michigan and New Mexico – because of its strong network of autism societies, its statewide organ donor network and supportive medical examiners, officials said.

“I think we can really be leaders in this type of research,” said Gail Karp, president of the Autism Society of the Quad Cities.

Families of autistic people will be motivated to make donations because of their own experiences and their desire to help others, she said.

Autism is a neurological disorder characterized by communication difficulties and problems with social interaction. It’s usually diagnosed in early childhood.

Recent studies have found a rapid increase in the disorder, which could overwhelm the nation’s health care system, Beck said.

“This is a national crisis,” he said last week during a meeting on the disease in the Quad Cities.

The federal government spends $50 million a year on autism research.