Autism
SYNOPSIS
Mesenchymal stem cells may be promising candidates for addressing autism-related immune dysregulation.
TITLE
Mesenchymal stem cells in treating autism: novel insights
Citation
Siniscalco D, Bradstreet JJ, Sych N, Antonucci N. World Journal of Stem Cells. 2014;6:173-178.
Summary
Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) possess unique immunological properties that make them promising candidates in regenerative medicine, with the potential to address the immune dysregulation often observed in autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This study describes a variety of mechanisms through which MSCs could exert a positive effect in ASD.
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SYNOPSIS
UC-Boulder professor says the autism epidemic is real and therefore must be the product of an environmental factor.
TITLE
A comparison of temporal trends in United States autism prevalence to trends in suspected environmental factors
CITATION
Nevison CD. Environmental Health. 2014;13:73.
SUMMARY
“Diagnosed autism prevalence has risen dramatically in the U.S over the last several decades and continued to trend upward as of birth year 2005. The increase is mainly real and has occurred mostly since the late 1980s. In contrast, children’s exposure to most of the top ten toxic compounds has remained flat or decreased over this same time frame. Environmental factors with increasing temporal trends can help suggest hypotheses for drivers of autism that merit further investigation.”
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Following implementation of changes in a pediatric medical practice to address autism risks, no new cases of autism occurred.
TITLE
Can awareness of medical pathophysiology in autism lead to primary care autism prevention strategies?
Citation
Mumper E. North American Journal of Medicine and Science. 2013;6:134-144.
Summary
In 2005, the author’s pediatric practice implemented seven changes to address autism risks, focusing on minimizing environmental toxicant exposure, encouraging prolonged breastfeeding, recommending probiotics, providing nutritional counseling, limiting use of antibiotics and acetaminophen and allowing a modified vaccine schedule. No new cases of autism occurred in children born between 2005 and 2011, even though the CDC autism rate would have predicted about six new cases in the practice over that period. The author cautions that “epidemiology may be too blunt a tool to determine all risks for subsets of the population who may be more vulnerable to vaccine reactions.”
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Canadian researchers: aluminum in vaccines can cause both autoimmunity and neurological damage.
TITLE
Aluminum in the central nervous system (CNS): toxicity in humans and animals, vaccine adjuvants, and autoimmunity
CITATION
Shaw C, Tomljenovic L. Immunologic Research. 2013;56:304–316.
SUMMARY
“In young children, a highly significant correlation exists between the number of pediatric aluminum-adjuvanted vaccines administered and the rate of autism spectrum disorders. Many of the features of aluminum-induced neurotoxicity may arise, in part, from autoimmune reactions, as part of the ASIA syndrome. Aluminum is added to vaccines to help the vaccine work more effectively, but unlike dietary aluminum which will usually clear rapidly from the body, aluminum used in vaccines and injected is designed to provide a long-lasting cellular exposure. Thus, the problem with vaccine-derived aluminum is really twofold: It drives the immune response even in the absence of a viral or bacterial threat and it can make its way into the central nervous system. It is not really a matter of much debate that aluminum in various forms can be neurotoxic.”
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Research has determined there is a subgroup of the population that has hypersensitivity to the toxicity of thimerosal yet thimerosal containing vaccines are administered to all without consideration to this important fact. We can ban peanuts from schools because a subpopulation is allergic to them, so why is thimerosal still contained in our vaccines?
TITLE
B-lymphocytes from a population of children with autism spectrum disorder and their unaffected siblings exhibit hypersensitivity to thimerosal.
CITATION
SUMMARY
Two medications (valproate and thalidomide) have been definitively shown to be causative with regards to autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Both of these medications share a common trait of inhibiting cell proliferation. Thus, these researchers set out to determine if thimerosal can inhibit cell proliferation using doses of thimerosal which reflect the concentrations that infants are exposed to via vaccinations. The design of this experiment was chosen to be able to distinguish between shared or different in utero environments among families with an ASD member. To accomplish this goal, B-cells were collected from, ASD individuals, their unaffected fraternal twins representing a shared in utero environment, and their unaffected nontwin siblings. In the same manner, B-cells were collected from control families with no history of ASD which were matched for age/sex/ethnicity and compared to ASD families. It was determined that there is a hypersensitivity to thimerosal among a subpopulation of ASD families. The target of thimerosal toxicity is the mitochondria and cell proliferation was inhibited at a dose that was lower than that required to cause cell death. Among the hypersensitive population, the dose of thimerosal that could inhibit cell proliferation was found to be only 40% of that needed to inhibit proliferation in the control group. Whether a twin or sibling was hypersensitive was dependent on having another family member with hypersensitivity. This finding implies there is a genetic component to thimerosal hypersensitivity. Among the ASD families with hypersensitivity oxidative stress was determined to be the contributing factor. Poor antioxidant status, high lactate levels, and elevated markers of oxidative stress are a common finding among individuals with ASD. In 2008 the case of Hannah Poling was awarded compensation under the United States National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program. It was claimed that her vaccines induced a mitochondrial encephalopathy that resulted in autism. Since the mitochondria is the most significant target of thimerosal toxicity, it is particularly poignant to know that a lowering of antioxidant status by any other additional conditions such as infections or co-exposure to other toxins would further sensitize mitochondria to the damaging effects of thimerosal. These researchers state that their work, “…supports a multi-insult model of ASD causation where many individuals have the genetic background that makes them vulnerable to a particular type of insult at a particular time in their brain development…”. Just like valproate and thalidomide which are the only 2 accepted causative agents for ASD, this research has demonstrated that thimerosal is also capable of inhibiting cell proliferation.
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SYNOPSIS
Infants receiving mercury-containing vaccines had much higher rates of autism than infants receiving vaccines without mercury.
TITLE
A two-phase study evaluating the relationship between Thimerosal-containing vaccine administration and the risk for an autism spectrum disorder diagnosis in the United States
CITATION
Geier DA, Hooker BS, Kern JK, King PG, Sykes LK, Geier MR. Translational Neurodegeneration. 2013;2:25.
SUMMARY
“The present study provides new epidemiological evidence supporting an association between increasing organic-Hg [mercury] exposure from Thimerosal-containing childhood vaccines and the subsequent risk of ASD [autism] diagnosis.”
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There is a connection between infant and prenatal thimerosal exposure and neurological disorders.
TITLE
Low-dose mercury exposure in early life: Relevance of thimerosal to fetuses, newborns and infants
CITATION
Dórea JG. Current Medicinal Chemistry. 2013;20:4060-4069.
SUMMARY
This review article highlights the scientifically affirmed connection between infant and prenatal thimerosal exposure and neurological disorders, including tic disorder, which has been shown to be much more prevalent in children with autism. The author also delineates the use of thimerosal in vaccines in developing countries at a greater exposure level than developed countries such as the U.S.
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SYNOPSIS
Polish scientists propose new vaccine schedule, express concern at high rate of vaccine adverse events.
TITLE
Neurologic adverse events following vaccination
CITATION
Sienkiewicz D, Kulak W, Okurowska-Zawada B, Paszko-Patej G. Progress in Health Sciences. 2012;2.
SUMMARY
“[I]t is not reasonable to assume that manipulation of the immune system through an increasing number of vaccinations during critical periods of brain development will not result in adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes. European countries have different models of vaccination that have been modified in recent decades. In Scandinavian countries, which have the lowest infant mortality, vaccinations are voluntary and infants receive their first vaccination at 3 months of age. In the first year of life, they receive 9 recommended vaccinations, and at 18 months – MMR. The acellular pertussis vaccine (DTaP) is used, as well as IPV. BCG and Hepatitis B vaccines are administered to children from high risk groups. Similar vaccination schedules exist in other European countries, where the vaccination of neonates was abandoned and a ban on the use of thimerosal in vaccines was introduced. Note also that Scandinavian countries have the lowest rates of autism compared to other developed countries in which children are vaccinated much earlier and with greater number of vaccines.”
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SYNOPSIS
Canadian researchers report vaccine aluminum and autism prevalence related.
TITLE
Do aluminum vaccine adjuvants contribute to the rising prevalence of autism?
CITATION
Tomljenovic L, Shaw CA. Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry. 2011;105:1489-1499.
SUMMARY
“Dysfunctional immunity and impaired brain function are core deficits in ASD. Aluminum (Al), the most commonly used vaccine adjuvant, is a demonstrated neurotoxin and a strong immune stimulator. Hence, adjuvant Al has the potential to induce neuroimmune disorders. The application of the Hill’s criteria to these data indicates that the correlation between Al in vaccines and ASD may be causal. Because children represent a fraction of the population most at risk for complications following exposure to Al, a more rigorous evaluation of Al adjuvant safety seems warranted. By satisfying eight of the Hill’s criteria for establishing causality applicable to our study, we show that Al-adjuvanted vaccines may be a significant etiological factor in the rising prevalence of ASD in the Western world. We also show that children from countries with the highest ASD prevalence appear to have a much higher exposure to Al from vaccines, particularly at 2 months of age.”
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Scientists review literature and raise concerns about denial of environmental toxin link to autism.
TITLE
Sorting out the spinning of autism: heavy metals and the question of incidence
CITATION
DeSoto MC, Hitlan RT. ACTA Neurobiological Experimentals. 2010;70:165–176.
SUMMARY
“In this paper, we argue that increasingly over the past decade, positions that deny a link to environmental toxins and autism are based on relatively weak science and are disregarding the bulk of scientific literature. The question about toxic exposure and autism is open, with the weight of evidence favoring a connection that is not well understood. Although it is not possible to say with certainty, it seems likely that the connection would be mediated by genetic susceptibility and ability to detoxify. That is, some people have genotypes that confer higher susceptibility to toxic exposures. If so, then 50 years ago few people would have had enough toxic exposure to have the neurological changes that result in autism.”
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SUNY-Stony Brook scientists find boys receiving the hepatitis B vaccine series are three times more likely to have autism.
TITLE
Hepatitis B vaccination of male neonates and autism diagnosis, NHIS 1997-2002
CITATION
Gallagher C, Goodman M. Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part A. 2010;73:1665–1677.
SUMMARY
“Boys vaccinated as neonates had threefold greater odds for autism diagnosis compared to boys never vaccinated or vaccinated after the first month of life. Findings suggest that U.S. male neonates vaccinated with the hepatitis B vaccine prior to 1999 (from vaccination record) had a threefold higher risk for parental report of autism diagnosis compared to boys not vaccinated as neonates during that same time period.”
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SYNOPSIS
British and Swedish scientists raise concerns about limited understanding of vaccine aluminum’s impact on the human body, raise risk of autoimmune response.
TITLE
The immunobiology of aluminium adjuvants: how do they really work?
CITATION
Exley C, Siesjo P, Eriksson H. Trends in Immunology. 2010;31:103-109.
SUMMARY
“Boys vaccinated as neonates had threefold greater odds for autism diagnosis compared to boys never vaccinated or vaccinated after the first month of life. Findings suggest that U.S. male neonates vaccinated with the hepatitis B vac- cine prior to 1999 (from vaccination record) had a threefold higher risk for parental report of autism diagnosis compared to boys not vaccinated as neonates during that same time period.”
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SYNOPSIS
A CDC-sponsored database showed much higher rates of neurodevelopmental disabilities from mercury-containing vaccines.
TITLE
Thimerosal exposure in infants and neurodevelopmental disorders: An assessment of computerized medical records in the Vaccine Safety Datalink
CITATION
Young HA, Geier DA, Geier MR. Journal of the Neurological Sciences. 2008;121:626-631.
SUMMARY
“Consistent significantly increased rate ratios were observed for autism, autism spectrum disorders, tics, attention deficit disorder, and emotional disturbances with Hg [mercury] exposure from TCVs [thimerosal-containing vaccines]. By contrast, none of the control outcomes had significantly increased rate ratios with Hg exposure from TCVs.”
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SYNOPSIS
Many heavy metals increase the apparent toxicity of low levels of mercury.
TITLE
Mercury toxicity: Genetic susceptibility and synergistic effects
CITATION
Haley BE. Medical Veritas. 2005;2:535–542.
SUMMARY
This article discusses mercury intoxication and several normally appearing factors that increase the susceptibility to mercury toxicity. Boys with autism represent a subset of the population that is more susceptible to the toxic effects of mercury and thimerosal because they are not efficient excretors of these toxic materials. Research confirms that a lead-toxic person would be more susceptible to mercury toxicity than a healthy, non-toxic person. Researchers routinely observe that many heavy metals increase the apparent toxicity of low levels of mercury. In other words, the synergistic effects of other heavy metals, diet, antibiotics, etc. on mercury toxicity make it impossible to define a “safe level of mercury exposure.”
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SYNOPSIS
An association between neurodevelopmental disorders and thimerosal-containing DTaP vaccines was found.
TITLE
Neurodevelopmental disorders after thimerosal-containing vaccines: a brief communication
CITATION
Geier MR, Geier DA. Experimental Biology and Medicine. 2003;228:660-664.
SUMMARY
An analysis of the Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System (VAERS) database showed statistically significant increases in the incidence rate of autism (relative risk [RR] = 6.0), mental retardation (RR = 6.1), and speech disorders (RR = 2.2) after thimerosal-containing diphtheria, tetanus, and acellular pertussis (DTaP) vaccines in comparison with thimerosal-free DTaP vaccines.
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Utah state scientists find autoimmune reaction to MMR in children with autism, including autoimmunity to myelin basic protein, a brain building-block.
TITLE
Abnormal measles-mumps-rubella antibodies and CNS autoimmunity in children with autism
CITATION
Singh VK, Lin SX, Newell E, Nelson C. Journal of Biomedical Science. 2002;9:359–364.
SUMMARY
“[A]s described herein, autistic children showed a serological correlation between MMR and brain autoimmunity, i.e., over 90% of MMR antibody-positive autistic sera also had autoantibodies to brain MBP. This is quite an intriguing observation in favor of a connection between atypical measles infection and autism; an atypical infection usually refers to infection that occurs in the absence of a rash. An atypical measles infection in the absence of a rash and unusual neurological symptoms was recently described to suggest the existence of a variant MV in children and adults. In light of these new findings, we suggest that a considerable proportion of autistic cases may result from an atypical measles infection that does not produce a rash but causes neurological symptoms in some children. The source of this virus could be a variant MV or it could be the MMR vaccine.”
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SYNOPSIS
Infants receiving mercury-containing vaccines developed speech disorders, sleep disorders and autism, according to CDC scientists.
TITLE
Increased risk of developmental neurologic impairment after high exposure to thimerosal-containing vaccine in first month of life
CITATION
Verstraeten TM, Davies R, Gu D, DeStefano F. Proceedings of the Epidemic Intelligence Service Annual Conference, April 2000.
SUMMARY
“This analysis suggests that high exposure to ethylmercury from thimerosal-containing vaccines in the first month of life increases the risk of subsequent development of neurologic development impairment.”
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Japanese scientists find vaccine-strain of measles in the guts of children with autism.
TITLE
Detection and sequencing of measles virus from peripheral mononuclear cells from patients with inflammatory bowel disease and autism
CITATION
Kawashima H, Mori T, Kashiwagi Y, Takekuma K, Hoshika A, Wakefield A. Digestive Diseases and Sciences. 2000;45:723–729.
SUMMARY
“Additionally, a new syndrome has been reported in children with autism who exhibited developmental regression and gastrointestinal symptoms (autistic enterocolitis), in some cases soon after MMR vaccine. The sequences obtained from the patients with ulcerative colitis and children with autism were consistent with being vaccine strains. The results were concordant with the exposure history of the patients. Persistence of measles virus was confirmed in PBMC in some patients with chronic intestinal inflammation.”