What does eveyone think about this study? My understanding of it
(And I'm no expert) is that autistic children cannot defend
themselves propertly against bacterial and viral agents (hey, isn't
that vaccines?!?!). Add to that the mercury, aluminum and other
toxic crap - it's no wonder our kids are walking bio-hazards.

~Becky


--- In EOHarm@yahoogroups.com, "trophyfish2" <gus@i...> wrote:
> Children with Autism Have Distinctly Different Immune System
> Reactions Compared to Typical Children
>
> Immunologists from UC Davis M.I.N.D. Institute find clear
biological
> component to perplexing childhood neurological disorder
>
> BOSTON, Mass. (May 5, 2005) - A new study by researchers at the
> University of California, Davis, M.I.N.D. Institute and the NIEHS
> Center for Children's Environmental Health demonstrate that
children
> with autism have different immune system responses than children
who
> do not have the disorder. This is important evidence that autism,
> currently defined primarily by distinct behaviors, may potentially
be
> defined by distinct biologic changes as well.
>
> The study was released at the 4th International Meeting for Autism
> Research (IMFAR) - a meeting of autism scientists started by Cure
> Autism Now, the UC Davis M.I.N.D. Institute and the National
Alliance
> for Autism Research to accelerate knowledge of this increasingly
> common and perplexing disorder. It is estimated that autism now
> affects 1 in every 166 children.
>
> "Understanding the biology of autism is crucial to developing
better
> ways to diagnose and treat it," said Judy Van de Water, associate
> professor of rheumatology, allergy and clinical immunology at the
UC
> Davis School of Medicine and the UC Davis M.I.N.D.
Institute. "While
> impaired communication and social skills are the hallmarks of the
> disorder, there has not yet been strong scientific evidence that
the
> immune system is implicated as well. We now need to design
carefully
> controlled studies that tell us even more about the way in which a
> dysfunctional immune system may or may not play a role in the
> disorder itself."
>
> Van de Water, along with co-investigator of the study Paul
Ashwood,
> assistant professor of medical microbiology and immunology at the
UC
> Davis M.I.N.D. Institute, isolated immune cells from blood samples
> taken from 30 children with autism and 26 typically developing
> children aged between two and five years of age. The cells from
both
> groups were then exposed to bacterial and viral agents that
usually
> provoke T-cells, B cells and macrophages - primary players in the
> immune system.
>
> Of the agents tested in the study - tetanus toxoid,
> lippopolysaccharide derived from E. coli cell walls, a plant
lectin
> known as PHA, and a preparation of the measles, mumps and rubella
> vaccine antigens - the researchers found clear differences in
> cellular responses between patients and controls following
exposure
> to the bacterial agents and PHA.
>
> In response to bacteria, the researchers saw lower levels of
protein
> molecules called cytokines in the group with autism. Cytokines
> function as mediators of the immune response, carrying messages
> between B, T and other immune cells. They also are known to be
> capable of having profound effects on the central nervous system,
> including sleep and the fever response. Immune system responses to
> PHA, in contrast, produced more varied cytokine levels: Higher
levels
> of certain cytokines and lower levels of others.
>
> According to Van de Water and Ashwood, these studies illustrate
that
> under similar circumstances, the cytokine responses elicited by
the T-
> cells, B-cells, and macrophage cell populations following their
> activation differs markedly in children with autism compared to
age-
> matched children in the general population. Cytokines are known to
> affect mood and behavior, and while their specific role in the
> development of autism remains unclear, the potential connection is
an
> intriguing area of research that warrants further investigation.
>
> "This study is part of a larger effort to learn how changes in
immune
> system response may make some children more susceptible to the
> harmful effects of environmental agents," said Kenneth Olden,
> director of the National Institute of Environmental Health
Sciences,
> the federal agency that provided funding for the study. "A better
> understanding of the connection between altered immune response
and
> autism may lead to significant advances in the early detection,
> prevention and treatment of this complex neurological disorder."
>
> "We would like to take these findings and explore whether, for
> example, the cytokine differences are specific to certain subsets
of
> patients with autism, such as those with early onset, or those who
> exhibit signs of autism later during development," Ashwood said.
He
> added that the logical next step is to look directly at specific
cell
> populations that may be responsible for the diverging responses
> between patients and controls.
>
> This study was supported by grants from the National Institutes of
> Environmental Health Sciences, the U.S. Environmental Protection
> Agency, the UC Davis M.I.N.D. Institute, Ted Lindsay Foundation
and
> Visceral. The UC Davis M.I.N.D. (Medical Investigation of
> Neurodevelopmental Disorders) Institute is a unique collaborative
> center for research into the causes and treatments of autism,
> bringing together parents, scientists, clinicians and educators.
For
> further information, go to
http://www.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu/mindinstitute
>
> For more information regarding this release, please contact:
>
> Preeti Singh or Ellen Wilson at 301-652-1558
>
> Coimbra Sirica at 631-757-4027 or 631-220-8775 (mobile)
>
> Karen Finney at 916-734-9064 or 916-505-2601 (mobile)