Error in autism article: Community forged by trials of autism

[Guest guest]

From Binstock

Autism listmates,

A profound error was presented by New Jersey reporter Kathleen Carroll.

Her article declared that there is no known cause of autism. Clearly, she

is ignorant of peer-reviewed studies indicating causal factors in at least

some subgroups. How can progress be made when reporters such as Ms.

Carroll write autism fiction? Is her job as a reporter conditioned on a

directive from her publisher and editor that she not write in ways that

would call attention to pollution in New Jersey?

- - - -

Dear Ms. Carroll,

Your recent article contains an inaccurate statement. You wrote, " The

disorder has no known cause or cure and impairs a child's ability to

communicate and learn. " (1) However, in recent years, several

peer-reviewed studies published in major journals have described

associations between autism and various environmental toxins (eg, 2-6).

Although the abstracts presented herein (2-6) convey the findings, please

obtain and read the whole-text papers so that in your future articles you

don't repeat the fiction that there is no known cause of autism.

Binstock

Researcher in Developmental & Behavioral Neuroanatomy

P.O. Box 1788

Estes Park CO 80517

- - - -

1. Community forged by trials of autism

Friday, October 12, 2007

By KATHLEEN CARROLL

STAFF WRITER

http://www.northjersey.com/page.php?qstr=eXJpcnk3ZjczN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXkzJmZnYmV

sN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXk3MjA2NjM0JnlyaXJ5N2Y3MTdmN3ZxZWVFRXl5Mg==

2: Environ Health Perspect. 2006 Sep;114(9):1438-44.

Autism spectrum disorders in relation to distribution of hazardous air

pollutants in the san francisco bay area.

Windham GC, Zhang L, Gunier R, Croen LA, Grether JK.

Division of Environmental and Occupational Disease Control, California

Department of Health Services, Richmond, California, USA.

gwindham@...

OBJECTIVE: To explore possible associations between autism spectrum

disorders (ASD) and environmental exposures, we linked the California

autism surveillance system to estimated hazardous air pollutant (HAP)

concentrations compiled by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

METHODS: Subjects included 284 children with ASD and 657 controls, born in

1994 in the San Francisco Bay area. We assigned exposure level by census

tract of birth residence for 19 chemicals we identified as potential

neurotoxicants, developmental toxicants, and/or endocrine disruptors from

the 1996 HAPs database. Because concentrations of many of these were

highly correlated, we combined the chemicals into

mechanistic and structural groups, calculating summary index scores. We

calculated ASD risk in the upper quartiles of these group scores or

individual chemical concentrations compared with below the median,

adjusting for demographic factors. RESULTS: The adjusted odds ratios

(AORs) were elevated by 50% in the top quartile of chlorinated

solvents and heavy metals [95% confidence intervals (CIs) , 1.1-2.1], but

not for aromatic solvents. Adjusting for these three groups

simultaneously led to decreased risks for the solvents and increased risk

for metals (AORs for metals: fourth quartile = 1.7 ; 95% CI,

1.0-3.0 ; third quartile = 1.95 ; 95% CI, 1.2-3.1) . The individual

compounds that contributed most to these associations included

mercury, cadmium, nickel, trichloroethylene, and vinyl chloride.

CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest a potential association between

autism and estimated metal concentrations, and possibly solvents, in

ambient air around the birth residence, requiring confirmation and more

refined exposure assessment in future studies.

Publication Types:

* Comparative Study

PMID: 16966102 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

3: Health Place. 2006 Jun;12(2):203-9.

Environmental mercury release, special education rates, and autism

disorder: an ecological study of Texas.

Palmer RF, Blanchard S, Stein Z, Mandell D, C.

University of Texas Health Science Center, San Department of

Family and Community Medicine, 7703 Floyd Curl Drive, San , Texas

78229-3900, USA. palmer@...

The association between environmentally released mercury, special

education and autism rates in Texas was investigated using data from the

Texas Education Department and the United States Environmental Protection

Agency. A Poisson regression analysis adjusted for school district

population size, economic and demographic factors was used. There was a

significant increase in the rates of special education students and autism

rates associated with increases in environmentally released mercury. On

average, for each 1,000 lb of environmentally released mercury, there was

a 43% increase in the rate of special

education services and a 61% increase in the rate of autism. The

association between environmentally released mercury and special

education rates were fully mediated by increased autism rates. This

ecological study suggests the need for further research regarding the

association between environmentally released mercury and developmental

disorders such as autism. These results have implications for policy

planning and cost analysis.

PMID: 16338635 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

4: Mol Psychiatry. 2005 Nov;10(11):1006-16.

Paraoxonase gene variants are associated with autism in North America, but

not in Italy: possible regional specificity in gene-environment

interactions.

D'Amelio M, Ricci I, Sacco R, Liu X, D'Agruma L, Muscarella LA, Guarnieri

V, Militerni R, Bravaccio C, Elia M, Schneider C, Melmed R, Trillo S,

Pascucci T, Puglisi-Allegra S, Reichelt KL, Macciardi F, Holden JJ,

Persico AM.

Laboratory of Molecular Psychiatry and Neurogenetics, University Campus

Bio-Medico, Rome, Italy.

Organophosphates (OPs) are routinely used as pesticides in agriculture

and as insecticides within the household. Our prior work on Reelin and

APOE delineated a gene-environment interactive model of autism

pathogenesis, whereby genetically vulnerable individuals prenatally

exposed to OPs during critical periods in neurodevelopment could

undergo altered neuronal migration, resulting in an autistic syndrome.

Since household use of OPs is far greater in the USA than in Italy, this

model was predicted to hold validity in North America, but not in Europe.

Here, we indirectly test this hypothesis by assessing

linkage/association between autism and variants of the paraoxonase gene

(PON1) encoding paraoxonase, the enzyme responsible for OP

detoxification. Three functional single nucleotide polymorphisms, PON1

C-108T, L55M, and Q192R, were assessed in 177 Italian and 107

Caucasian-American complete trios with primary autistic probands. As

predicted, Caucasian-American and not Italian families display a

significant association between autism and PON1 variants less active in

vitro on the OP diazinon (R192), according to case-control

contrasts (Q192R: chi2=6.33, 1 df, P<0.025),

transmission/disequilibrium tests (Q192R: TDT chi2=5.26, 1 df,

P<0.025), family-based association tests (Q192R and L55M: FBAT Z=2.291 and

2.435 respectively, P<0.025), and haplotype-based association

tests (L55/R192: HBAT Z=2.430, P<0.025). These results are consistent with

our model and provide further support for the hypothesis that concurrent

genetic vulnerability and environmental OP exposure may possibly

contribute to autism pathogenesis in a sizable subgroup of North American

individuals.

Publication Types:

* Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

PMID: 16027737

5: Neuro Endocrinol Lett. 2002 Aug;23(4):303-8.

Treatment of autism spectrum children with thiamine tetrahydrofurfuryl

disulfide: a pilot study.

Lonsdale D, Shamberger RJ, Audhya T.

Preventive Medicine Group, 24700 Center Ridge Road, Westlake, OH 44145,

USA. dlonsdale@...

OBJECTIVES: In a Pilot Study, the clinical and biochemical effects of

thiamine tetrahydrofurfuryl disulfide (TTFD) on autistic spectrum

children were investigated. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Ten children were

studied. Diagnosis was confirmed through the use of form E2, a

computer assessed symptom score. For practical reasons, TTFD was

administered twice daily for two months in the form of rectal

suppositories, each containing 50 mg of TTFD. Symptomatic responses were

determined through the use of the computer assessed Autism

Treatment Evaluation Checklist (ATEC) forms. The erythrocyte

transketolase (TKA) and thiamine pyrophosphate effect (TPPE), were

measured at outset and on completion of the study to document

intracellular thiamine deficiency. Urines from patients were examined at

outset, after 30 days and after 60 days of treatment and the

concentrations of SH-reactive metals, total protein, sulfate, sulfite,

thiosulfate and thiocyanate were determined. The concentrations of metals

in hair were also determined. RESULTS: At the beginning of the study

thiamine deficiency was observed in 3 out of the 10 patients. Out of 10

patients, 6 had initial urine samples containing arsenic in greater

concentration than healthy controls. Traces of mercury were seen in urines

from all of these autistic children. Following

administration of TTFD an increase in cadmium was seen in 2 children and

in lead in one child. Nickel was increased in the urine of one patient

during treatment. Sulfur metabolites in urine did not differ from those

measured in healthy children. CONCLUSIONS: Thiamine

tetrahydrofurfuryl disulfide appears to have a beneficial clinical effect

on some autistic children, since 8 of the 10 children improved clinically.

We obtained evidence of an association of this

increasingly occurring disease with presence of urinary SH-reactive

metals, arsenic in particular.

Publication Types:

* Clinical Trial

* Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

PMID: 12195231

6. Environ Health Perspect 115:1482–1489 (2007)

Maternal Residence Near Agricultural Pesticide Applications and Autism

Spectrum Disorders among Children in the California Central Valley

M. ,1 B. English,2 Judith K. Grether,2 Gayle C. Windham,2

Lucia Somberg,3 and Craig Wolff2

1Public Health Institute, Oakland, California, USA; 2California Department

of Health Services, Richmond, California, USA; 3School of Public Health,

University of California, Berkeley, California, USA

Abstract

Background: Ambient levels of pesticides ( " pesticide drift " ) are

detectable at residences near agricultural field sites.

Objective: Our goal was to evaluate the hypothesis that maternal residence

near agricultural pesticide applications during key periods of gestation

could be associated with the development of autism spectrum disorders

(ASD) in children.

Methods: We identified 465 children with ASD born during 1996–1998 using

the California Department of Developmental Services electronic files, and

matched them by maternal date of last menstrual period to 6,975 live-born,

normal-birth-weight, term infants as controls. We determined proximity to

pesticide applications using California Department of Pesticide Regulation

records refined using Department of Water Resources land use polygons. A

staged analytic design applying a priori criteria to the results of

conditional logistic regressions was employed to exclude associations

likely due to multiple testing error.

Results: Of 249 unique hypotheses, four that described organochlorine

pesticide applications—specifically those of dicofol and

endosulfan—occurring during the period immediately before and concurrent

with central nervous system embryogenesis (clinical weeks 1 through 8) met

a priori criteria and were unlikely to be a result of multiple testing.

Multivariate a posteriori models comparing children of mothers living

within 500 m of field sites with the highest nonzero quartile of

organochlorine poundage to those with mothers not living near field sites

suggested an odds ratio for ASD of 6.1 (95% confidence interval, 2.4–15.3)

.. ASD risk increased with the poundage of organochlorine applied and

decreased with distance from field sites.

Conclusions: The association between residential proximity to

organochlorine pesticide applications during gestation and ASD among

children should be further studied.

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Sheri Nakken, former R.N., MA, Hahnemannian Homeopath

Vaccination Information & Choice Network, Nevada City CA & Wales UK

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