Scientific Studies in Autism
Research explaining the internal medical issues that accompany autism, are not in the hands of most primary care physicians who work with the children. We hope to bring this information to medical professionals and parents, and encourage more research in this area. We also hope this can direct medical professionals to understand test results already taken, or help these professionals chose tests that might shed light on medical issues of a particular child with autism symptoms.
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All video clips are the copyright of the Foundation for Autism Information and Research (F.A.I.R. Autism Media) and are intended for informational purposes only. The content herein is not intended as medical advice.
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Visit the University of Washington's website for more information.
Dr. Thomas Burbacher:
Comparison of Blood and Brain Mercury Levels
in Infant Monkeys Exposed to Methylmercury
or Vaccines Containing ThimerosalDr. Burbacher is Associate Professor in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health in the School of Public Health and Community Medicine at the University of Washington. He has been involved in research in the area of mercury developmental neurotoxicity for several decades and was a member of the 2000 National Academy of Sciences panel on methylmercury.
In this interview, Dr. Burbacher describes the results of a recent study on the blood and brain levels of different mercury species in infant nonhuman primates following oral methylmercury exposure or exposure to vaccines containing thimerosal. The results of the study indicate several differences in the distribution and clearance of mercury from these two sources. These differences point out the importance of providing specific data on mercury derived from thimerosal for an evaluation of the safety of early exposure to mercury from vaccines containing thimerosal.
Visit the University of Arkansas's website for more information.
Download
Jill James' Study as published in "Neurotoxicology"Dr. Sandra Jill James:
Thimerosal Neurotoxicity is Associated with
Glutathione Depletion: Protection with
Glutathione PrecursorsDr. S. Jill James is a nutritional biochemist with over 20 years research experience in abnormal folate metabolism and disease susceptibility. She received her B.S. degree Phi Beta Kappa from Mills College, and her Ph.D. degree in Nutritional Biochemistry from UCLA. Her research is focused on defining gene-nutrient interactions that increase susceptibility to cancer, Down syndrome, and most recently, autism. Dr. James has published over 100 peer-reviewed papers and is a Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and Director of the Biochemical Genetics Laboratory at the Arkansas Children’s Hospital Research Institute.
Dr. James discusses the implications of her ground-breaking study showing that autistic children have an increase in oxidized (inactive) glutathione and a decrease in the reduced (active) form of glutathione that renders them more vulnerable to oxidative damage and less able to excrete heavy metals. Results from her laboratory studies indicate an increased frequency of several genetic polymorphisms that could contribute to the severely abnormal metabolic profile in autistic children. She concludes that an inability to control oxidative stress may be central to the development of neurologic, immunologic and gastrointestinal dysfunction that occurs with autism.
Visit Columbia University's website for more information.
Columbia
University
Download Mady Hornig's "mouse" study as published in Molecular Psychiatry
Neurotoxic effects of postnatal thimerosal
are mouse strain dependentMady Hornig, MD, Associate Professor of Epidemiology at Columbia University, is Director of Translational Research in the Center for Immunopathogenesis and Infectious Diseases at the Mailman School of Public Health. A physician-scientist, she is widely recognized for her work on the role of viral and immune factors in neurodevelopmental and other neuropsychiatric disorders, and the neuropharmacologic and neuroendocrine aspects of treatment resistant mood disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder in adults.
Dr. Hornig’s translational research focuses on understanding the mechanisms by which infection, immune disturbances, and neurotoxins lead to neurodevelopmental damage or CNS dysfunction, contributing to neuropsychiatric conditions such as autism, schizophrenia, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, obsessive compulsive disorders, and mood disorders. Her research program integrates data from animal models and epidemiologic studies, incorporating behavioral, neurochemical, neurostructural, molecular, immunologic and microbiologic perspectives. She serves as Director of Clinical Core for a large, international multicenter program, led by Dr. Ian Lipkin, that is evaluating the role of Borna disease virus in human neuropsychiatric diseases, and as co-PI for a study of measles virus sequences in bowel biopsies of children with autism.
