SchaferAutismReport: Atomic Structure of Proteins Altered In Autism

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Wednesday, January 2, 2008 Reader Supported

Vol. 12 No. 1p NEW JANUARY CALENDAR of EVENTS!In This Issue: • RESEARCHAtomic Structure of Proteins Altered In Autism • TREATMENTTherapy Helps Solve Behavioral Puzzle • Video is New Tool in Teaching Children with Autism • New Dietary Website from TACA • PEOPLETrump: Autism Linked To Child Vaccinations • Disabled Girls Find New Destinyin Cheerleading • EDUCATIONFuture of Online Schools In LimboAfter Court Ruling • MEDIAFor the Sake of America’s Children –A Tough Look at Health Issues Facing a New Congress • COMMENTARYWill Autism Speaks Fire Trump? The Autism Calendar DO SOMETHINGDO SOMETHING ABOUT AUTISM NOW SUBSCRIBE. . . ! . . .Read, then

Forward the Schafer Autism Report.$35 for 1 year - 200 issues, or No Cost Review Sub. Non-Commercial 100% Reader Supported through subscription donations SAR Back Issues AUTISM IS TREATABLE Check here Today's SAR is provided through the support of paid subscription readers. - THANK YOU - To Our Readers: Welcome to the first edition of our 12th volume -- leading into our 12th year of publishing. The incidence of autism still is growing at an alarming rate, although there may be some anecdotal indications that the rate may be leveling off. We will continue to track and report relevant data. In a effort to make the SAR more readable, we

have formatted it into graphic html. -Lenny Schafer RESEARCHAtomic Structure of Proteins Altered In Autismwww.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/92349.php A new study by an international group of scientists describes in atomic detail a protein complex that is affected by genetic mutations implicated in autism spectrum disorders. The research team, including scientists from the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences (SSPPS), details the neuroligin

family of proteins, which are encoded by genes known to be mutated in certain patients with autism. Their study will be published in the December 20 issue of Neuron. "This goes beyond previous studies to show the individual atoms of these two proteins and how they interact," said Palmer , Ph.D., Dean of SSPPS and the & Monroe Trout Professor of Pharmacology. "We have described the mutations found in some people with autism; and we have identified where the altered amino acids are located in the protein, and how they impact the folding and cell adhesion properties of neuroligin and neurexin." The research builds on earlier work that mapped the molecular structure of neuroligins and their partner proteins, neurexins a protein complex involved in the junctions, or synapses, through which cells of the nervous system signal to one another. The new study, conducted with Pascale Marchot and Yves

Bourne and their colleagues in Marseille, France, adds to a clearer understanding of how particular genetic mutations affect formation of this complex and contribute to the developmental abnormalities found in certain individuals with autism. Normally, individual neuroligins interacting with specific neurexin partners are involved in synaptic adhesions, imparting 'stickiness' that enables them to associate and form synapses that have the capacity for neurotransmission. Incorrect partnering in these diverse protein families results when a mutant neuroligin fails to associate properly at synapses, preventing the normal transmission of brain cells. The change in synaptic function may account for impairments in development, social interaction and communication displayed in individuals with autism spectrum disorders, according to the researchers. Contributors include Pascale

Marchot and Igor P. Fabrichny, Institut Fédératif de Recherche-Roche, Université de la Mediterranée; Philippe Leone, Gerlind Sulzenbacher and Yves Bourne, Universités Aix-Marseille; and e Comoletti and Meghan T. , UCSD Department of Pharmacology, Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences. The research was funded in part by SPINE-2 Complexes Consortium, the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique and Fondation pour la Recherche Médicale, Cure Autism Now and the National Institutes of Environmental Health Sciences and General Medical Sciences of NIH in the U.S.For rest of today's SAR click here:http://www.sarnet.org/frm/forsar.htm Copyright Notice: The above items are copyright protected. They are for our readers' personal education or research purposes only and provided at their request. Articles may not be further reprinted or used commercially without consent from the copyright holders. To find the copyright holders, follow the referenced website link provided at the beginning of each item. Lenny Schafer editor@... The Schafer Autism Report is a non-profit corporation_______________________________________________SARnets mailing listSARnets@...http://lists.igc.org/mailman/listinfo/sarnetsYou can unsubscribe send email:http://www.sarnet.org/frm/unsub2.htm-- You are subscribed as: deniseslist@...

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