SchaferAutismReport: M.I.N.D. Institute Researchers Try To Solve Mystery of Autism

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M.I.N.D. Institute Researchers Try To Solve Mystery of Autism

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RESEARCH

M.I.N.D. Institute Researchers

Try To Solve Mystery of Autism

By Sandy Kleffman in the Contra Costa Times.

is.gd/8K7r

Who would have thought that le Bell's

Danville home might reveal clues for solving one of the biggest mysteries

of modern medicine: the cause of a rapid rise in autistic children.

Epidemiologists at the UC M.I.N.D.

(Medical Investigation of Neurodevelopmental Disorders) Institute believe

the Bell family, and others like them, may provide answers.

Using a special vacuum, researchers have

collected dust hidden deep in the home's carpets, crannies and cracks.

They have compiled detailed reports on the

household cleaners the family uses, their soaps and beauty products,

electronics and types of paint.

They even attended the birth of Bell's

daughter, Layla, now 8 months old. After waiting more than five hours for

the delivery, researchers took for laboratory analysis the umbilical cord,

a portion of the placenta and what is known as meconium, or the baby's

first bowel movement.

" We need to cast a wide net, " said

Irva Hertz-Picciotto, the M.I.N.D. Institute epidemiologist who is leading

the study. " Unfortunately, we still know very little. "

Bell and 100 other mothers are participating

in the MARBLES study, or Markers of Autism Risk in Babies Learning Early

Signs. The study focuses on women who have one autistic child, because they

are at least 10 times more likely than other women to have a second child

with the disorder. Most participants are pregnant when they join or are

planning on becoming pregnant soon.

le Bell and her husband, Jon, have a

nearly 4-year-old autistic son, Jake.

Jake, who has bright-red hair and loves to

play with plastic dinosaurs, exhibits many of the behaviors typical of

autistic children, including having language difficulties. But with

extensive therapy, he has made significant progress in recent months. He

giggles as his mother chases him around the backyard and smiles broadly

when she catches him.

Autism is a lifelong developmental disorder

marked by poor verbal and communication skills, repetitive behaviors and an

inability to form social connections.

Considered rare just a few decades ago, it

now strikes one in 150 children in the United States. Yet its cause remains

a mystery.

The quest for answers is urgent, said Rick

Rollens, a co-founder of the M.I.N.D. Institute who has an autistic son.

Rollens works with an association of

regional centers that provide services to autistic children. " They're

telling me that the numbers of new kids is continuing to increase

dramatically, particularly the zero to 3-year-old kids, " he said.

" It's critically important to be looking at all factors that could be

contributing to this. "

The Bells are anxiously watching Layla to

find out if she, too, will develop the disorder.

Because autism often repeats in families,

researchers believe genetics play a role, Hertz-Picciotto said.

Yet pinpointing which genes are linked to

autism has been difficult. Numerous pairs of chromosomes have a region that

in some studies has been linked to autism.

" That seems to be saying that there are

multiple genes, " she said. " The complexity is a little

overwhelming. "

Hertz-Picciotto and many other researchers

also suspect that one or more environmental factors trigger the disorder in

genetically susceptible children. But figuring out which ones is an

amazingly complex task.

" I think a lot of people are under the

illusion that we're going to find one big smoking gun, "

Hertz-Picciotto said. " I don't think we're going to find one single

cause.

" Even in one individual, it probably

takes a few genes and a few environmental hits. From looking at this

phenomenon, it's highly likely there are many causes. "

Most autism studies, including several at

the M.I.N.D. Institute, focus on children after their diagnosis, which

usually happens about age 3. Researchers ask parents to recall in detail

what

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