J Inorg Biochem. 2011 Nov;105(11):1489-99. Epub 2011 Aug 23.

Do aluminum vaccine adjuvants contribute to the rising prevalence of autism?

Tomljenovic L, Shaw CA.

Source

Neural Dynamics Research Group, Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of British Columbia, 828 W. 10th Ave, Vancouver, BC, Canada V5Z 1L8.

Abstract
Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are serious multisystem developmental disorders and an urgent global public health concern. Dysfunctional immunity and impaired brain function are core deficits in ASD. Aluminum (Al), the most commonly used vaccine adjuvant, is a demonstrated neurotoxin and a strong immune stimulator. Hence, adjuvant Al has the potential to induce neuroimmune disorders. When assessing adjuvant toxicity in children, two key points ought to be considered: (i) children should not be viewed as "small adults" as their unique physiology makes them much more vulnerable to toxic insults; and (ii) if exposure to Al from only few vaccines can lead to cognitive impairment and autoimmunity in adults, is it unreasonable to question whether the current pediatric schedules, often containing 18 Al adjuvanted vaccines, are safe for children? By applying Hill's criteria for establishing causality between exposure and outcome we investigated whether exposure to Al from vaccines could be contributing to the rise in ASD prevalence in the Western world. Our results show that: (i) children from countries with the highest ASD prevalence appear to have the highest exposure to Al from vaccines; (ii) the increase in exposure to Al adjuvants significantly correlates with the increase in ASD prevalence in the United States observed over the last two decades (Pearson r=0.92, p<0.0001); and (iii) a significant correlation exists between the amounts of Al administered to preschool children and the current prevalence of ASD in seven Western countries, particularly at 3-4months of age (Pearson r=0.89-0.94, p=0.0018-0.0248). The application of the Hill's criteria to these data indicates that the correlation between Al in vaccines and ASD may be causal. Because children represent a fraction of the population most at risk for complications following exposure to Al, a more rigorous evaluation of Al adjuvant safety seems warranted.

Vaccines Don't CAUSE Autism, They Just RESULT in Autism

(looking at my stopwatch) aaaaaaaaand time!

Hannah Poling finally gets paid for her vaccine induced resulted autism.

So if a brilliant Johns Hopkins neurologist and his super smarty nurse/lawyer wife file a vaccine injury claim for their daughter, that is such a slam dunk case that the government does not even bother to fight it but concedes the case, they can expect to wait, let see... add the four, carry the three, divide by pain and suffering and... oh, thats not bad... ONLY ten years, one month and two weeks or so after the child is injured to be paid by the government. Yep! That is one compassionate program alright!

Mind you the Polings have been dragged through the mud, personally and professionally, for daring to file in the VICP and win to get money to help their daughter. Oh... and they also had the bad taste to tell people. In public even. Bastards.

But at least we have finally gotten a straight answer from the government on whether or not vaccines cause autism. Turns out that vaccines don't "cause" autism, they just "result" in autism. From CBS News:

In acknowledging Hannah's injuries, the government said vaccines aggravated an unknown mitochondrial disorder Hannah had which didn't "cause" her autism, but "resulted" in it.

THANK GOD! Parents, you can go back to blindly trusting their government. All your questions and concerns about the safety of the vaccine program have been asked and answered with the utmost integrity and with thorough thoroughness.

Sleep in peace citizens. All is well.

Government heath care is awesome.  More government health care please.

(And I hope Hannah fully recovers and buys a Ferrari with whatever is left of her 1.5 mil)


Update:

I thought I might include this email from David Bowman at HRSA. He sent it to David Kirby last year in response to an inquiry.

From: Bowman, David (HRSA) [mailto:DBowman@hrsa.gov]
Sent: Friday, February 20, 2009 5:22 PM
To: 'dkirby@nyc.rr.com'
Subject: HRSA Statement

David,

In response to your most recent inquiry, HRSA has the following
statement:

The government has never compensated, nor has it ever been ordered to
compensate, any case based on a determination that autism was actually
caused by vaccines. We have compensated cases in which children
exhibited an encephalopathy, or general brain disease. Encephalopathy
may be accompanied by a medical progression of an array of symptoms
including autistic behavior, autism, or seizures.

Some children who have been compensated for vaccine injuries may have
shown signs of autism before the decision to compensate, or may
ultimately end up with autism or autistic symptoms, but we do not track
cases on this basis.

Regards,

David Bowman
Office of Communications
Health Resources and Services Administration
301-443-3376

So again... vaccines cause encephalopathy which progresses into autism, but vaccines don't cause autism. And by the way, HHS does not track whether or not vaccines cause autism, they just pay attention to cases where vaccines cause encephalopathy. Then they stick their fingers in their ears and yell "la la la, I'm not listing", when parents come back a month later and say their child has been diagnosed with autism.

Why does anyone take vaccine advice from these people? Why did I?


Nostalga Update:

Oh alright... one more time just for fun.



And for those of you who would like to reminise more about the absurdity of the governments position on the Poling decision: Spinning the Hannah Poling Case

HOLY CRAP UPDATE: Hannah is not getting 1.5 mil, she is getting around 20 million dollars!

CBS has updated their post to read:

"The first court award in a vaccine-autism claim is a big one. CBS News has learned the family of Hannah Poling will receive more than $1.5 million dollars for her life care; lost earnings; and pain and suffering for the first year alone.

In addition to the first year, the family will receive more than $500,000 per year to pay for Hannah's care. Those familiar with the case believe the compensation could easily amount to $20 million over the child's lifetime".

The government is paying Hannah Poling 20 million dollars for a vaccine injury that the same government claims does not exist.

I am speechless.

Preventing Autism Before and During Pregnancy

This process of the public recognizing and accepting that autism is preventable and treatable is moving much more slowly than it should have (It should have made the front page of the NYT just after the turn of the century and that should have been it), but it is moving, the paradigm has shifted, and things are not going back to the way they were.

Try as they might, the hypervaccinators, Pharma shills and government ass coverers have not been able to keep the public, and growing sections of the medical community, from understanding that the autism epidemic is indeed an epidemic and is the result of the toxic avalanche coming down on our little ones from before conception until they get their last, brain inflaming doses of untested and under-tested vaccines.

This month we saw the Senate finally hear that autism is an environmental illness, in which mercury is implicated (despite the best spinning that the best PR spinners have tried). This year we saw the country walk away from THE biggest scare campaign to dose the country with mercury toxic vaccines in my lifetime.

People get that vaccines are a serious risk and are taking action to mitigate that risk.

This news piece is just another example of the fact that mainstream medicine and media gets it, and while they cant' yet say the V word, using the mercury word is surely code for vaccines, so they might as well.



In my mind, the announcement of the Poling concession was D day, and we are now in the march across Europe. But this war will end as people come to see what Pharma and Govt have done, and how they have lied to the public, and as they retire, those who come in behind them, who do not have blood on their hands and can admit that things have gone way over the line, will pull back.

We will likely never get our apology, but as we see in this story, and in the Senate last month, they know. And they are making changes.

If the autism story ends like the thalidomide story, I will die a happy woman.

Cal State Long Beach Believes Chemical Plasticizers May Contribute to Autism

cid:_1_0E51C98C0E51C4D00074D2AC8825777D
OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS
1250 BELLFLOWER BLVD. * LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA 90840-0116 * 562/985-4134 FAX 562/985-8109

PRESS RELEASE



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 12, 2010
F2010-024


Cal State Long Beach Biochemist's Research Supports Premise That
Chemical Plasticizers May Contribute to Autism and Alzheimer's Disease



Who knew that brine shrimp—the tiny creatures popularly known as “Sea-Monkeys”—could reveal problems with chemicals found in plastics or even contribute to potential treatments for neurological conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease and autism?

Roger Acey, a professor of biochemistry at California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), and students in his lab have been studying the biology and genetics of embryonic development, using brine shrimp, Artemia salina, as a biological model. He is particularly interested in how environmental contaminants affect development.

“I think all baby boomers understand Sea-Monkeys,” Acey explained. “As kids, you could order them from suppliers advertising in comic books and grow them at home.” Artemia have long been used in scientific research and remain popular in science education at school and home. The shrimp grow up to three-quarters of an inch long and can live for some time once hatched.

Acey’s lab initially looked at how exposing the shrimp to toxic metals like copper, mercury, cadmium, etc., could affect their development. While continuing this successful work, which led to discovery of a shrimp protein that can capture metals, Acey took his ongoing research with Artemia in another direction.

“We began looking at plasticizers and how they might affect embryonic development,” he said. “We started looking at phthalate esters—compounds that give plastic bottles their malleability. They’re found in PVC (polyvinyl chloride), blood bags, plastic tubing, cosmetics and children’s toys, and are well known environmental contaminants. They have been reported to be teratogens (causing birth defects), carcinogens and endocrine disruptors. Endocrine disruptors are compounds that resemble the structure of estrogens and mimic the activity of these hormones. There are examples of populations of fish that are essentially all female due to phthalate ester contamination. Most recently, phthalate esters have been implicated in Type II diabetes.

“We made a series of phthalate esters (phthalates) with increasing the carbon chain lengths and started looking at the effect of these compounds on developing shrimp,” he continued. “Diethyl and dimethyl are non-toxic; di-n-propyl was slightly toxic; but di-n-butyl (DBP), which is the most commonly found phthalate, turns out to be the most toxic.”

As the shrimp develop, they produce an enzyme that metabolizes the DBP, he said. “At first, we called the enzyme DBPase. As soon as the shrimp hatch and begin to develop, DPBase activity increases dramatically. If you expose the shrimp to phthalate during the early period of development, they died. If you expose the shrimp to the phthalate later in development, the compound is no longer toxic. The idea is that there is a well-defined period of development when the embryos are sensitive to the phthalate. Therefore, we began looking for a specific biochemical event that was impacted by the DBP.” He has since identified DBPase as butyrylcholinesterase.

He noted that the shrimp were being affected by DBP at the point where their nervous system was beginning to develop, adding that shrimp have a cholinergic nervous system similar to humans in that they both use a chemical neurotransmitter called acetylcholine.

He and his students have since used umbilical cord stem cells to study the role of butyrylcholinesterase in developing neurons and the effect of DBP. “After the stem cells are activated and begin to develop into a neuron, the DBP becomes toxic. We think what is happening is that the DBP prevents the butyrylcholinesterase from performing its normal biological function. We’re currently in the process of determining the exact function of the enzyme," Acey said.

Acey is interested in how plasticizers might be connected to the dramatic rise in autism and Alzheimer’s disease. A recent study has shown that rat fetuses exposed to DBP develop symptoms characteristic of autism. "If you think about it, this suggests compounds that interact with butyrylcholinesterase could induce neurological problems,” he said.

That led him to consider another plasticizer, bisphenol A, commonly called BPA, which is being widely studied for its possible toxicity. Acey’s group has shown that BPA is an inhibitor of butyrylcholinesterase. “Again, the concern is that since this compound interacts with butyrylcholinesterase, it may have a pronounced effect on neuron development,” he said. Acey believes every effort should be made to prevent exposure of pregnant women and infants to these types of compounds.

“Interestingly, the level of brain butyrylcholinesterase is significantly increased in Alzheimer’s patients,” he said. Current therapeutics used in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease target butyrylcholinesterase, so he and CSULB Professor Ken Nakayama are collaborating on further examining the biochemistry of this enzyme and its possible connections to Alzheimer’s disease.

“Dr. Nakayama, an organic chemist, had a series of compounds he wanted tested on an enzyme from bacteria,” Acey said. “I suggested we test his compounds on butyrylcholinesterase. The results of the experiments revealed that the compounds are potent inhibitors of butyrylcholinesterase and, as such, are potential therapeutics for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s patients lose their cognitive functions as a result of the decrease in the level of a specific neurotransmitter. Compounds that inhibit butyrylcholinesterase result in an increase in the level of neurotransmitters —the compounds responsible for memory— and the patients begin to recover their memory.”

They’ve applied for a patent for the compounds and are preparing to write a grant proposal to fund further studies to demonstrate whether the compounds can cross the blood-brain barrier. Acey remarked that some autistic children are responding to certain Alzheimer’s drugs, so the hope is that these compounds might someday be the basis for new medications to treat both conditions.

Acey’s research has been funded by grants from CSULB, the March of Dimes, the National Institutes of Health, and the California State University Program for Education and Research in Biotechnology (CSUPERB).

To learn more about Acey’s research, visit http://chemistry.csulb.edu/roger-acey.html.

Maine CDC Autism Conference: Genes and Environment, Developmental and Chronic: An Inclusive Approach to Autism Science by Martha Herbert, MD, PhD

Maine CDC Autism Conference 2009
Genes and Environment, Developmental and Chronic: An Inclusive Approach to Autism Science, followed by Q&A
Martha Herbert, MD, PhD
Pediatric Neurologist
Massachusetts General Hospital
Harvard Medical School



Next Session:
Looking Forward Beyond Vaccines: How Do We Know What Autism IS NOT if We Do Not Know What Autism IS? by Jon Poling, MD, PhD

CDC Admits Autism is Environmental

I missed writing about many stories this year, but wanted to call this to your attention to this story from February, as it represents a paradigm shift in CDC's autism causation stance.

From Age of Autism:

Las Vegas Sun Reports: CDC Admits Autism is Environmental

Las Vegas sun Managing Editor's Note: Thank you to Marshall Allen of the Las Vegas Sun for this article in which Dr. Catherine Rice, Director of the CDC's National Center for Birth Defects states that vaccines and other environmental insults are possible causes of autism. I think the genetics only crowd and vaccine deniers' luck is running out, don't you? Please click HERE to read the full article at the Las Vegas Sun. You can thank Mr. Allen for running this article HERE. Please do. Kim

So are there more autistic children, or is the broadening definition causing more children to be classified as autistic?

It’s impossible to say for sure, Rice said. Awareness of autism is increasing, which leads to more effective identification, but it’s also possible that it’s increasing. Even with the more inclusive definition, the number of autistic children seems to be on the rise, Rice said.

It’s not known what causes autism.

Researchers say environmental factors could contribute to the onset of the disorders. Studies have linked autism to air pollutants, pesticides, pet medications and even drugs used in the birthing process, such as Pitosin, Rice said.

“It could be anything from the exposures in our physical surroundings — chemicals around us in homes, clothes, products, medications we take and food we eat,” Rice said.

Rice said the recognition that environmental factors play a role in causing autism shows that there is common ground in the debate about whether vaccines play a role in the disorders.

Children Living Near Toxic Waste More Likely To Have Autism

Published in NeuroToxicology:

Ockham's Razor and autism: The case for developmental neurotoxins contributing to a disease of neurodevelopment

M. Catherine DeSoto

Department of Psychology, University of Northern Iowa, Baker Hall, Cedar Falls, IA 50614-0505, United States

Received 16 January 2009;
accepted 7 March 2009.
Available online 21 March 2009.

Abstract

Much professional awareness regarding environmental triggers for ASD has been narrowly focused on a single possible exposure pathway (vaccines). Meanwhile, empirical support for environmental toxins as a broad class has been quietly accumulating. Recent research has shown that persons with ASD have comparatively higher levels of various toxins and are more likely to have reduced detoxifying ability, and, that rates of ASD may be higher in areas with greater pollution. This report documents that within the state with the highest rate of ASD, the rate is higher for schools near EPA Superfund sites, t (332) = 3.84, p = .0001. The reasons for the rise in diagnoses likely involve genetically predisposed individuals being exposed to various environmental triggers at higher rates than in past generations.

Keywords: Autism; Developmental disorders; Toxins; Pollution; Heavy metals; Environmental contaminants

Moms Taking Valproate While Pregnant Increase Risk of Autism

Epilepsy Drug, Pregnancy Raise Autism Risk
Study Shows Kids at Risk for Autism When Pregnant Women Take Valproate
By Bill Hendrick
WebMD Health News
Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD

Dec. 1, 2008 -- Women who take the epilepsy drug valproate while pregnant may increase their child's risk of autism, a new study shows.

British researchers looked at 632 children, almost half of whom were exposed to epilepsy drugs during gestation. Nine of the 632 have been diagnosed with autism, and one has shown symptoms of the disorder, Rebecca Bromley, a PhD student and one of the researchers at the University of Liverpool, tells WebMD.

Sixty-four of the children were exposed to valproate during pregnancy, 44 were exposed to lamotrigine, 76 to carbamazepine, 14 to other single-medication therapies, and 51 to polytherapy treatments for the neurological disorder.

The study, published in the journal Neurology, showed that seven of the children with autism had mothers who took epilepsy drugs while pregnant, including four who were exposed to valproate and a fifth who was exposed to valproate and lamotrigine.

The children whose mothers were taking valproate alone for epilepsy were seven times more likely to develop autism, compared to children whose mothers did not have epilepsy and were not taking any drug while pregnant, the study shows.
Counseling Prior to Pregnancy

The risk seen with valproate was not seen with the other epilepsy drugs, Bromley says. None of the children in the study had any known family history of autism.

"The take-home message is that women with epilepsy should be provided with counseling regarding their condition and its treatment prior to pregnancy," Bromley tells WebMD in an email interview. "It is important to consider that not every child is affected."

She says women with epilepsy should not stop taking their current epilepsy treatments without medical consultation with their doctors.

Bromley says three youngsters born to women without epilepsy who were not medicated also were diagnosed with autism.

That's the same rate as reported in the general population, Bromley says. The autistic children were tested at the ages of 1, 3, and 6. Two-thirds of the children were 6 years old by the time the study ended.

"The children were diagnosed independently of our study team by community psychiatrists with normal clinical practice," Bromley tells WebMD.

"This study highlights the importance of pre-conceptual advice, information, and treatment for women with epilepsy from her physician," Bromley says. "Parents who have concerns regarding the development of their child should consult their family doctor."

She says women who are pregnant and require medical treatment should talk to their doctors about possible effects on unborn babies.
Effects on Brain Development

Page Pennell, MD, director of the epilepsy program at Emory University in Atlanta, says the study is "very helpful" because it "is confirmatory of other smaller studies that we need to be concerned about, not only the effects of the medications during the first trimester, but also about continued effects of the medication on the developing brain."

Previous studies suggested concern about the effects of valproate in particular, Pennell tells WebMD, and that "the effects may be more selective for verbal abilities. The strength of this study that stands out is, there was really a rather large cohort of patients followed prior to birth and then in a systematic way up to the age of 6 years old."

Sodium valproate is an effective drug used to control seizures, Bromley says. She adds that some women have been prescribed the medication because "it is very effective at controlling the type of epilepsy they have."

Pennell says the study suggests the need to "consider exposure throughout the entire pregnancy" and even before conception. "Also, this study raises concern not only for the effects on brain development in general, but the specific finding of autism spectrum disorders points out that the children should be followed closely to be able to identify features of autism during development to allow early intervention."

She says she'd recommend that women of childbearing age steer clear of valproate unless it's the only medication that can control seizures. "Most of these women unfortunately have to be on a medicine. But the idea is, women of childbearing age should be on another anti-epileptic drug."

Pennell says 50% percent of pregnancies in the U.S. are unplanned, so women of childbearing age should talk carefully with their doctors about any anti-epileptic medications.

Laureen Cassidy, a vice president for Abbott Laboratories, which manufactures Depakote, a brand-name version of valproate, says "uncontrolled seizures can cause permanent damage" to the brains of children and "for pregnant women can be fatal to both mother and child." The product's label "makes it clear that it should not be used as a first-line treatment for women of childbearing age."

Raquel Powers, another spokeswoman, says "it's a global drug" and that its risks are well known.

CDC States that Chemical Exposures Will Be Shown to Cause Autism

I am a little speechless.

Apparently David Kirby has attained some sort of Jedi mastery and has gotten the Centers for Disease Control, The American Academy of Pediatrics and the Minnesota Department of Public Health snapping to attention to answer his questions. And all in one day!

One letter full of questions to each of them has elicited lengthy responses and more promised to come. This is in stark contrast to CDC's response to him in 2005. He wrote a big fat book about their malfeasance and their only response was to post a note on their web site that they were reading the book and would respond, and then just took down the notice a few months later with out ever responding.

Some sort of fire has been lit under some asses somewhere. Could it be in response to the rumor that Julie Gerberding is on her way out, and during her lame duckiness everyone is scrambling to make themselves look like they were doing the right thing all along so that if/when Secretary Daschel walks in the door on Jan 21 and asks to see the Poling files, their flesh will not burn under the white hot sunshine that starts to flood the place?

(Now you know what I dream about at night).

I will let you read for yourself, but the highlight of the work is this statement from CDC, in fact Julie Gerberding's officer itself, that Chemical Exposure will be shown to be one of the causes of autism through "today's research".

"While it is important to understand if autism is affecting any group of children disproportionately, it is also important to keep in mind that there are likely multiple causes of the autism spectrum of disorders. Most scientists agree that today's research will show that a person's genetic profile may make them more or less susceptible to ASDs as a result of any number of factors such as infections, the physical environment, chemical exposures, or psychosocial components."
-CDC Director’s Office of Enterprise Communication (OEC)

Oh... and they also mentioned that infections may cause autism as well.

Minnesota and the CDC Confer on Somali Autism Situation: CDC’s Office of the Director: Autism May Result from “Chemical Exposures”.

"Expert" links autism to mothers drinking

"Mothers" say that expert must be drunk.

I didn't drink during my pregnancies. I probably average eight or ten drinks a year. (Alcohol is not tasty to me).

This theory is just counter intuitive. In the 1950's women routinely drank during pregnancy as they didn't understand the risks it posed. Autism was unheard of then. Today if a pregnant woman orders a glass of wine at a restaurant, the waitress calls child protective services. Autism everywhere.