Conclusions. Autoimmunity was increased significantly in families with PDD compared with those of healthy and autoimmune control subjects.
Immune
Excerpt: “Vaccinations may be one of the triggers for autism. Substantial data demonstrate immune abnormality in many autistic children consistent with impaired resistance to infection, activation of inflammatory response, and autoimmunity. Impaired resistance may predispose to vaccine injury in autism.”
Excerpt:
“We suggest that an inappropriate antibody response to MMR, specifically the measles component thereof, might be related to pathogenesis of autism.”
Excerpt:
“Among the “major” neurological complications, usually manifesting more than 48 hours after vaccination and which might be the cause of permanent damage to the central nervous system (CNS), the following are listed: seizures – especially if there is no increase in body temperature, hypotonic-hyporesponsive episodes, postvaccinal encephalitis, postvaccinal encephalopathy [6, 8-11] and autism [10, 12-14].”
Autism is a syndrome characterized by impairments in social relatedness and communication, repetitive behaviors, abnormal movements, and sensory dysfunction. Recent epidemiological studies suggest that autism may affect 1 in 150 US children. Exposure to mercury can cause immune, sensory, neurological, motor, and behavioral dysfunctions similar to traits defining or associated with autism, and the similarities extend to neuroanatomy, neurotransmitters, and biochemistry. Thimerosal, a preservative added to many vaccines, has become a major source of mercury in children who, within their first two years, may have received a quantity of mercury that exceeds safety guidelines. A review of medical literature and US government data suggests that: (i) many cases of idiopathic autism are induced by early mercury exposure from thimerosal; (ii) this type of autism represents an unrecognized mercurial syndrome; and (iii) genetic and non-genetic factors establish a predisposition whereby thimerosal’s adverse effects occur only in some children.
Exceprt:
“This study is the first to report an association between virus serology and brain autoantibody in autism; it supports the hypothesis that a virus-induced autoimmune response may play a causal role in autism.”
Excerpt:
“The results indicate the existence of a cell-mediated immune response to brain tissue in the syndrome of autism.”
Abstract
The etiology of autism is unknown, but autism has been associated with a number of diseases, including prenatal rubella. Rubella vaccine challenge was used in an attempt to retrospectively diagnose prenatal rubella in autistic children. This test was selected because unresponsiveness of antibody titer has been reported as helpful in retrospective diagnosing of prenatal rubella. Fifteen autistic children and 8 controls matched for age were challenged with rubella vaccine. Rubella vaccine challenge did not differentiate autistic children from the control subjects. However, 5 of 13 autistic children had undetectable titers despite previous vaccine; all control subjects had detectable titers. This finding of undetectable titers in autistic children suggests these children may have an altered immune response.