Researchers at Duke University Medical Center have uncovered a new genetic signature that correlates strongly with autism and which doesn’t involve changes to the DNA sequence itself, a finding that may suggest new approaches to diagnosis and treatment. Researchers found higher-than-usual numbers of gene-regulating molecules called methyl groups in a region of the genome that regulates oxytocin receptor expression in people with autism. Previous studies have shown that giving oxytocin can improve social engagement behavior and it’s being explored as a potential treatment, and although the methylation status of the OXTR gene is not a definitive diagnosis of autism by …read more

New research finds children with autism have mercury levels similar to those of other children. University of California, Davis scientists said that the study was the “most rigorous examination to date of blood-mercury levels in children with autism,” and cautioned that the study did not disprove or prove whether mercury plays a role in causing the disorder. The study looked at the mercury levels in 452 participants – 249 with autism, 143 without it and 60 who had other developmental delays – and found levels “essentially the same” in all the children. More is here.
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Massachusetts state Rep. Barbara …read more

“Massachusetts may have the best health care in the country, but it doesn’t cover the treatment for the fastest-growing health threat to children – autism,” writes ex-NFL quarterback Doug Flutie, in the Boston Globe. “More than 500 babies born this year in Massachusetts will soon be diagnosed with autism. What their parents will learn first – what my wife, Laurie, and I have learned from our son Dougie – is that while the hopes and dreams for their child may change, they will also intensify.”
A touchdown statement if I ever heard one. And here’s the extra point from the head the …read more

UCLA has a class that offers an instruction to ASD teens that’s often lacking from a menu of therapies: How to make friends. The teen years are tough enough, but for those with ASD this time could only be a nightmare in terms of interacting with peers. The UCLA program teaches its 33 students (28 of them male) to watch for all the social clues they might commonly miss — body language, hand gestures, facial expressions, speech inflections — and try to turn those improved interpretations into connections.

The class, called PEERS (Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational …read more

Noted business publisher John Wiley and Sons has released the new book A Practical Guide to Autism: What Every Parent, Family Member, and Teacher Needs to Know, by Fred Volkmar and Lisa Wiesner. Pretty exhaustive topic, and indeed this book provides comprehensive information about recent scientific developments with a guide for how they’re being implemented. Issues are presented with charts, Q.-and-A., and chapters that vary from describing diagnostic issues to stating very specifically how to expand and evaluate the services one is receiving. Topics include definition and causes of autism, diagnoses and services, and overview of educational programs, teaching specific …read more

We continue our week of spectrum artwork today!
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A Book for Our Times: Understanding Jason (AuthorHouse) is a new book written by Marsha Rae Osborn and illustrated by DeOnna Mills, and it tells the story of a group of typical students who learn from their teacher how to accept and help an autistic student, Jason, fit in with their class. (Osborn is an RN and the mother of twin boys, one
of whom has autism.) Told in rhymes, Jason seems typical of the kinds of titles we need to see more of. (”We don’t understand,” kids say, “Why does Jason act …read more

Bow Wow oh Wow: Thieves broke into a home late last week in Prospect, N.Y. The homeowners said the crooks didn’t take jewelry or electronics, but only the five-month-old golden retriever puppy trained as a service dog for children with autism.
Both young boys in the home have autism, and the mom says finding the right dog for her boys took two years, and paid quick dividends: the dog recently broke his chain to get to one boy who headed for the road. The dog cost $800, so you can’t really blame the crooks: Look how many canes, wheelchairs, and walkers …read more

From MSNBC: “NBC News’ Matt Lauer will take an unprecedented look at the emotional debate surrounding vaccines and the suggested link to autism today, August 30, 7 p.m. Eastern with “Dose of Controversy.” In the one-hour Dateline, Lauer speaks with Dr. Andrew Wakefield, whose 1998 medical study was the first in the world to suggest a possible link between the MMR vaccine and autism.”
 
Here are some questions and points to bear in mind during Matt Lauer’s “Dateline” show concerning autism, vaccines, and the possible connection:
General Electric owns NBC.  Does General Electric own or have a financial interest in any company that …read more

The latest Autism Spectrum News deals with growing into adulthood with autism. One of the cover stories is by Cecilia McCarton and Mary Jane Weiss of The McCarton Foundation, “Meeting the Needs of Adults With Autism Spectrum Disorder,” in which they state that most parents of younger children on the spectrum recognize that “their children have access to far better services than any previous group of individuals with autism.”
It’s all anecdotal, but I agree. Here in New York the legend of Willowbrook still runs deep through the oldest — and often most active — of parents of autistic individuals. The …read more

Additional responses to “What’s the one thing you’d like to say to your relatives about your autistic child?”:
“Just love him and enjoy him.  Let me worry about the rest.”
“Thank you for loving him and treating him like the beautiful blessing that he is. We’re blessed and lucky to have family that ‘gets it’!”
“Sometimes (my wife and I) need your help watching him so we can spend some time on ‘us’.”
“How we live for the ‘us’ moments, and have learned not to feel guilty about it. If only our loved ones could understand.”
“Please don’t look at him for what he is not, but rather …read more