http://www.heraldtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?Date=20021229&Category=APN&ArtNo=212290789&Ref=AR
DAVIS, Calif. (AP) - Researchers at the University of
California, Davis have launched several new autism studies.
Scientists at the UC Davis Center for Children's Environmental Health hope to
determine the link between environmental factors, genetics and the disorder.
Researchers will enroll 2,000 children in the study - 700 with autism, 700 who
have mental retardation or developmental delays, and 600 who have developed
normally.
Over the next few years they plan to analyze blood, hair and urine samples from
the children and their families to determine the presence of toxic substances,
looking at the children's exposure to vaccines that have a mercury preservative,
pesticides, PCBs and chemicals used in industrial processes. They are looking
for patterns of differences between children with developmental problems and
those without.
"We're casting a really wide net and that's because we really don't know a lot
about autism," said Irva Hertz-Picciotto, a UC Davis professor of epidemiology
and preventive medicine who is overseeing one of the studies. "This is really
the first big, comprehensive effort to enroll a lot of children and look at a
combination of environmental and genetic factors. It's likely that both play a
role."
Autism is a severe developmental disorder that undermines a child's ability to
interact with the world. There is no known cure.
ALL INFORMATION, DATA, AND
MATERIAL CONTAINED, PRESENTED, OR PROVIDED HERE IS FOR GENERAL INFORMATION
PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS REFLECTING THE KNOWLEDGE OR OPINIONS
OF THE PUBLISHER, AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED OR INTENDED AS PROVIDING MEDICAL OR
LEGAL ADVICE. THE DECISION WHETHER OR NOT TO VACCINATE IS AN IMPORTANT AND
COMPLEX ISSUE AND SHOULD BE MADE BY YOU, AND YOU ALONE, IN CONSULTATION WITH
YOUR HEALTH CARE PROVIDER.