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Autism an Autoimmune Illness? http://autism.about.com/library/weekly/aa092602a.htm
Recently there has been a great deal of speculation and research into
the possibility of autism being an autoimmune illness. Always viewed as
a mental condition or a condition that affects the brain, viewing autism
as an actual illness puts an entire new face on how Autism Spectrum
Disorders are handled and treated. It would be a major shift in the
thinking of the medical and educational systems worldwide.
What is an autoimmune illness? The immune system is one of the most
vital systems in the human body. It serves to protect us from illness by
sending out white blood cells to find and destroy viruses and bacteria
that can harm the body by causing illness. It is even possible for these
cells to command a lymphocyte to destroy a cell that has turned
cancerous. Normally this system works efficiently and without our
knowledge. It is like soldiers being on patrol; working constantly and
quietly to be sure the job is being done.
However, sometimes the system can go awry and the very cells that are
there to protect us turn on us and begin to attack the body's own cells,
tissues and organs. The result? Autoimmune illness. Common autoimmune
diseases are rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and thyroid disease along with
many less common diseases such as Addison's, Mixed Connective Tissue
Disease and many others. The cause is unknown. Why the body would turn
on itself is a mystery that researchers are continually trying to solve.
The possibility that autism could be an autoimmune illness is a theory
that is being researched by several centers. Recent research by Aristo
Vojdani, assistant research professor in neurobiology at UCLA and
director of Immunosciences Lab Inc. in Beverly Hills, California, has
produced a study that brings together a theory on why it is possible
that infection produces the symptoms that are seen in ASD children.
Professor Vojdani studied the blood of children, both with and without
autism, and discovered that the autistic children had an antibody that
reacted to milk proteins and streptococcus and Chlamydia pneumoniae, two
common infections. The problem is that the antibodies that are reacting
to these proteins and infections are possibly damaging the blood brain
barrier. Combine this with the fact that toxins, such as mercury or
thimerosal, can then cross into the brain through the damaged blood
brain barrier, causing damage to the brain tissue.
The Autism Research Institute at Yale is taking a more conservative
approach and is recommending parents not change diets of their children
until the research can be replicated. However, Bradley Pearce, MD,
assistant professor of psychiatry at Emory University School of Medicine
in Atlanta comments, ""I think there is substantial validity
to the idea that autoimmunity is linked to autism."
The jury is out on the research. It will, as all research, take time to
find out what role autoimmunity plays in the ASD puzzle but it appears
that this is an area that will be delved into deeply.
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