kim

Lisa, I'm so sorry to hear of the problems that your daughter is having. I'm wondering if the bacteria that is causing the ear infections has been identified? Also, has she had positive strep cultures? Could you say how the heavy metals testing was done? If your baby has been on a lot of antibiotics, has she showed any signs of thrush, or evidence of digestive issues?

Faith, I don't remember where I got the info. but I have been under the impression that the probiotics are best given away from food too. It seems many people say they give them at bed time. I have the same confusion about whether probiotics will survive long enough to populate the area of the gastro tract that needs it, if they are not in capsule form. I think some of them that live in the "upper tract" can be taken in the form of yogurt or kefir, but if you're lacking a strain that is found further along, you may need a coated form? I have read that the refrigerated ones have a better chance of remaining active, however, it seems many that do not require refrigeration have a good reputation too. Are the Klaire's coated or require refrigeration? I give a refrigerated capsule form before bedtime.

Michelle, Is this the ADDED attention supplement that you're using? http://circleofhealers.com/vitamins/product.php?skew=3106

Kallik, I pulled a 100 mg capsule apart and gave it to my son (adult size and weight) 3 times a day. Even at approx 33 mgs. he would say that it made him tired. We introduced that slowly, btw. The first day, he only got 1/3 of the capsule. I like to go slowly in case there is a negative effect too. I did give him more than what would be necessary for sleep, as I was hoping to increase serotonin, to help alleviate a tic that I felt was clearly being done to induce pain. Michelle, Did your Dr. specify GABA Calm, or just GABA? Kallik has a good point there, about the L tyrosine. CP the fact that risperidone did have a tic reduction effect for your son, I wanted to see how it works. You know I have NO medical background, so I certainly am no authority here, but some of this is interesting. Risperidone seems to act largely by blocking dopamine or more specifically the D2 receptor. It is also thought to have the effect of blocking a serotonin receptor, 5HT2. Here is a bit on 5HT2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/5-HT_receptor We know that glutamate is an excitatory chemical. I don't know what effect tryptophan or 5HTP have on the 5HT2 receptor. Since they are involved in an increase in serotonin, if it has a stimulatory effect, that may account for the lack in benefit you saw with your son? Also, I personally believe, that some of these drugs, when stopped, leave some of the receptors hypersensitive. The fact that your son was on a drug that altered the function of this receptor, may have made him supersensitive to a substance that would act to stimulate it? In other words, I'm wondering if the 5HTP may have made this receptor more sensitive to the glutamate levels, and did increase the level of tics. The reference to SIB in this excerpt refers to self injurious behavior. As you can see, this whole issue if very complicated http://www.palace.net/llama/psych/pharm.html Different neurotransmitter receptors affect different bodily functions. Serotonin, for example, has as many as seven receptor types, and one of those has five subtypes. These receptors are involved in regulating emotion, mood, impulsivity, aggression, digestion, smooth muscle relaxation, and sexual behavior, among other functions. and Risperidone, another relatively new neuroleptic, binds D2 dopamine and 5-HT2 serotonin receptors; it has been reported by Khouzam and Donnelly (1997) to reduce SIB in a patient with borderline personality disorder. Olanzapine (Zyprexa) is another atypical neuroleptic used by some psychiatrists to treat SIB. There are no well-controlled studies of these drugs, however; the literature on them consists mainly of case reports and again, no one has made a distinction between types of SIB. These drugs can also have troublesome side effects -- patients on clozapine, for example, require weekly blood tests because of the risk of white-blood-cell abnormalities.

I was a little confused regarding 5HTP and l tryptophan. I found this site to be very informative. I love that he cites studies. For a guy who is trying to sell products, I was surprized that the info that he puts out there, seems very balanced. I had purchased 5HTP for my son during his last head shaking flair. Now, I would buy the l trytophan. http://www.raysahelian.com/tryptophan.html http://www.raysahelian.com/5htp.html CP, my understanding is that 5HTP and Trytophan are involved in the production of serotonin and melotonin. I'm not saying that there isn't any connection in relationship to dopamine, just if there is, I'm not aware of that mode of action. After reading several articles, what I got out of it was that trytophan would only be used/converted to an amt of 5HTP that your body needed. By supplementing with 5HTP, you were sort of forcing the element on your body. I can't say that it was an immediate tic buster, but I can say, it certainly made my son tired. Interestingly, my husband had to be up all nite, for several nites. I told him to try a little of the 5HTP, as it helped promote sleep so readily in our son (he was trying to get to sleep during the day). His remark was that it made him "more awake" and his heart raced. I can only suspect that he is not serotonin deficient, and the 5HTP boosted his levels enough that he felt jittery. I was looking on Mrs. D's site for info on choline this morning, and came across this thread, that you might want to read too http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/thread38314.html

Had to post this, this morning, for a couple of reasons. There is so much in the media and headlines right now, having to do with the push and pull regarding vaccinations. This article from the Age of Autism gave me a chuckle, toward the end and I did notice this sentence. I can only fathom that he is referring to the "replacement" as a neurotoxin, not as a sanitizing agent, as was/is thimerosal's purpose. If I find anything suggesting aluminum is used for sanitizing purposes, I will be glad to apologize to CPS's Practitioner! Anyway, with so many vaccines in the planning stages, and one of the presidentail candidates stating that she would work to do away with vaccine exemptions, these statements made by the so called professionals, just make me furious. I'm always greatful to the people who have the gusto to challenge these highly publicized studies and statements. I have expressed my concerns over soy infant formula, fluoride, the coal buring energy plant in our community, the water quality, etc. many times. I like to keep up on any news I can find regarding more than just vaccines, however, the thought that more and more of these things can be forced on our children and ourselves is just not an acceptable possibility in my mind. We have, at the very least, neurologically sensitive children. We have studies showing a higher correlation with tics in boys, to higher amts. of thimerosal ( I still have to wonder if higher thimerosal=more vaccines?) I can totally accept genetic involvement, polymorphisms/ SNPS, but it seems ESSENTIAL to me to know what role vaccines may or may not play in immune and neurological disfunction. I can not imagine taking the boys in for Hep A, flu, meningitis, Gardisil (not mandatory or even on the schedule for boys YET), a 6th dose of TDaP, and Lord only knows what else! Anyway...... http://www.ageofautism.com/2008/02/dr-nancy-minshe.html

kallik, Do you know what your sons zinc level (the actural number) was?

kallik, Here are 3 labs which all offer tests that will give you some info. regarding digestion. I can't say that they will exactly tell you what enzymes your son might be deficient in (I'm looking at the comprehensive stool tests). Maybe someone else has a suggestion on a different type of testing, but these were the ones that came to mind. http://www.greatplainslaboratory.com/russi...7.html#Benefits Comprehensive Stool Analysis Parameters for digestion & absorption Cultures for bacteria Cultures for yeast Parasite testing Sensitivity panels Inflammatory markers Stool metabolic markers Infectious pathogens Metametrix GI FX newest DNA sequenece http://gifx.metametrix.com/ http://www.directlabs.com/ This last one does not require a Dr. to order their tests

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=206...QY&refer=us Bats Die by the Thousands From Mystery Malady in Northeast U.S. Jan. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Thousands of bats are dying from an unknown illness in the northeastern U.S. at a rate that could cause extinction, New York state wildlife officials said AND The illness was identified after thousands of U.S. beekeepers found unusually large losses -- 90 percent or more in some cases -- beginning in 2006. Colony Collapse has been found in 35 U.S. states, one Canadian province, and parts of Asia, Europe and South America. Scientists haven't identified the cause and believe it may be the result of several things in combination. ``You have a strong parallel with the bees in that we just don't know what's going on,'' Hicks said.

Tracey, Just wanted to say that I didn't think that was off topic or self absorbed at all. I think this is exactly why we're discussing this subject. We all have to weigh the risks and rewards. It's just so hard to do, when you don't ever really see the risk part presented. Mom2three I sure could have written your post a couple of years ago M23! I thought people who spoke out against immunizations were ridiculous. I was so sure that "THEY" wouldn't inject our children with anything that wasn't perfectly safe, except in a very rare instance. I thought the disease was surly a bigger threat than the chance of a rare side effect. Within probably 1 month of reading a vaccine forum, let's just say that belief was severly shaken. You really have to get an education to understand exactly what the lottery involves though! Consider these excerpts http://www.vaccinationnews.com/Opening.htm This site gives updated headlines daily. Bolding mine * ►February 1, 2008 - French judges probe firms over vaccinations -source - Reuters - "Judge Marie-Odile Bertella-Geffroy also opened an investigation for manslaughter against Sanofi Pasteur MSD, a joint venture between Sanofi Aventis...and Merck..., the same source said. The investigations follow allegations that the companies failed to fully disclose side effects from an anti-hepatitis B drug used in a vaccination campaign between 1994 and 1998....From 1994 to 1998, almost two thirds of the French population and almost all newborn babies were vaccinated against hepatitis B, but the campaign was suspended after concerns arose about possible secondary effects from the treatments. Some 30 plaintiffs have launched a civil action in the case, including the families of five people who died after vaccination." AND * ►January 31, 2008 - House of Delegates votes to halt HPV mandate - Virginia Tech Collegiate Times - "This past week, the Virginia House passed a bill that may halt the implementation of a human papillomavirus vaccination mandate....'I've never seen a vaccine marketed in such a way,' Marshall said. 'With such a hip campaign, Gardasil is encouraging children to exult independence over their parents in an unethical manner.' Delegate Marshall believes that the vaccine hasn't been on the market long enough following its 2006 release to ensure its safety and efficacy. 'I don't want to put this compulsory vaccine out there and then have people come back with a number of problems where the state is held responsible,' Marshall said. 'There are a number of things to take into consideration, including permanent sterilization.'"

airbucket, During my 15 yr old sons recent headshaking flair, he had the same head pressure need. It made me think of the autistic kids that will head bang. I had never seen pressure seeking behavior related to that tic. He is also hates it if you rub his leg, back etc. It seems like surface areas are ultra sensitive, but deep pressure is necessary. He can't explain it either. My youngest son has never had any of the pressure seeking stuff. Oldest, only with tic flairs. I have a friend with a 7 year old daughter. She is totally addicted to milk, has reddish purple circles under her eyes, and always had to have her mom's elbow in the back seat with her, in the car. I mean she literally had to drive with her arm sticking in the back seat. She said she hardly went anywhere unless one of the other kids could go, so her daughter could hold someone's elbow in the back seat. This child has no tics. Something that Carolyn N's recent posts on sulfur got me thinking about was hormones and the bodies ability to handle them or their byproducts (not sure if byproducts is exactly the word I'm looking for?). If tic fluctuations are related to hormones at certain points, it would be a difficult thing to "see" any pattern with. This page has some studies relating to hormones and tics. If you search hormones/autism/tics, there are many articles listed. https://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=323923 Doesn't sound like your son is alone with these behaviors! Also, I'm wondering how much vit B and zinc that you're giving?

Michelle, I know exactly what your going through. I went to 4 different Peds with my niece. I could not believe how this whole system is set up. First, the answers that I got! One Dr. said, "I don't believe that the things that your talking about are still in vaccines (mercury, alum, formaldyhyde). I asked one about the fact that if you used Pediarix (a 5 in one combo) that you were vaxing your baby with 4 doses of Hep B, if the child was given the birth dose, and that the insert for Pediarix stated that there were no safety studies regarding this. She said "Oh, they'll probably find that 4 doses are needed anyway." This Dr. was pregnant! I just know how long it took me, to really get any kind of a good handle on this whole thing, and know that many many parents just don't have the time. It's frustrating, wanting to share info but not wanting the responsibility of feeling like you could be influencing someones decision. I had a verrry interesting discussion with someone at our local health dept. The attitude was not what I expected. They were much more respectful of concerns. Once conversation really left me shocked. You might want to check with them on the individual MMR. They did have individual vaccines, as opposed to the combo's (like Pediarix), that the Peds offices are using. I think they told me that they would administer the individual MMR if we found it. They did not stock it.

Michelle, From what I can remember they would ship the individual vaccine for two of them. One, you had to buy in a multipack. Like 10 at once. So, you could get two with no problem, but the other, you would either have to bite off the cost of 10 of them, or your Ped office would have to be willing to buy the 10 pack. I think the cost of the 10 pack was around 180.00? Seems the other two were in the area of $30.00? This may be way off, as it's been awhile. I just remember it was "doable," even if we had to buy the 10 pack ourselves. It was for my nieces new baby..which she later decided not to vaccinate at all, at least for the time being.

Thanks for the input last nite Faith. A friend of mine said the same thing, about the show being kind of lame in regards to the notion that it would do anything for the public perception of the safety of vaccines or the thimerosal debate. I guess what just makes me furious, is that they release these "studies" and splash it all over TV that once again thimerosal is exonerated. The latest one, IMO was just ridiculous. The debate about how long ethyl mercury is dectable in the blood is nothing new. The problem is that they need to know how much total is excreted in urine or feces, and how much gets stored in tissue. What damage is possible, before it's excreted? Noone is reporting what the primate studies have shown. They know that the toxicity is enhanced when combined with aluminum. Can trace ethyl mercury in combination with alum+multiple antigen which hits the lymph system, then goes directly into the blood stream, be causing a problem? Will they ever allow a study of vax vs unvaxed? Even if they do, it will be too late to help any of us make decisions regarding these things. Kids would need to be tracked for years. There are many many toxic substances that they say are "safe" in the amts that people are exposed to, but has anyone combined small amts of hundreds of them at the same time? I have no problem with thimerosal not being the "smoking gun," but creadible evidence needs to be presented, the truth, the whole truth. Then I think parents could nix the theory and move on. This "early release," damage control junk is what makes me so mad. It makes them look desperate to anyone who is really trying to follow this in any detail. For the Dr.s that keep telling parents not to believe what they read on the internet, I would love just once, to tell one of them that they better stay out of the medical journals (which may be publishing bought and paid for info) and start surfing the web! BTW, I can handle George Michaels, just glad it wasn't Boy George. ►January 31, 2008 - NVIC Vaccine E-Newsletter - Mercury Study Released Early to Help AAP Bash ABC by Barbara Loe Fisher The AAP leadership is just not going to give up insisting that it is a very, very good thing to inject mercury into infants and children. They are going to twist themselves into pretzels trying to defend the indefensible premise that a known neurotoxin belongs in childhood vaccines, as evidenced by today's early release of a methodologically questionable "study" by Michael Pichichero, M.D. purporting to exonerate the mercury-based vaccine preservative, thimerosal, from any responsibility for children developing vaccine- associated autism. http://www.pharmalive.com/News/index.cfm?a...p;categoryid=40 The study, originally scheduled to be published Feb. 4 in the AAP journal, Pediatrics, was released "early" in an effort to blunt the impact of tonight's broadcast of a fictional drama on ABC-TV that highlights the ordeal of a family whose son developed autism after receiving mercury-containing vaccines. http://www.forbes.com/forbeslife/health/fe...cout612206.html Here is what all the fuss is about (for today at least): Pichichero claims his study of about 200 babies and children, who were injected with vaccines containing ethyl mercury (thimerosal), showed that measurable mercury levels in the blood of the children were gone within 3.7 days. This, says Pichichero, is much quicker than the average 44 days it takes for methyl mercury (found in fish) to be undetectable in the blood. Ergo, he says, exposure to thimerosal does not cause brain damage or autism! Not so fast, says Thomass Brubacher, M.D., a scientist who studies the biological effects of ethyl mercury on primates. "Just because it came out of the blood doesn't mean it is excreted from the body. It could have gone to the brain. In primates, you actually get more mercury in the brain after exposure to ethyl mercury than with methyl mercury - it has an easier time crossing the blood brain barrier." http://www.webmd.com/brain/autism/news/200...aves-blood-fast

Thanks faith there are a lot of articles referring to this whole deal on this page. http://www.vaccinationnews.com/Opening.htm I'm still frozen

I have a frozen picture Eli Stone sitting at a table with the Mom of the vax injured child. It's just frozen. Do you have cable or dish, Faith?

Faith, My television froze about 4 minutes into the segment. It's still frozen. A friend has satellite and hers is working. Did cable have a hand in this? There were many many big guns trying to get this cancelled.

Eli Stone on ABC at 10:00 tonite...this premier episode is about a trial of a vaccine injured child. ABC has been under a lot of pressure to cancel it. This letter to ABC exects contains an important excerpt http://www.safeminds.org/pressroom/safemin...f-eli-stone.pdf Bolding mine Safeminds letter As recently as November of 2007 the following study* was published in the peer reviewed Journal of Child Neurology, stating the following: “The question of what is leading to the apparent increase in autism is of great importance. Like the link between aspirin and heart attack, even a small effect can have major health implications. If there is any link between autism and mercury, it is absolutely crucial that the first reports of the question are not falsely stating that no link occurs. We have reanalyzed the data set originally reported by Ip et al. in 2004 and have found that the original p value was in error and that a significant relation does exist between the blood levels of mercury and diagnosis of an autism spectrum disorder. Moreover, the hair sample analysis results offer some support for the idea that persons with autism may be less efficient and more variable at eliminating mercury from the blood.”

Optimistic3, I hope you will keep us posted on your experience with the products/treatments that you have mentioned. One thing that occurs to me, looking at Kensho, is that it contains things that many here have found beneficial but you might want to consider buying them individually. We use mag taurate, and have used GABA. By giving them individually if there is an negative reaction, you have a better chance of telling what seems to help and what might be causing a problem. I have never had a good handle on the PH stuff. Would love to hear what you learn. I have heard of Liverlife, and do believe that the liver function may be key in some circumstances. Again would like to hear follow up on your experience. Dr Amy's Yaslo's forum has a lot of discussion on liver support and herbs used for gut healing. You may find some discussion on Liverlife (or some of the things contained in it...I didn't look it up yet) here http://www.ch3nutrigenomics.com/phpBB2/ind...0579f6f7a4093bb

Calicat/Michelle, This pharmacy had all three vaccines (MMR) available individually in 06, if you are considering that route. Hopewell Pharmacy, 800-792-6670 http://www.hopewellrx.com/

. CP, if you didn't misunderstand, this Dr. is wrong. Thimerosal was/is used as a sanitizer in multidose vials of some vaccines. It was meant to protect against contamination as the needle was inserted into the vial, multiple times. Aluminum is an adjuvant. ITS SOLE PURPOSE IS TO PROVOKE THE BODY INTO AN EXAGGERATED IMMUNE RESPONSE. This is why I do so much of my own research now. I have come to realize, no matter what type of Dr. you see, they are only human. They can not be experts on everything. Of course, neither can I, but I can get some basics down Faith, Kelly I read about the two cases of meningitis that you have been discussing. The articles so far are not reporting what type of meningitis either person had. I suspect and I could very well be wrong, but it may have been the B group. There is a fairly high prevelence of group B, and it is not included in the current vaccine. Menactra contains four serotypes A, C,Y and W-135. These are all bacterial groups (types) as is type B. Bacterial meningitis, is usually much more dangerous than viral meningitis, which there is no vaccine for. If the deaths would have been attributed to a "type" that was included in the vaccine, I just feel it would have been played way up if these people had not been vaccinated. If anyone can call their local health dept. and ask if it's known yet, what type was responsible, it would probably be good info to have. What ever it was, it's always sad. CP this is a newer vaccine also. They are "hoping" it will offer protection for longer than the last one, which I believe was under 5 years???? You cna search it, it was called .Menomune http://www.vaccineshoppe.com/US_PDF/Menactra_5447_09.06.pdf Colleenrn, I am so sorry for your daughters experience. It makes me sick to read that post about the shingles. The whole vax topic does that to me, and I can only hope that everyone really takes the time to research these things fully. There is just SO much to know and consider, I know it's hard. If we don't educate ourselves though, we are totally at the mercy of what I don't feel, is all about health anymore. Thank you for sharing your story. Reinforcement for my decision, and i do worry about the boys getting Chicken pox at an older age. I may have titers tested at a later date.

annaq, I believe they are going to try to get you to get the newer Tdap vaccine. If they are on a schedule anywhere near my boys, it will be the 6th dose of any combination of DTP, Dtap etc (I'm rusty, it's been awhile since I've got into all of this in depth). This newer vaccine is being given because they are now saying that Pertussis is rampant in the US. You can go to the CDC website to get the actural #'s. Your daughter may not even be 10 years away from her last tetanus shot, which USED to be the recommendation for tetanus booster. They are using this visit to "catch" adolescense to get them on track with this new vaccine, which CAN supposedly be given every 5 years (chi ching!). In years past, your daughter would probably have gotten a TD booster, if it has been 10 years. THAT SHOT to this day, still contains 25 mcgs of thimerosal. So, while the newer vaccine is thimerosal (mercury free) do you believe your daughter needs another pertussis vaccine? Many feel that the pertussis vaccine has never been that effective, although, it may have resulted in milder symptoms. I am also convinced that many cases of pertussis (used to be referred to as the 100 day cought) has been misdiagnosed as asthma. You see, once the Dr.s are convinced that a vaccine is the end all...they don't even look for that disease in patients (in many/most cases). The big selling point on this vax though, is that it may protect some infants who have not recieved their full pertussis series yet....hummmm. Notice the print under a wonderful AD for Adacel Adacel http://www.vaccineplace.com/index.cfm?FA=p...mp;P=HowS_pread * It is unknown whether immunizing adolescents and adults against pertussis will reduce the risk of transmission to infants. two more info sites http://www.doh.wa.gov/cfh/Immunize/documen...ntationplan.pdf http://www.youngwomenshealth.org/pertussis.html

There are so many remarks that i would love to respond to on this thread! I don't have much time right now, but wanted to share a couple of things that some of you might want to read through. Forgive the disorganization please. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-kirby/...ce_b_83472.html David Kirby BIO Become a Fan Get Email Alerts Similar Bloggers Pediatricians, ABC and Censorship: Facts Are Scarier Than Fiction **************************************** Cell damage and autoimmunity: A critical appraisal. Mackay IR, Leskovsek NV, Rose NR. Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria 3800, Australia. In April 2007, an international Colloquium bridging scientific and clinical disciplines was held to discuss the role of cellular and tissue damage in the initiation, development and persistence of autoimmune disease. Five potential etiologic and pathophysiologic processes fundamental to autoimmune disease (i.e. inflammation, infection, apoptosis, environmental exposure and genetics) were the focus of the presentations and integrative discussions at the Colloquium. The information presented on these topics is condensed in this review. Inflammation has close clinico-pathologic associations with autoimmunity, but future analyses will require better definition and metrics of inflammation, particularly for the earliest cellular and molecular components dependent on recruitment of elements of innate immunity. Although infection may be associated with increased levels of autoantibodies, most infections and virtually all vaccinations in humans lack well-established links to autoimmune diseases. Further application of well-designed, long-term epidemiologic and population-based studies is urgently needed to relate antecedent exposures with later occurring stigmata of autoimmunity with a goal of discerning potentially susceptible individuals or subpopulations. Suspect infections requiring closer interrogation include EB virus (SLE and other diseases), HCV (autoimmune hepatitis), beta hemolytic streptococci (rheumatic carditis) and Helicobacter pylori (autoimmune gastritis) among others. And even if a micro-organism was to be incriminated, mechanisms of initiation/perpetua tion of autoimmunity continue to challenge investigators. Plausible mechanisms include potentiation and diversion of innate immunity; exposure or spillage of intracellular autoantigens; or provision of autoantigenic mimics. Integrity of apoptosis as a critical safeguard against autoimmunity was discussed in the contexts of over-reactivity causing autoantigens to gain enhanced exposure to the immune system, or under-reactivity producing insufficient elimination of autoreactive clones of lymphocytes. Although environmental agents are widely believed to serve as necessary "triggers" of autoimmune disease in genetically predisposed individuals, only a few such agents (mainly drugs and some nutrients) have been clearly identified and their mechanism of action defined. Finally an essential genetic foundation underlies all these hazards for autoimmunity in the form of risk-associated polymorphisms in immunoregulatory genes. They may be predictive of future or impending disease. PMID: 18194728 [PubMed - in process] U of M researcher links asthma, early vaccinations Updated at 10:12 PM By Jen Skerritt http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingn...p-4709728c.html Children who have their routine vaccinations delayed by two months or more cut their risk of asthma by half, a University of Manitoba researcher has found. Anita Kozyrskyj, an asthma researcher in the U of M faculty of pharmacy, studied the immunization and health records of 14,000 children born in Manitoba in 1995. Kozyrskyj found nearly 14 per cent of the children who received their first shot of diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus vaccine at two months of age developed asthma --- compared with only 5.9 per cent of children who were vaccinated more than four months after the scheduled date. Manitoba recommends vaccinating children at two months, four months, six months and 18 months of age for diphtheria, pertussis (whooping cough) and tetanus (DPT). ------------ --------- --------- --------- --------- --------- - FREE PRESS POLL Do you worry about a health risk when children are vaccinated? Yes No - - - - The material in this post is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.For more information go to: http://www4. law.cornell. edu/uscode/ 17/107.html http://oregon. uoregon.edu/ ~csundt/document s.htm If you wish to use copyrighted material from this email for purposes that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner*.* [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] http://www.satanicvaccines.com/WarrantOfVa...tyAndSafety.htm Physicians warranty of vaccine safety

This was the article that mentions Dr. Sharp. I remembered he said in a lecture that's posted here, that the profile seen in a group of TS patients turned out to be very similar to the results of a study involving autistic patients * * * * * * * "What we are seeing can reflect something in the environment that is triggering the activation of these genes or something genetic that the children have from the time they were conceived," Sharp explained. "Such an immune response could be caused by exposure to a virus, another infectious agent or even a toxin. Another possibility is that these changes represent a genetic susceptibility factor that predisposes children to autism when they are exposed to some environmental factor." From the Desk of Rick Rollens: Gene _Expression Profile Distinctions In Autistic Children Identified Genomic analysis could add biological certainty to behavioral diagnosis A group of genes with known links to natural-killer cells -- the first to attack viruses, bacteria and malignancies -- are expressed at high levels in the blood of children with autism when compared to children without the disorder, according to a new study from the UC Davis M.I.N.D. Institute. Researchers also found gene _expression distinctions in children with early onset and regressive forms of the disorder. The outcomes, published in the January issue of Genomics, offer hope that gene _expression analyses can provide biological evidence of autism, currently diagnosed only through behavioral assessments, in some children. "What we found were 11 specific genes with _expression levels that were significantly higher in the blood of children with autism when compared to the blood of typically developing children," said Frank Sharp, senior author of the study and professor of neurology with the M.I.N.D. Institute. "Those 11 genes are all known to be expressed by natural-killer cells, which are cells in the immune system necessary for mounting a defense against infected cells. We were surprised by our results because we were not looking for these particular genes. And while a number of studies have shown immune system dysregulation to be an important factor in autism, ours is one of the first to implicate these particular cells." In conducting the study, Sharp, molecular pathologist Jeff Gregg and their M.I.N.D. Institute colleagues used blood samples from 35 children diagnosed with autism, 14 with development delay but not autism and 12 typically developing children. The samples were subjected to gene _expression analysis using microarrays and compared for common patterns. In addition to finding the 11 genes with natural-killer cell connections shared by all of the children with autism, they identified a pattern of 140 genes differentially expressed in children with the early onset form of the disorder and a pattern of 20 genes differentially expressed in children with the regressive form of the disorder. The team is the first to use genomic profiling of blood to observe differences in children with autism. A serious and increasingly prevalent neurodevelopmental disorder, autism is characterized by language impairments, social deficits and limited, repetitive behaviors. While some parents report they knew something was wrong with their child close to birth, others report their children progressed just like others and then lost social and/or language skills later, usually between the ages of 1 and 2. These separate experiences led clinicians to hypothesize that there are at least two types of autism -- early onset and regressive. This study offers biological evidence of those two subtypes. Microarrays are used to examine the _expression levels of thousands of genes simultaneously. Because of its accuracy, the technology may become an important diagnostic tool for a variety of neurological conditions, including ischemic stroke and multiple sclerosis. To perform the analysis, RNA is isolated from cells in the blood. Complimentary strands of DNA (cDNA) are then created using the RNA as a template. Fluorescently labeled cRNA is next made from the cDNA and hybridized with the DNA on the array. Scanners using laser technology then read the array, revealing which genes are expressed and at what levels. In addition to being expressed by natural-killer cells, some of the 11 genes found to be expressed at higher levels in children with autism are also expressed by CD8+ T lymphocytes -- cells that target infected cells and, once bound to them, destroy them. It is not yet clear whether autism involves a primary problem in natural-killer cells, CD8+ lymphocytes or both. "What we are seeing can reflect something in the environment that is triggering the activation of these genes or something genetic that the children have from the time they were conceived," Sharp explained. "Such an immune response could be caused by exposure to a virus, another infectious agent or even a toxin. Another possibility is that these changes represent a genetic susceptibility factor that predisposes children to autism when they are exposed to some environmental factor." He added that the current study also does not identify whether or not the natural-killer cells are functioning abnormally, which further work by M.I.N.D. Institute immunologists will reveal. "If the natural-killer cells are dysfunctional, this might mean that they cannot rid a pregnant mother, fetus or newborn of an infection, which could contribute to autism." Gregg and Sharp consider the findings preliminary until they can be replicated, but still believe the study results point them in a new research direction that will shed light on the biological foundations of autism and eventually lead to new therapeutic targets. The study, "Gene _Expression Profiles in Children with Autism," was funded by the National Institutes of Environmental Health Sciences and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency through the UC Davis Center for Children's Environmental Health and the UC Davis M.I.N.D. Institute. A copy can be downloaded at www.sciencedirect. com.

Cheri, I believe Dr. Sharp, the neurologist who has a daughter affected with TS was involved in that study. He is the one that we discussed on another thread where he said that the results suggested viral involvement in a subgroup. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1750347...Pubmed_RVDocSum A subgroup of Tourette's patients overexpress specific natural killer cell genes in blood: a preliminary report. In this proof-of-principle study, we applied Principal Components Analysis to a previously collected set of 16 familial TS and 16 control blood samples to identify subgroups. Fourteen genes, primarily Natural Killer Cell (NK) genes, discriminated between TS and all controls. Granzyme B and NKG7 were confirmed using RT-PCR. Five probesets (four genes) reside in chromosomal regions previously linked to familial TS or obsessive-compulsive disorder. Using the 14 genes, a Principal Components Analysis as well as a cluster analysis identified a TS subgroup (n = 10/16) that overexpressed the NK genes. These are the types of studies that parents need to copy and take to the Dr.s that say that a recent bout of Epstein Barr couldn't possibly have anything to do with an onset of neuro symptoms! Or how about a shot of mercury or aluminum in one arm and a combo MMR+varicella (4 live viruses) in the other. Just maybe it could be a trigger????? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_killer_cell Natural killer cells (or NK cells) are a type of cytotoxic lymphocyte that constitute a major component of the innate immune system. NK cells play a major role in the rejection of tumors and cells infected by viruses. The cells kill by releasing small cytoplasmic granules of proteins called perforin and granzyme that cause the target cell to die by apoptosis.