Autism Spectrum Diseases: Genetics or Environment? Facts and Legends. Short look at the problem

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Autism Spectrum Diseases: Genetics or Environment? Facts and Legends. Short look at the problem

Journal Title: Medycyna Środowiskowa - Environmental Medicine - Year 2016, Vol 19, Issue 1

Abstract

Measles-mumps vaccinations might be responsible for the development of autism spectrum diseases (ASD), including high functioning autism, such as Asperger’s syndrome; that is what Wakefield et al. suggested in a paper in The Lancet twenty years ago [1]. Later, the Lancet Editors retracted this publication [2], due to the fact that Wakefield had „produced“ fake, falsified results, and that he was implicated in interests regarding material compensation from pharmaceutical companies producing vaccines to families with ASD. The Wakefield publication had the effect that consequently vaccination rates declined dramatically, and fuelled discussions about other environmental factors (bacteria, mercury, pesticides, etc.). GENEtics Genetic factors are of paramount importance for the development of ASD. Analyses of more than thousand families with several members with ASD, and of a large number of families with one case only [3], have made the following observations apparent: The incidence in boys or men is approximately three times as high as in girls or women. If there are further children in families with two or more ASD cases, about 50% of sons, but only 20% of daughters will have ASD. In monozygotic twins, there is a practically complete (96%) concordance in males, but in only 85% both girls have ASD. In dizygotic twins, concordance is lower: 60% in males, 20% in females. The marked difference between male and female gender points to a higher susceptibility in boys and/or to a postulated female protective factor (FPE) [4]

Authors and Affiliations

Karl Ernst v. Mühlendahl

Keywords

autism children environment

EP ID EP206646
DOI -
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