The Dino-Aspie Ex-Café (for Those 40+... or feeling creaky)

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now, now, Chuck, I went to see Dr. Attwood just last month and he said he was at a special screening for Adam for 'experts in the field of Asperger's and Autism and he said it was very well portrayed. He said the part that discusses the NT girl's parents that had a real problem with their relationship was quite true to life and a . . well he said he could not reveal the ending. .

It might be our 'Rainman', who knows?

Here's a mtDNA discourse for anyone interested. Just a summary based on some reading:

Background detail (abbreviated):
Mitochondria are unique among cellular organelles in that they contain their own DNA (denoted mtDNA). Each mitochondrion contains 2 to 10 copies of DNA in a circular molecule consisting of approximately 16,569 base pairs. mtDNA differs from cell nucleus DNA in that it contains very few noncoding sequences (introns), has a slightly different genetic code, and is transmitted almost exclusively from the mother (this does not mean that all mtDNA mutations are inherited from the mother - see below). Over 95% of total brain ATP, the chemical energy of cells, is produced in the mitochondria by the process of oxidative phosphorylation. The regions of the brain that are most functionally active, such as the temporal lobe, are sites of increased mitochondrial activity. Since mitochondria play a pivotal role in cell metabolism, cellular mitochondrial density reflects metabolic activity. Skeletal muscles, as well as neurons, have a high mitochondrial mass, a finding that can be used to detect mitochondrial disease (simply assess an area's mitochondrial function and determine if it is low or diminished as compared with expected activity).

The mutation rate of mtDNA is much higher than that of nuclear DNA. The reason can be ascribed to:
1. the absence of a histone coat for mtDNA
2. a poor repair system for DNA damage
3. a higher turnover rate of mtDNA
4. exposure to higher oxidative stress than nuclear DNA is exposed to
5. a high error rate of polymerase gamma, which is responsible for mtDNA replication.
6. errors inherited from maternal mtDNA have no "chance for correction" by a paternal copy

These mutations are not the only mutations that can affect mitochondria. One must also consider that some mitochondrial diseases affecting the respiratory chain can also be due to mutations of genes in the nuclear genome. These nuclear DNA mutations can be inherited from either the mother or the father, or may be spontaneous point mutations, etc. that are not inherited, but just happen.

Thus, the family history of a child with a mitochondrial disease may be characterized by a disease that is sporadic, or has a maternal inheritance pattern, or has a classical Mendelian pattern. The possibility exists that other genetic characteristics - heteropasmy, mitotic segregation, and threshold expression effects - may be seen.

To be noted: in studying MITOMAP, or any mitochondrial reference sequence, one must use caution as the reference sequences may themselves contain mutations. Control subjects who are used in comparative case studies may also carry mtDNA mutations of their own. Therefore, caution is required in interpreting the already complicated literature involved in any study of mtDNA.

Background material as applied to autism:
A population-based epidemiological study of mitochondrial disease in autism in Portugal (Oliveira et al. 2005) arrived at an estimate of 7.2% of children with autism. If confirmed, this subgroup is higher than other tested groups of children with autism. But children with autism who have been tested for mitochondrial disease appear to have higher percentages of mutations than the general population.

Speculation that children with autism might have mitochondrial diseases began after it was discovered that some children with autism had high lactate levels (Coleman and Blass 1985), raising the possibility of mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation dysfunction (Lombard 1998).

The impairment of mitochondrial energy metabolism has been documented in individuals with autism and Asperger syndrome (Minshew et al. 1993, Lazlo et al. 1994; Chugani et al. 1999).

The reported cases have a variety of mitochondrial defects. In some children, the mtDNA itself contains mutations:
(Graf WD, et al. (2000) Autism associated with mtDNA G8363A transfer RNA (tRNA) (Lysine) mutation. Journal of Child Neurology 15:357-361)
occurrences of mtDNA deletions have been reported:
(Fillano JJ, et al. (2002) Mitochondrial dysfunction in patients with hypotonia, epilepsy, autism, and developmental delay. Journal of Child Neurology 17:435-439)
and depletion of mtDNA is reported here:
(Pons R, et al. (2004) Mitochondrial DNA abnormalities and autistic spectrum disorders. The Journal of Pediatrics 144:81-85).

In other autism spectrum children, there is alteration of mitochondrial function likely secondary to duplication of maternally derived 15q11-q13 region:
(Filipek PA, et al. (2003) Mitochondrial dysfunction in autistic patients with 15q inverted duplication. Annals of Neurology53:801-804

The book The Neurology of Autism (2005) by Mary Coleman recommends that autistic children with lactic acidosis, major neurological signs such as seizures, and a family history of depression, be evaluated for mitochondrial dysfunction if other known causes have been ruled out.

None of the above information implies that mitochondrial dysfunction causes autism. It just suggests correlations and possible co-morbidity that may warrant looking into.

With caution, as stated above.

Hope this helps anyone interested.
Chuck

You saw Attwood, Merle? How cool!
I'd love to hear him lecture, except with my central auditory processing disorder, I probably couldn't.
I could take my ADD med, and then hear, but then I cannot concentrate. Sort of ironical, n'est-ce pas?

So, I envy yas, but am excited for you that you were able to meet him.

He says not a bad depiction, eh?
I just noted from this trailer that they've got Adam sitting Gump-like on a park bench; have him making the
statement in the'box of chocolate' scene "...I'm not Forrest Gump, ya know..."; have him hanging from an apartment building
cleaning the windows of some lady while wearing a spacesuit (ok - admittedly, I might have done something similar to that in my past , but we won't go into that here while I am trying to make my point - which I already forgot what it was).

Ok - I'll go. With my extra large bag of popcorn. But I'm leaving my spacesuit at home. Plus my star wars collectibles. (Don't want the other Aspies present to be envious).

I'm glad that you got to see her before she leaves you, Sleepy. That was one thing I was lucky enough to be able to do with my grandmother (who was, for all intents, my support system as I was growing up). I got to see her a couple of months before she died. She tried to give me some things to keep, but I was in serious denial at the time and told her I'd see her again. I never did. But I was so glad, later, that I did get to see her that one time.

OH pleeeeze let this bomb at the box office and go away quickly. please please please
This will be worse than when "Rainman" came out. Everyone will be buying me a damned telescope.
Of course, I'd LOVE a telescope, but that's beside the point.

No chance. It will linger, sloooooowly and painfully. Yessiree.

I would love to watch this though if it were possible to do so in a theater filled with Aspies. Who would be throwing out useful info tidbits and correcting the data presented:

"The contractor for the star trackers is Ball Brothers, Boulder, Colorado."
"...4.3 ONE FOUR light years, moron, 4.3 ONE FOUUUUURRRRR... Duh!"
"196,432 years by my calculations..."
"Why isn't he wearing an A1C spacesuit? Isn't that an old G3C suit with white Nomex fabric..."
"Why is he talking about Voyager 2? Pioneer 11 is much more interesting..."
"It's possible that Jupiter probe Galileo impregnated Jupiter's ice-crusted moon Europa's suspected subterranean salt water ocean with dormant freeze-dried bacteria from Earth..."

and, during the kissing scene:
"So why is there never a Dalek extermination squad around when you actually need one?!?"
"I have read, as concerns whether kissing is learned or instinctual, that it is a learned behavior, dating back to the days of our early human ancestors. Back then, mothers may have chewed food and passed it from their mouths into those of their toothless infants. Even after babies cut their teeth, mothers would continue to press their lips against their toddlers’ cheeks to comfort them."
"No, no! Today, the most widely accepted theory of kissing is that humans do it because it helps them sniff out a quality mate. When our faces are close together, our pheromones “talk” – exchanging biological information about whether or not two people will make strong offspring. Women, for example, subconsciously prefer the scent of men whose genes for certain immune system proteins are different from their own. This kind of match could yield offspring with stronger immune systems, and better chances for survival."
"Which do think would be worse: a kiss from a human, or a lick from a dog? Although most humans aren’t apt to raid the cat’s litter box for a snack – dogs will eat and chew on just about anything, be it a stick, or an item from the trash, or a dirty tennis ball. And humans don’t use their tongues as 'hands,' nor do they use their tongues as a toilet paper, so to speak, so the potential exists for there to be vastly different forms of bacteria present in a dog’s mouth when compared to the human’s. Yet, which of the two actually has the cleaner mouth? The consensus is that it’s not the dog’s saliva that promotes healing when it licks a wound…it’s the act of licking a wound that is beneficial. The licking removes damaged tissue cells and it’s this that helps to promote healing. That doesn’t mean you should leave your dog alone to lick his wound if he becomes injured. There’s a good chance he’ll end up with an infection. It has been stated in veterinarian manuals that licking seems to be more beneficial in the case of wild canines, who have a much more robust immune system due to the fact that they don’t have the benefit of antibiotics and other medications, so their immune system develops stronger defenses.”
"Are you saying that human immune systems would be better off had we never started using antibiotics?"
"Absolutely. Now, back to whether of not a dog's mouth is cleaner than a human's: differences that exist between the canine mouth and the human mouth have led researchers to some interesting conclusions over the years. Scientists have found that humans are more at risk of acquiring an illness if they come in oral contact with another human, and the same goes for dogs whose mouths come in contact with other canine mouths. Why? There are few illnesses and infections that can be transmitted between the two different species, so a human is much more likely to get ill or otherwise have adverse effects from contact with another human. So dog lovers can take comfort in knowing that a lick or kiss from their dog is not likely to cause them any problems, even after a visit to the kitty litter box, whereas a smooch from their spouse is very likely to be the kiss of death."



...ok, so maybe I'll be doing this myself...
(people gotsta know about Ball Brothers, in Boulder, Colorado, at the corner of Bollocks Blvd and Stones Street).

Last edited by Chuck on 05 Aug 2009, 2:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.

I think I'll wait for it come out on DVD...That way if there are any awkward or embarrassing scenes I
I could pause or fast forward my way through them.... There were some scenes in "Mozart And The Whale"I simply could not sit through...

Hey Richie!

Do you know how to set words to music? I've been writing lyrics today, and think I may have a hit if the music is just right. (I'm thinking church organs, theatrical opera, with classical singing saws in accompaniment, and/or maybe a trombone):

"You could be my perfect dream,
and I shall be your worst nightmare.

You could be my daily sunshine,
and I shall be your dark despair.

You could work so diligently,
and I shall drink and lose money.

You can clean without a hitch,
and I shall sit, and mope and b***h.

You could be my perfect dream,
and I'll suck joy out of the air.

You could be my daily sunshine,
and I shall be your heart's despair."

I know it needs work, but it's just a rough draft. Can you play any musical instruments?

oh MY!


might I suggest duet for piccolo and tuba?

It's your own fault for coming out. If you had stocked your closet with enough books, you wouldn't have had to.


How fortunate that this is the International Year of Astronomy, and telescopes are available at a modest price: http://www.astronomy2009.org/globalprojects/cornerstones/galileoscope/


No, it's fine. A classic in the mould of "If My Nose Were Full Of Nickels, I'd Blow it All On You", or "You Flushed The Toilet Of My Heart". It is an interesting fact that the suicide rate of white males is positively correlated with how much Country & Western the local radio station plays (http://socialforces.unc.edu/archives/Indexes/vol71/, scroll down to the fifth entry from the bottom).

Not many people know that

If this were PPR, I would feel obliged to mention that "regression" refers to a statistical procedure, not to persuading someone that they remember a past life. But it isn't, so I won't.

You got a future classic there, Chuck. I can tell. But are you willing to accept the body count merely for the sake of fame, fortune and babes?


I think you need the mighty organ of Unseen University. It was designed by B. S. (Bloody Stupid) Johnson. It has three extra keyboards and lots of extra knobs, some with "?" on them. One of the knobs with a known function gives you farmyard noises.

Speaking of The Man Himself, here is the quote for the day:

Here's a little in-joke for those in the know. . .

http://kenyanbirthcertificategenerator.com/

Hmm....I think a certain strange lady with a ukulele and a kazoo who makes sock critters might be able to do something with your poetry......

Oooh...I'm on it!!

Poopy, in re: the first line of your sig, don't worry - this thread is immortal!! Over 1100 pages ago, someone tried to blow up the Cafe, but this thread arose, phoenix-like, from the rubble, to carry on. (For a time, the old thread continued, Apache Junction-like, in this one's shade, but it seems to have undergone internet particle decay...)

Gromit, those stats remind me of one of the plaints I had when my first marriage fell apart. Inside the space of a month, I lost my house, I lost my job, my wife left me, my dog died, and my truck broke down. And I don't even like country music!

Poopylungstuffing's gonna songify my lyrics?!? yay!
Can't wait to hear it!
Hope you guys have fun while I'm away!
I'm headed to my dad's to help him celebrate his birthday!

Take care! See you soon, ya loonies!
Luvs yas,
Chuck

uh oh. wait for it, waaait for it....

http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/08/07/pen ... index.html

you know it's going to be theorized eventually.