Genetic Research

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That's why I think all but screening for truly life-threatening conditions--which the vast majority of ASDs are NOT--should be illegal.

Whatever weird little neuromutt I am, I would be really ticked if anyone tried to screen people like me out. My parents would be royally ticked, too. Just their reaction when I had a bad reaction to (I think) Ritalin as a toddler made them so mad that they refused all other meds and I picked up the same attitude from them. Their opinion was that if I was not acting like me, with all the good AND the bad, then they weren't having any part of it.

Where I live, prenatal screening is available for a very limited number of defined, life-threatening conditions. It seems most unlikely that an effective test for ASDs can be developed because all the genetic markers that have been identified overlap people without ASD. Only about 10% of ASDs have an identifiable genetic basis.

Genetic counselling is available to advise couples of the risk of hereditary conditions if they should choose to have children together, but ASDs are not really relevant.

Anyone besides me constantly think about the X-Men movies and especially Magneto's role in them when thinking about genetic research and autism? lol >_<

Are you proposing that we conspire to make a "gene-therapy" that would make all NTs Autistic?

Nope


It's only that you realize, while you were talking about organizing and committees, the extermination has already begun. Make no mistake, my brothers. They will draw first blood. They will force their cure upon us. The only question is, will my brotherhood and fight, or wait for the inevitable genocide? Who will you stand with - the humans... or us?

Hello All,

there are many good points here, and I have learned a lot too.

When I read this thread, it was the first time I heard about GATTACA, from the description mentioned here the same thing occurs today by preimplantation genetic diagnosis and use of IVF [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preimplantation_genetic_diagnosis] and this can avoid a child having a diagnosis that runs in the family. For instance you could choose embryos which don't have the gene for cystic fibrosis [or autism, schizophrenia etc] and thus prevent any offspring having the disease/syndrome.

Perhaps where ethics start is that once you start screening embryos and eliminate certain diseases later people [everyone of reproductive age] will want their own and their partners genome sequenced [which uses a lot of hours searching to check the whole genome from what I have heard]

I am interested in autism research and Im currently looking for treatments - if a condition is genetic and a lot of evidence supports that view/finding then it is impossible to remove it in that individual without altering the genome - something which can be dangerous even fatal. [think example would be boy who had to live in a bubble developed cancer from genetic manipulation but could be wrong]

Please could people publish their sources to support what they say - the fact that autism is attributed to a genetic change on chromosome 7 is interesting.

The other thing was that I have noticed a few people stating that they are involved in some degree of research- I am thinking of founding an autism research network where anyone can contribute - and want to suggest a wiki on here to see if anyone thinks it would be a good idea. Many autistic people are scientists or interested in neuroscience [eg neuroscientist mentioned on here had Asperger's Syndrome [AS]]. Hence there would be enough people to achieve a lot.

A few things I have been looking at is

co-morbidities

effects of environmental pollutants and toxins on the development of neurological developmental disorders such as autism
http://www.latimes.com/health/boostersh ... 6495.story

teratology [birth defects such as due to drugs taken during pregnancy or the perinatal period] and autism

Features of autism, developmental delays, deficits such as in Prosody and in gross motor skills

regression

the use of supplements and medicines in autism

foods, supplements and medicines to avoid in those with autism or when pregnant or breastfeeding

PM me if you are interested or want to find out more

Thanks.

Ben

Who knows they could study the genetics of autism to design savants without out the low functioning traits that many savants have. We could create a race of genetic supermen and rule the world putting the unengineered in special camps for their own safety not to mention to keep them dirtying the genetic supermen's genetic lines with their unfixed genes.

For the super thick headed I was kidding about what I wrote above . I still say the people who genetically cull the autistic will loose a generation or two technological, cultural, and scientific advancements. It could lead to another dark ages or a stagnation of a society. The poorer societies who could not afford to scan for genetic flaws will catch up and become the new superpowers as they will surpass the non-autistic society.

On this specific point - It's worth bearing in mind that while the Nazis were systematically killing Jews and homosexuals, that people such as Einstein and Alan Turing where making very significant scientific contributions to the allied war effort.

That said I'm concerned about the anti-research rhetoric that occasionally pops up on aspie/auti forums. No new tool is without cons as well as pros, genetic science is already making significant improvements to many people's health and quite frankly some stories of the conditions people have (not just autism) I find heart breaking at times. I would always argue for a position of finding solutions to problems by becoming more informed on their causes.

As an individual you can refuse treatment, that's your right as a human being in the free world. The same goes for having children, no politician in the free world would ever get elected by suggesting interference with people's reproductive rights - and at the sharp end of the discussion that applies to someone choosing to abort a child because they have any given condition - you can't argue against that *if* abortion is already unconditionally legal before a certain developmental phase/stage (which it is in most democracies AFAIK). The state/healthcare system can have a policy of offering help or not funding certain tests, or suggesting the baby is adopted, etc. but it always has to be the mother's choice (with guidance and support from the father and other family members/friends).

locster

Last edited by locster on 15 Jan 2011, 8:35 pm, edited 2 times in total.

The school system wanted to put me on ritalin when I was younger but my parents stood by their guns and said no even when they threatened to involve lawyers. They told my parents that my learning disability could be treated funny thing is on August 6th, 2010 my doctor said he saw no signs of a learning disability. They would have made me into a zombie just so the special education teacher could keep me from asking questions.



It would not take much to get a person to force someone take medication against their will I have seen several documentaries where prison guards forced inmates in a state run prison to take their medication and they always would make it look like the inmate chose to take the meds. They would put the inmate into restraints or place him in the hole until he accepted the meds. I bet if I put you in a choke hold for long enough causing as much discomfort as possible I could get you to put anything in your mouth and I do mean anything. With the right propaganda campaign they could get the American people to accept the forced sterilaztion of the autistic by making look like autistic people make more genetically likely to make more autistics. We were one of the nations that adopted genetic hygine by steralizing alcoholics, mental patents, people with TB, and the mentally ret*d. The nazis got the idea from us they felt they had to do it to keep up with their nation's compition.

Last edited by Todesking on 15 Jan 2011, 7:41 pm, edited 2 times in total.

the people at your school who were trying to force you to go on Ritalin were idiots, they breached your right to confidentiality and they dont know that not all individuals may necessarily benefit from it. They made a false diagnosis and didnt involve a Dr - I think the right term is Arrogance, Ritalin is helpful for some patients but unless a child/individual has a definite diagnosis it may do more harm than good

Indeed. The argument then really comes down to - is science putting new tools into the hands of idiots that allows them to cause more damage [than they otherwise would]. I feel that that is a *much* broader debate about where the human race is going - should we halt all pursuit of knowledge and revert to hunter gatherers?! Well, that's not even an option in a world of 6.9B people being fed by intensive agriculture!

locster.

The fertalizer that feeds those masses of people is petroleum based. I wonder what will happen when the oil runs out soylent green perhaps.

mmmm soylent green. Tastes like chicken. Hey what's in that stuff anyway? ;)

locster

some foods are nutritionally incomplete, so they may lack certain amino acids creating a relative deficiency of those. This deficiency of amino acids caused by some foods may be responsible for some health conditions people experience. I used to think that you could supply the body with whatever was needed and it would utilise them optimally. I found out that things like [animal] milk are nutritionally incomplete and they may cause neurological problems etc

I don't have the reference to this saved unfortunately

think it was this reference, will need to check
http://www.rense.com/general26/truth.htm

hence I started drinking rice milk at one point