Mumps Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Mumps, including details on symptoms, vaccine, adult, causes.

Are there altered antibody responses to measles, mumps, or rubella viruses in autism?

Libbey JE, Coon HH, Kirkman NJ, Sweeten TL, Miller JN, Lainhart JE, McMahon WM, Fujinami RS

Department of Neurology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah 84132-2305, USA.

The role that virus infections play in autism is not known. Others have reported that antibodies against measles virus are higher in the sera/plasma of children with autism versus controls. The authors investigated antibody titers to measles, mumps, and rubella viruses and diphtheria toxoid in children with autism, both classic onset (33) and regressive onset (26) forms, controls (25, healthy age- and gender-matched) and individuals with Tourette's syndrome (24) via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. No significant differences in antibody titers to measles, mumps, and rubella viruses and diphtheria toxoid were found among the four groups. Additionally, there were no significant differences between the four groups for total immunoglobulin (Ig)G or IgM. Interestingly, the authors did find a significant number (15/59) of autism subjects (classic and regressive onset combined) who had a very low or no antibody titer against rubella virus, compared to a combine control/Tourette's group (2/49).

Published 6 July 2007 in J Neurovirol, 13(3): 252-9.
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