"Role of Immunogenetics in the Diagnosis of Postvaccinal CNS Pathology," Massimo Montinari, et al., Department of Pediatric Surgery, University of Bari, Italy, presented May 9, 1996 (text available http://www.healthy.net/library/articles/coulter/biochem.htm ): after thirty children were found to have signs of central nervous system and genetic damage following vaccination, the authors remark, "A study of the disease associated with genes of the HLA system has shown that this genetic complex can be responsible for am particular genetic susceptibility, predisposing to various diseases characterized predominantly by immune-system pathogenesis… results indicate that autoimmune pathology is more frequent in countries where vaccination is more widespread….." [A fuller description of this study will be found in "The attenuated virus--infectious or not?" below.]

(Pediatric Bulletin, http://home.coqui.net/myrna/virus.htm ).

"Disease caused by Haemophilus influenzae type b in the immediate period after homologous immunization: immunologic investigation" (Pediatrics, vol. 85, number 4 part 2, April 1990, pp. 698-704): "One concern with the use of [current HIB vaccines] was the suggestion that the incidence of invasive disease caused by H influenzae type b in the immediate period after immunization might be increased; this idea was supported by evidence from several sources." In one case-controlled study, 4 children were hospitalized for invasive disease within 1 week of immunization; the rate of invasive disease was 6.4 times greater than the background rate in unvaccinated children.

"Neurologic complications associated with oral poliovirus vaccine and genomic variability of the vaccine strains after multiplication in humans," Acta Virologica, vol. 42, number 3, June 1998, pp. 187-94: The oral poliovirus vaccine (OPV) sometimes occasions paralytic poliomyelitis in vaccine recipients and their susceptible contacts. Molecular biology studies of polioviruses from these patients demonstrate genomic modifications known or suspected to increase neurovirulence. The same genomic modifications have been identified in strains isolated from non-symptomatic vaccinees. Other neurologic complications such as meningitis, encephalitis, convulsions, transverse myelitis and Guillain-Barre Syndrome have also been associated with this vaccine.

"Transmission of vaccine strain varicella-zoster virus from a healthy adult with vaccine-associated rash to susceptible household contacts" (Journal of Infectious Disease, vol. 176, no. 4, October 1997, pp. 1072-5): Twelve days after receiving an investigational Oka strain live attenuated varicella vaccine, a 38-year-old healthy woman developed a rash consisting of 30 scattered lesions. Sixteen days later, her two children also developed a rash. Varicella-zoster DNA obtained from the skin lesions was determined to be the vaccine type. "This case ocuments transmission of varicella vaccine type virus from a healthy vaccinee to susceptible household contacts…ongoing studies will define the frequency of this transmission."

"Live Virus Vaccines, High-Dose Steroids Don't Mix" (Pediatric News, cited November 28, 1998, via@access1.net, 10:49 a.m.): Dr. Larry K. Pickering, a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics' "Red Book Committee," was quoted following a meeting at the University of South Dakota, saying children receiving more than 2 mg/kg per day of systemic glucocorticoids should not be given live virus vaccines, due to the risk of disseminated infection from the vaccines. Killed virus vaccines do not present the same risk. [Note: steroids such as prednisone partially suppress the immune system.]

"Acute encephalopathy followed by permanent brain injury or death associated with further attenuated measles vaccines: a review of claims submitted to the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program," Pediatrics, vol. 101, no. 3, Part 1, March 1998; pages 383-387: This study details cases wherein 48 children, ages 10 to 49 months, who had been so affected. Eight children died, and the remainder had mental regression and retardation, chronic seizures, motor and sensory deficits, and movement disorders. "CONCLUSIONS: This clustering suggests that a causal relationship between measles vaccine and encephalopathy may exist as a rare complication of measles immunization." [Note regarding rarity: A huge number of vaccine reactions are never reported, and most of the thousands of vaccine injuries which are reported do not meet the current, very narrow VAERS/FDA criteria (a very few specific symptoms must occur within a very short timespan, in order for symptoms to be considered vaccine-related), and thus are not reported as vaccine-injury cases by government tabulators. Serious vaccine complications thus are said to be "rare" in quoted statistics. If independent research proves that the measles vaccine and PDD/autism are causally related, this kind of vaccine damage will inflate by thousands the cases of vaccine damage now on record. This tally, then, may be inflated further by the number of ADD/ADHD-diagnosed children with inflammatory bowel disorders, per the Georgetown University study cited I "Wakefield," below.]

"Measles-Mumps-Rubella (MMR) Vaccine as a Potential Cause of Encephalitis (Brain Inflammation) in Children," Harold E. Buttram, MD, Townsend Letters, December 1997 (available at http://www.mercola.com/issue5.htm ).

T. Zecca, D. Grafino, et al., University of Medicine and Dentistry, New Jersey and Children's Hospital of New Jersey, Newark, "Elevated rubeola [measles] titers in autistic children linked to MMR vaccine" (abstract submitted to the National Institutes of Health, 1997-8; text available at http://webpages.netlink.co.nz/~ias/mmraut1.htm ): Rubeola (measles) titers were compared in autistic and normal children. Children diagnosed with autism revealed "a three fold increase" in their rubeola titers over expected normal range. "A Wilcoxon Kruskal Wallas test comparing 13 rubeola titers from normal children reveals a statistically significant P-value of 0.0050." The authors note that neurological sequelae following MMR are widely reported: "MMR therefore may play a role in the pathogenesis of Autism. The elevated titers of anti-measles antibodies in Autistic children may signify a chronic activation of the immune system against this neurotropic virus."

"Characterisation of poxviruses from sporadic human infections" (South African Medical Journal, vol. 72, no. 12, December 19, 1987, pp. 846-8): An orthopoxvirus was isolated from…a man in Natal who died in coma… Analysis of the viral DNA showed that it was a vaccinia virus, more closely related to the virus of South African smallpox vaccine than to other [natural] vaccinia viruses. DNA analysis also showed that an orthopoxvirus isolated from a sporadic case of severe pustular rash in Nigeria was a vaccinia virus closely related to the smallpox vaccine virus used there… [It was] suggested that some natural transmission of the virus had occurred…originat[ing] from the use of smallpox vaccine. No similar cases have been detected since smallpox vaccination was discontinued."

"Vaccinia virus persistence in a child against the background of immune deficiency" (J. Hyg. Epidemiol. Microbiol. Immunol., vol. 30, no. 2, 1986, pp. 177-83): " A young girl, vaccinated against smallpox 6 years before[,] suffered from a persistent vaccinia virus infection and a congenital skin disesase, i.e. epidermolysis bullosa. The virus was isolated from skin lesions at the vaccination site and remote sites and repeatedly from the blood… Examination of the child did not show any quantitative immune deficiency… The possible genesis of the virus persistence and the role of the virus in the clinical course of the disease are discussed." (A selected Medline [National Library of Medicine] "MESH" subject tracing for this report is "Smallpox Vaccine--adverse effects.")

"Polymerase chain reaction detection of the hemagglutinin gene from an attenuated measles vaccine strain in the peripheral mononuclear cells of children with autoimmune hepatitis," Archives of Virology volume 141, 1996, pages 877-884: "The measles virus is known to be persistent in patients with subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) and measles inclusion body encephalitis (MIBE). Since the introduction of measles vaccines, vaccine-associated SSPE has increased in the USA. Therefore, we should pay attention to SSPE after inoculation with measles vaccine, despite the decrease in the incidence of [wild] measles."

"The African polio vaccine-acquired immune deficiency syndrome connection" (Medical Hypotheses, vol. 48, no. 5, May 1997, pp. 367-74): "Seroepidemiological, clinical and molecular findings suggest that the acquired immune deficiency syndrome virus Human Immunodeficiency Virus-1* was introduced into the human species at the the (late 1950s) and in the geographic area (Zaire) in which millions of Africans were vaccinated with attenuated poliomyelitis virus strains that were produced in kidney tissue obtained from monkeys. …it is reasonable to suspect that a then non-detectable monkey virus with human-1-like properties was unknowingly cocultured with the attenuated poliovirus and subsequently administered to the vaccinees. The possibility of such a polio vaccine-acquired immune deficiency syndrome connection is a reminder of the unpredictable danger of artifically crossing natural species-barriers in biomedical laboratories" [*bold text capitals added].

"The origin of HIV-1, the AIDS virus" (Medical Hypotheses, vol. 41, no. 4, October 1993, pp. 289-99): "a substantial case is presented that HIV-1 is a natural recombinant of Bovine Leukemia Virus (BLV) and Visna Virus. This natural recombinant may have been inadvertently transferred to humans through the Intensified Smallpox Eradication Program conducted in sub-Saharan Africa in the late 1960s and most of the 1970s."

"Simian cytomegalovirus-related stealth virus isolated from the cerebrospinal fluid of a patient with bipolar psychosis and acute encephalopathy" (Pathobiology , vo. 64, no. 2, 1996, pp. 64-6): a cytopathic 'stealth' virus was cultured from the cerebrospinal fluid of this patient, who developed a severe encephalopathy leading to a vegetative state. DNA sequencing of a polymerase chain reaction-amplified product from infected cultures revealed kinship to the African green monkey simian cytomegalovirus.

Disorders of the ear

Blood disorders

"Thrombocytopenic purpura as adverse reaction to recombinant hepatitis B vaccine" (Archives of Disease in Childhood, vol. 78, no. 3, March 1998, pp. 273-4): Three cases of [auto]immune thrombocytopenic purpura after the first dose of recombinant hepatitis B vaccine occurred in infants under six months of age. There were no other possible causes; defect in platelet production was excluded in two children. Antiplatelet antibodies were present. The babies were treated with corticosteroids.

Hepatitis

"Polymerase chain reaction detection of the hemagglutinin gene from an attenuated measles vaccine strain in the peripheral mononuclear cells of children with autoimmune hepatitis," Archives of Virology volume 141, 1996, pages 877-884: Four pediatric and two adults patients with autoimmune hepatitis were tested and followed in this study. Twelve healthy children served as controls, who had either been infected with measles or vaccinated with an attenuated measles vaccine in the past. All controls were negative for measles virus except a recent (two week) vaccinee. Of the hepatitis patients, all were positive for measles virus—the children with vaccine-strain measles virus, and the adults with different strains. Conclusion: "our results demonstrated that children with autoimmune hepatitis can have persistence of the vaccine strain in vivo for many years after vaccination [abstract, page 877]." The authors state that the persistence of the measles virus might play some role in the pathology of autoimmune hepatitis, but further studies are needed to prove this hypothesis (page 883).

Also in "Polymerase," the authors observe that high levels of serum antibodies to measles virus have been reported in patients with autoimmune hepatitis (p. 877). References add systemic lupus erythematosus and infectious mononucleosis to the tally of autoimmune diseases with connections to measles (pages 883-4). [Note: high antibody titers of measles and rubella are also associated with autism.] Some provocative quotes, page 882:

"Apparently, the attenuated vaccine is also capable of persisting, like sporadic wild strains, in certain immune diseases. The measles virus is known to be persistent in patients with subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) and measles inclusion body encephalitis (MIBE). Since the introduction of measles vaccines, vaccine-associated SSPE has increased in the USA. Therefore, we should pay attention to SSPE after inoculation with measles vaccine, despite the decrease in the incidence of [wild] measles."

[Note: the following study did not broach the subject of vaccine involvement in diseases; rather it serves to point out the relationship of viral presences to disease.] …Department of Virology, University of Helsinki, Finland, "Very high measles and rubella virus antibody titres associated with hepatitis, systemic lupus erythematosus, and infectious mononucleosis" (The Lancet, vol. 1, February 9, 1974, pp. 194-7): In patients without preceding rubella or measles infection, "raised levels of viral antibodies were a constant finding in two repeated analyses" of hepatitis patients. The authors felt that "it is conceivable that rubella and/or measles infections or reinfections may cause acute hepatitis and persist in some individuals…such aberrant virus infection might be responsible for some clinical manifestations….." Chronic virus infection could not be excluded as an important factor in these diseases.

Inflammatory and autoimmune bowel disease

"Paramyxovirus infections in childhood and subsequent inflammatory bowel disease" (Gastroenterology, vol. 116, no. 4, April 1999, pp. 796-803): "Measles virus has been implicated in the etiology of both inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs), Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis… Mumps infection before age 2 years was a risk for ulcerative colitis… Measles and mumps infections in the same year of life were significantly associated with ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease…but not with IDDM… Atypical paramyxovirus infections in childhood may be risk factors for later I[nflammatory] B[owel] D[isease]" [Notes: measles-mumps-rubella vaccine is usually given around the age of 16 months. When vaccine viruses induce infection, it is often atypical in character].

Lupus, multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis

Abstract: autoimmune diseases are becoming increasingly common. The majority seem to have viral associations.

"Vaccine-induced autoimmunity" (Journal of Autoimmunity, vol. 9, no. 6, December 1996, pp. 699-703): the authors summarize of case reports attributing autoimmune diseases and autoimmune phenomena to vaccines, and suggest possible mechanisms by which the two could be related. "The subject is complicated," they say, "by the fact that one vaccine may cause more than one autoimmune phenomenon, and a particular immune process may be caused by more than one vaccine. Furthermore, vaccines differ in their pathogenic influence on the immune system... The subject of the vaccine-autoimmunity relationship is still obscure; reports have been rare, [and] no laboratory experimentation on this topic has been undertaken....." (Oddly, the authors state that the benefits of vaccination outweigh the risks of disease, but given the authors' contentions that vaccines can cause one or more types of autoimmune disease, that reports are few and research non-existent, this statement is unsupported. Further, they conclude that "laborious clinical and laboratory studies should be initiated in order to evaluate the ..subject.")

C. M. Poser, Harvard Medical School, "The pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis. Additional considerations" (Journal of Neurological Science, vol. 115, April 1993, Supplement pp. S3-15): "Multiple sclerosis is acquired as a systemic "trait" by individuals who are genetically susceptible…It develops as the result of an antigenic challenge by a viral protein, either from a viral infection or a vaccination."

"Multiple sclerosis and infectious childhood diseases" (Neuroepidemiology, vol. 17, no. 3, 1998, pp. 154-60): multiple sclerosis patients studied had had measles, mumps, and varicella (chicken pox) infections at a later age than healthy controls. "These results are compatible with the hypothesis that the risk of developing multiple sclerosis may be associated with acquiring certain infectious childhood diseases at a later state in comparison to normal controls." [Early vaccination for these diseases, therefore, may predispose vaccinees to MS, as immunity from vaccinations frequently wanes in the years following early childhood vaccination (unlike immunity to natural infection). In the event of such a vaccine failure, natural infection may occur at a later age.]

"Chronic arthritis after rubella vaccination" (Clin. Infectious Disease, vol. 15, no. 2, August 1992, pp. 307-312. After reviewing a wide range of information sources, The Institute of Medicine, Washington, DC, found a causal relationship between rubella vaccination and chronic arthritis in adult women.

--for lupus, see <<cognitive disorders>> below--

Parasthesias/paralytic and muscular diseases

"Drug Points: Transverse Myelitis After Measles, Mumps, and Rubella Vaccine," BMJ [British Medical Journal], vol. 311 (7002), August 12, 1995, p. 422: a twenty-year-old man was vaccinated against rubella with the MMR vaccine. Five days later he developed fever, malaise, sore throat, and a transient, upper-body rash. Within the next two weeks, he developed an ascending paraesthesia. He was hospitalized on developing a rapidly progressive flaccid paraplegia. Serological tests showed a significant rise in rubella antibodies. Postvaccination transverse myelitis was diagnosed.

"Poliovirus vaccine options" (American Family Physician, vol. 59, no. 1, January 1, 1999, pp. 113-8, 125-6): "Of 142 confirmed cases of paralytic poliomyelitis reported in the United States from 1980-1996, 134 were classified as vaccine-associated paralytic poliomyelitis (VAPP). Persons with VAPP have a disabling illness….."

"Demonstration of specific antineuronal nuclear antibodies in sera of patients with myasthenia gravis" (Neurology, vol. 24, no. 7, July 1974, pp. 680-3).

Other disorders of the brain and nervous system

Abstract: Vijendra K. Singh and others have found a significant association between autoimmune processes in autistic patients and viral presences--in particular, anti-myelin basic protein (anti-brain) antibodies, along with high titers of specific viruses. In this regard, see also "Demonstration of specific antineuronal nuclear antibodies," above, and the description of T. Zecca's report, "Elevated rubeola [measles] titers in autistic children linked to MMR vaccine," above.

<<seizure disorders>>

"Autistic subjects with comorbid epilepsy: a possible association with viral infections" (Child Psychiatry and Human Development, vo. 29, no. 3, Spring 1998, pp. 245-51): Data covering a 30-year period was examined in Israel. The annual birth pattern of 290 autistic subjects with comorbid epilepsy fit the seasonality of viral meningitis. "These findings support the role of viral C[entral] N[ervous] S[ystem] infections in the causality of this disorder."

"Neurologic complications after vaccination against diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough (Cesk. Pediatr., vol. 47, no. 2, February 1992, pp. 122-4): Both in children free from neurological disease and in children with neurological disease the most frequent type of complications from DTP vaccination were "encephalopathies and febrile attacks as a consequence of metabolic and toxic changes following vaccination." Persisting neurological disorders were, in the majority, epileptic in character.

"Vaccination against whooping-cough. Efficacy versus risks," The Lancet, vol. 1, January 29, 1977, pp. 234-7: "Adverse reactions and neurotoxicity following vaccination was strongly related to pertussis vaccine in 79 of 160 cases studied. A shock reaction and cerebral disturbance was seen, in most of these cases followed by

convulsions, hyperkinesis, and severe mental defect. The authors conclude, "It seems likely that most adverse reactions are unreported and that many are overlooked…existing provisions, national and international, for epidemiological surveillance and evaluation are inadequate. The claim by official bodies that the risks of whooping-cough exceed those of vaccination is questionable, at least in the U.K."

O. Tonz and S. Bajc, "Convulsions or status epilepticus in 11 infants after pertussis vaccination" (Schweiz. Med. Wochenschr., vol. 110, no. 51, December 20, 1980, pp. 1965-71): In three of 11 cases, grand mal epilepsy persisted and two children developed infantile epileptic encephalopathy (Lennox Syndrome). "The following conclusions are drawn from these observations: 1) In view of the usually benign course of whooping cough today, current vaccination is hardly satisfactory. Improvement of the available vaccines is an urgent necessity… 2) Parents whould be better informed about the risks involved in pertussis vaccination. 3) Booster inoculations should be abandoned. 4) Health authorities should decide whether the current pertussis vaccination program should be abandoned. 5) Complications following vaccination should be registered….."

<<behavior and movement disorders >>

"A controlled study of serum anti-locus ceruleus antibodies in REM sleep behavior disorder" (Sleep, vol. 20, no. 5, May 1997, pp. 349-51): "The newly identified association of human nonnarcoleptic rapid eye movement (REM) sleep behavior disorder (RBD) with human leukocyte antigen (HLA) DQwl class II genes raises the possibility that RBD may arise from autoimmune mechanisms."

[The following reports are not vaccine-specific; rather they serve to underline one of the possible conditions resulting from altered permeability of, or damage to the intestine, as occurs in association with measles and other viruses. Note: strep-type bacteria are among those which can translocate from the gut; these have been implicated in cases of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder and Tourette Syndrome.] "Bacterial translocation from the gastrointestinal tract" (Trends in Microbiology, vol. 3, no. 4, April 1995, pp. 149-54): Viable indigenous bacteria from the gastrointestinal tract can migrate to other sites within the body, such as the mesenteric-lymph-node complex, liver, spleen, and bloodstream. Three mechanisms support bacterial translocation: intestinal bacterial overgrowth, deficiencies in host immune defenses and increased permeability or damage to the intestinal mucosal barrier.

"Case study: a new infection-triggered, autoimmune subtype of pediatric OCD and Tourette's syndrome" (Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, vol. 34, no. 3, March 1995, pp. 307-11): the authors hypothesize that infections with group A beta-hemolytic streptococci, among other bacterial agents, may trigger autoimmune responses that cause or exacerbate some cases of childhood-onset obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) or tic disorders including Tourette's Syndrome. In this study, four boys aged 10 to 14 years presented with OCD or Tourette's Syndrome in the moderate to very severe range. Two had evidence of recent group A beta-hemolytic streptococci infections, and the others had histories of recent viral illnesses.

"Speculations on antineuronal antibody-mediated neuropsychiatric disorders of childhood" (Pediatrics, vol. 93, no. 2, February 1994, pp. 323-6): "Several converging lines of evidence suggest that some behavioral and neurological abnormalities of childhood may be mediated through antineuronal antibodies. These antineuronal antibodies appear to arise in response to group A [beta]-hemolytic streptococcal (GABHS) infections and to cross-react with cells within the central nervous system (CNS). Based on clinical observations of children with Sydenham's chorea, Tourette's syndrome (TS), and/or obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), we hypothesize that neuroimmunological dysfunction secondary to antineuronal antibodies may result in behavioral disturbances, such as anxiety, emotional lability, obsessive compulsive symptoms, hyperactivity, and sleep disturbances, and neurological abnormalities, such as motor and phonic tics, ballismus, chorea, and choreiform movements."

"Antineuronal antibodies: tics and obsessive-compulsive symptoms" (Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, vol. 15, no. 6, December 1994, pp. 421-5): 19 or 38 cases from an ongoing study of childhood neurodevelopmental disordershad existing or previously docuemnted OCS [OCD] and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), with or without concomitant tics. 19 controls had ADHD, but no tics or OCS. Evidence was found of basal ganglia involvement in OCS, and a generalized central nervous system response [to infection] was suggested.

"Bipolar disorders, dystonia, and compulsion after dysfunction of the cerebellum, dentatorubrothalamic tract, and substantia nigra" (Biological Psychiatry, vol. 40, no. 8, October 1996, pp. 726-30): the mechanism of the legions was not abstracted in this report; however, after focal cerebellar circuit lesions, these disorders presented in three of fifteen subjects.

"Antineuronal antibodies in movement disorders" (Pediatrics, vol. 92, no. 1, July 1993, pp. 39-43): 24 children with recent-onset movement disorders (Tourette Syndrome, motor and/or vocal tics, chorea, and choreiform movements) as well as ADHD, behavior disorders, or learning disabilities were studied. The authors concluded that their data strongly suggests an association between antecedent group A beta-streptococcal infection and serum antineuronal antibodies, which may, in turn, be linked to childhood movement disorders.

"Antibodies to human caudate nucleus neurons in Huntington's chorea" (Journal of Clinical Investigation, vol. 59, no. 5, May 1977, pp. 922-32): IgG antibodies against nervous system components were detected in patients afflicted with Huntington's and Parkinson's Diseases, as well as in asymptomatic spouses of patients. "These data may support an environmental or infectious factor somehow involved in the ultimate expression of HD."

[This report is not vaccine-specific, but underlines a radical shift in thinking about cerebral palsy and a variety of other neurological impairments--i.e., to an infectious etiology.] "Infections may underlie cerebral palsy" (Science News, vol. 154, no. 16, October 17, 1998, p. 244; available at http://www.sciencenews.org/sn_arc98/10_17_98/fob1.htm): "Most doctors have believed that cerebral palsy--a form of brain damage that impairs movements--results from a difficult birth… While asphyxia may indeed be a cause of cerbral palsy, a new study provides evidence that the brain damage might often arise from some other…assault on an unborn child. Molecular clues now lead to inflammatory infection as a possible culprit, says Karein B. Nelson, a pediatric neurologist at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke in Bethesday, MD." A study was performed by Nelson and colleagues which compared blood from normal and CP infants: the team found that all the stricken children harbored greater concentrations of substances indicating immune activation. In some of the children, indications of autoimmunity were seen as well. (Study citation: "Neonatal cytokines and coagulation factors in children with cerebral palsy," Annals of Neurology, vol. 44, October 1998, p. 665.)

"Increased prevalence of antibrain antibodies in the sera from schizophrenic patients" (Schizophrenia Research, vol. 14, no. 1, December 1994, pp. 15-22); "Antibodies to brain tissue in sera of schizophrenic patients-preliminary findings" (European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience, vol. 242, no. 5, 1993, pp. 314-7): Antibrain antibodies have been found in the sera of schizophrenic patients, but not in normal controls. These seem to be directed against brain centers affected in schizophrenia.

<<cognitive disorders >>

"Serum autoantibodies to brain in Landau-Kleffner variant, autism, and other neurologic disorders" (Journal of Pediatrics, vol. 134, no. 5, May 1999, pp. 607-613): "Etiologically unexplained disorders of language and social development have often been reported to improve in patients treated with immune-modulating regimens. Here we determined…children with L[andau] K[leffner] S[ydrome] V[ariant] and A[utistic] S[pectrum] D[isorder] have a greater frequency of serum antibodies to brain endothelial cells and to nuclei than children with non-neurologic illnesses or healthy children. The presence of these antibodies raises the possibility that autoimmunity plays a role in the pathogenesis of language and social developmental abnormalities in a subset of children with these disorders.

"Characteristics of antineuronal antibodies in systemic lupus erythematosus patients with and without central nervous system involvement: the role of mycobacterial cross-reacting antigens" (Israeli Journal of Medical Science, vol. 26, no. 7, July 1990, pp. 367-73): indirect immunofluorescence of human brain tissue sections revealed, in thirteen of sixteen patients, high antineuronal antibody titers. Competition assays showed that the binding of the antineuronal antibodies was blocked by mycobacterial glycolipids and bovine brain extracts.

"This finding suggests an additional link between mycobacterial infection and SLE."

"An immunological approach to dementia in the elderly" (Age and Ageing, vol. 5, no. 3, August 1976, pp. 164-70): Immunofluorescence studies showed "an excess of antineuronal reactivity and a fall in antinuclear antibody in females with senile dementia."

Alteration of human genetic code

Abstract: viruses are able to infiltrate cells, inserting their genetic material into them. Indications have been found of changes to human genetic characteristics as a result of viral invasion.

"Role of Immunogenetics in the Diagnosis of Postvaccinal CNS Pathology," Department of Pediatric Surgery, University of Bari, Italy, presented May 9, 1996 (text available http://www.healthy.net/library/articles/coulter/biochem.htm):7 initially, thirty young children were tested and followed who showed the first symptoms of CNS pathology with or immediately after vaccination with polio, DT, measles, DPT, anti-tuberculosis, or Hepatitis-B vaccines. Immediate reactions to the vaccines included convulsions, high fever, or diarrhea with or immediately after vaccination. Among the post-vaccinal symptoms were encephalopathies, food allergies, constipation, diarrhea, and other central nervous system pathology. Diagnoses applied to subjects after vaccination and before this study were epilepsy of various types; epileptigenic encephalopathy, autism, West Syndrome, and Angelman's Syndrome.

There were no genetic or metabolic anomalies revealed during testing which might have explained the CNS symptoms. The viral encephalopathies which presented with or following vaccination were not due to transplacental viral infection. EEGs after initial symptoms were negative in 92 percent. Following vaccination and CNS symptoms, serologic investigations for herpes viruses were positive in all cases for IgG. IgG for Epstein-Barr virus and cytomegalovirus were estimated to be positive in 73.8/71.4 percent respectively, herpes simplex in 47.6 percent, and varicella zoster in 21.4 percent of patients. 73.3 percent of subjects showed an increase in the HLA-A3 and HLA-DR7 antigens as compared with the Italian population at large.

The authors found and describe, in this paper, biochemical markers of vaccine damage (e.g., changes in inherited HLA type). They also point out that most vaccines contain thimerosal, a toxic substance associated with neurologic and gastrointestinal symptoms. The fact that post-vaccinal pathologies of the central nervous system are often not thoroughly investigated occasioned this study. Additional cases are under study to better define the possible association of HLA A3 and/or HLA DR7 with this CNS pathology following vaccination.

"New Genetic Study Points Way for Vaccine Reaction Research/Novel Genetic Clinical Marker Found in Blood of Gulfwar Vets" (Press release, National Vaccine Information Center/PR Newswire, Washington, D.C., May 3, 1999, 5:48 p.m.; original source is Clinical and Diagnostic Laboratory Immunology, May 1999): A three year study funded and conducted by the Chronic Illness Research Foundation in collaboration with the University of Michigan School of Medicine found abnormal RNA in the blood of 50 percent of sick Gulf War veterans, indicating that chromosomal damage had occurred. This genetic material was not found in any of the healthy controls. Damage to chromosome 22q11.2 has been linked in other published studies to autoimmune diseases such as juvenile rheumatoid arthritis and other illnesses like multiple myeloma cancer. The discovery of RNA in the cell-free fractions of blood is an anomaly, as it is not normally present in serum. RNA can exist outside the cell only if it is protected, as RNA viruses can. Gulf War soldiers were given 17 different viral and bacterial vaccines, including experimental anthrax and botulinum toxoid vaccines. Experimental drugs were also given and [in veterans actually deployed to the Gulf] there were exposures to pesticides, low-level chemical warfare agents, low-level radiation, toxic combustion products, etc. The resultant symptoms are similar to those of vaccine-damaged children. Dr. Howard B. Urnovitz, microbiologist and Science Director of the Chronic Illness Research Foundation, interpreted findings to indicate that certain genotypes may be particularly at risk for sustaining chromosomal damage after exposure to toxic events; ways to identify and prescreen for individuals who may be at high risk for chromosomal damage should be found.