The findings are reported in the June 26 online issue of Biological Psychiatry. Autism is a developmental disorder that has a profound effect on socialization, communication, learning and other behaviors. In most cases, onset is early in infancy. Information on the earliest development aspects of autism in children has been limited even though approximately one in every 200 children is diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The earlier the diagnosis is made, the greater the treatment impact.

Current studies are searching for characteristics in children at risk for ASD so that the diagnosis can be made prior to age one. The ideal time for diagnosis would be at birth, according to senior author on the study Harvey J. Kliman, M.D., research scientist in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences at the Yale School of Medicine.

In previous work, Kliman had observed an unusual pathologic finding in the placentas from children with Asperger Syndrome, an ASD condition which, like autism, impairs the ability to relate to others.

"By serendipity, at a dinner party I happened to sit next to George M. Anderson, a research scientist in the Yale Child Study Center who had access to many cases of children with ASD," said Kliman. "We realized that by working together we might be able to determine if this placental abnormality could be a useful clinical marker."

With the help of Andrea Jacobs-Stannard, a student in Kliman's laboratory, and Katarzyna Chawarska and Fred R. Volkmar of the Yale Child Study Center, the group designed a study to see if the placental abnormality, specifically the presence of trophoblast inclusions, was a marker for ASD. The multidisciplinary team of Yale resea
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Contact: Karen N. Peart
karen.peart@yale.edu
203-432-1326
Yale University
26-Jun-2006