Characterization of the pathological and biochemical markers that correlate to the clinical features of autism.

I found a very interesting paper on autism that was recently released by U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command Fort Detrick. It was conducted by Research Foundation for Mental Hygiene under the supervision of Thomas Wisniewski, M.D. titled Characterization of the pathological and biochemical markers that correlate to the clinical features of autism.  It was released for publication on October 2010.  I believe you will find it very interesting.

It is posited that an abnormal development of specific regions of the brain are attributes found in children with autism and that these abnormalities impact the creation and migration of neuronal development on into adulthood.  The variance in abnormalities (hypo or hyper-dysplasia etc.) and the resulting biochemical interference impact the maturity of these regions and add to the development of various clustered and underdeveloped brain matter. This would account for the wide spectrum of Autism that is seen in this population. 

I am not very well versed in the area of neuroscience but it seems to me that this information can provide a platform for further research into the development of instructional approaches that can cater to specific markers that result in specific behaviors in children with varying degrees of abnormality (Autism).  From where I stand I only see a reactionary approach to the instruction of children who exhibit autistic tendencies and by doing so we are treating the symptoms and not the cause.  We can’t fix what is broken but we can adapt to it more proactively once we can get a handle on the type of neuronal and structural abnormalities that are specific to each student.  Once a database is collected and a pattern of these abnormalities are identified we can proceed to categorize a more refined composite of the Autistic mind from which we can pattern a flexible instructional approach that will allow us to unlock the pathways that have been “blocked” by these naturally occurring changes in neuronal formations in key areas of the brain that impact perception and sensory processing.

I welcome anyone to read the article and perhaps correct any false assumptions I may have concluded from this study.  I would love to discuss the possibilities this holds for instruction of students with significant disabilities.

Please see link below:

http://dodreports.com/pdf/ada540354.pdf