In 1943, a child known only as Frederick W. became part of the first medical report of a strange new disorder. Frederick was Case 2 of 11 children whose behavior "differed markedly and uniquely from anything reported so far," wrote Dr. Leo Kanner, the psychiatrist at Johns Hopkins University who introduced the syndrome to the world and named it "autism."

One of the children "spun with great pleasure everything he could seize upon to spin." Many of the children flapped their hands; flew into unpredictable bouts of rage and aggression; spoke in inexplicable ways if they spoke at all, sometimes referring to themselves as "you" and others as "I"; showed remarkable abilities like keen memory and perfect pitch but abject inability to perform simple tasks; obsessed over objects but ignored human beings.

Kanner didn't know why the children, all born in the 1930s, acted that way but noticed the parents were college-educated and career-oriented: lawyers, psychiatrists, scientists. He wrote, "In the whole group, there are very few really warm-hearted fathers and mothers," and later speculated, "emotionally refrigerated" parents might play a role in causing the baffling disorder.

"Most of the fathers are, in a sense, bigamists," Kanner wrote. "They are wedded to their jobs at least as much as they are married to their wives. The job, in fact, has priority."

Now, Frederick W.'s father has been identified by this reporter, who has written about autism for two years for United Press International, as a scientist named Frederick L. Wellman, and new information has been unearthed that suggests Wellman's career might indeed be a clue--though not the kind Kanner detected.

The Frederick L. Wellman Papers fill 18 boxes in the Special Collections Research Center at the North Carolina State University Libraries in Raleigh. The first item in the first folder in the first box is dated Spring 1922, when the senior Wellman was working toward his doctorate in plant pathology at the University of Wisconsin. Faded with age, the report is titled "Hot Water and Mercuric Chloride Treatments of Some Brassica Seeds and Their Effect Both on the Germination of the Seeds and the Viability of the Fungus Phoma Lingam."

In layman's terms, Wellman collected cabbage seeds infected with a common fungus and dunked some of them in a solution of mercury salts and hot water. "The lots treated with mercuric [chloride] were shaken vigorously at first to get thorough contact with the solution," he wrote. His faculty adviser at the time was concerned about an epidemic of cabbage fungus that was wrecking havoc on Wisconsin farms, and he enlisted his student Wellman's help in researching solutions.

By the time his son was born 14 years later, in 1936, Wellman had graduated to advanced plant pathology work at the U.S. Agriculture Department's main research center in Beltsville, in Prince George's County, just outside Washington.

In a resume, he wrote at length about his experience there with fungicides. On cabbage seeds, he reported, "organic mercury compounds were found to be most satisfactory disinfecting agents." For tomatoes, "proprietary organic mercury dusts also gave good results." All three of the fungicide sales brochures in his archive were for organic mercury compounds--two of them containing ethyl mercury, which was introduced in commercial products just a few years earlier.

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Reprinted from NAA Announcement

Washington, DC – It was announced last Friday that the Department of Defense (DoD) would manage a $7.5 million Fiscal Year (FY) 2007 congressional appropriation specifically targeting autism spectrum disorder research. In the meeting entitled “Overview of the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP),” the DoD reached out to stakeholders in the autism community in an effort to identify under funded areas of investigation and solicit feedback regarding the most promising areas of research.

Lyn Redwood, RN, MSN of SafeMinds and the National Autism Association who attended the meeting suggested that the DoD funds should go to “need to know” and not “nice to know” research. “The latest science points to a genetic susceptibility that is environmentally triggered. As a result, the perception that autism is lifelong and incurable should be abandoned to follow the line of reasoning that autism is indeed preventable and thus treatable.”

Redwood pointed out that children with autism suffer with medical problems that have been largely overlooked because autism is classified as a “psychiatric” disease. “We need to recognize that these children are sick and when these issues are addressed with targeted medical interventions, often the child’s overall health improves to the point where some have lost their diagnosis of autism.”

About the CDMRP:

The Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs, or CDMRP, is currently allocating funding towards seven research programs, including the Autism Spectrum Disorder Research Program. CDMRP’s mission is to “Provide hope by promoting innovative research, recognizing untapped opportunities, creating partnerships, and guarding the public trust.” The program seeks to complement other funding agencies by identifying and funding targeted research that addresses novel or under investigated areas. The CDMRP has a history of valuing community involvement, an approach that could make all the difference in finding a cure.

The DoD CDMRP research funding began 15 years ago when $25 million was awarded to breast cancer research. Today, that number is $127.5 million and CDMRP is the second largest funder of breast cancer research in the world.

According to the DoD, requests for autism research applications could start in July of 07, and funding awarded to selected researchers by November 07. An overview of CDMRP's history and other programs is available at http://cdmrp.army.mil/.

SafeMinds is pleased to announce the appointment of two new board members, Theresa Wrangham and Heidi Roger.

Ms. Wrangham is currently a stay-at-home mother of two daughters, Rachel, 16, who is diagnosed with Pervasive Developmental Disorder, Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS) and Deanna who is 13. She is a co-founder of the Autism Society of Boulder County (ASBC) in Colorado; a chapter of the Autism Society of America. Theresa is ASBC's current President and Chair of the Board. In this role, she has successfully collaborated with other state agencies to create treatment programs for autistic individuals not included in state-funded programs, as well as influence legislation within the state of Colorado. With an extensive administrative and accounting background to draw on, Theresa will assist in maintaining SafeMinds' infrastructure and administrative proficiency. Theresa previously served on the board of the Autism Society of Colorado and her local PTA. Theresa believes that the grassroots voice of parents will assure strong programs and services, compassion and support for families and assure positive long-term outcomes for individuals affected by autism spectrum disorders.

We are thrilled to welcome back Heidi Roger, a founding board member of SafeMinds. Heidi has been very involved in the public policy arena. She was one of the parents involved with passage of the New Jersey Infantile Autism Biomedical Research Act passed in New Jersey. Heidi helped craft the original draft of the first federal autism legislation, the Children’s Health Act of 2000. Heidi was a co-author on Autism: A Novel Form of Mercury Toxicity, a landmark paper linking the symptoms of autism with excessive exposure to mercury and was published in Neurotoxicology, Medical Hypothesis, Molecular Psychiatry, Mothering Magazine and Autism- Asperger's Digest. She currently serves as the Cure Autism Now representative for the New Jersey’s Governor’s Council which has funded more than $9 million in autism research in New Jersey. She served as president of the Cure Autism Now New Jersey chapter for two years and co-chaired the first New Jersey/New York Walk Now event, which raised more than $300,000. She has one child, Andrew, 12, who has autism, and began speaking for the first time six months ago. Heidi is the Vice President of Financial Operations for Barney’s New York.

After months of tug of war in Harrisburg, and despite heavy lobbying efforts from the national coal industry, the citizens of Pennsylvania have something to cheer about with the institution of the new mercury standards ("Pa. mercury rule: Now the hard part," Feb. 21). Mercury, a known developmental neurotoxin and pollution problem, can't be fixed with a cap or trade- style policies. It must be eliminated from coal emissions. Allowing our dirty coal plants to continue to spew mercury by purchasing credits will not keep the chemical out of our air, waterways, soil and, inevitably, our children.

Electric utilities statewide will face several options. They can fight the implementation of the standards with lengthy and costly legal battles. They can find allies in the Legislature who might help to overturn the new standards. Or, they can seize this opportunity to start building the energy infrastructure of the future, right here in Pennsylvania. There's no such thing as clean coal, and as soon as we realize this, we can start thinking about the numerous opportunities Pennsylvania has in the emerging industry of alternative energy technologies.

Pennsylvania businesses and utilities have the chance now to put themselves at the forefront and lead nationally and internationally in the creation of new, clean energy technologies. Attempts to subvert, postpone, or otherwise undermine the new mercury standards will only leave the health of the citizens and our economy behind in the decades to come.

Tom Bernard, the father of a child with autism, is publishing his first book, Wall and Mean. Proceeds from the sale of the book will benefit SafeMinds and Autism Speaks.

Book Description

"Captures the tone and feel of Wall Street better than anything I've ever read. A snapshot of the trader's soul."—Michael Lewis

Wholesome Pennsylvania kid and Wall Street phenom George Wilhelm is poised to become one of the most successful young bond traders in the business. A gambler at heart, George has turned his old poker skills into big profits on the Emerging Markets desk. Now those same skills have got him trying to out-trade the sports bookies in Vegas, and George's hard-won security is in jeopardy as he racks up a ruinous gambling debt. When the Brooklyn mafia sends two hitmen to collect, things turn ugly in a hurry: these boys have clearly never heard of a fair fight. George must scramble to keep his pursuers away from the bank and his family, while risking everthing on an all-or-nothing trade. Set in the glitter and grime of New York City during the bond-market boom of 1993, Wall and Mean is a fast- paced and surprising debut from a veteran of The Street.

Click here to order your copy now.

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Please join a new Yahoo group called MIA-Mercury Induced Autism. The goal in the formation of this list was to create a resource where parents, grandparents, and anyone whose life has been impacted by mercury induced autism could go to seek information or find support.

To join the discussion please click here.