For Release July 9, 2013 10 AM Eastern
MEDIA CONTACT: Carolyn Hawley
Canale Communications
carolyn@canalecommunications.com
(619) 849-5375
New Study Published in Nature Journal, Translational Psychiatry, Pinpoints a Specific Cause for
Approximately One-Quarter of Autism Cases
Pediatric Biosciences Developing Diagnostic Test Based on Findings
SAN DIEGO, Calif. July 9, 2013 — Pediatric Biosciences, Inc. (PBI) today announced the publication of a new study
showing that a significant percentage of women who have children diagnosed with autism have highly specific
autoantibodies in their blood. These autoantibodies target and interfere with fetal brain proteins that play a major role in
their child’s neurodevelopment in utero. The finding pinpoints a specific cause for about a quarter of all autism cases. PBI is
developing a diagnostic test based on these findings that will provide physicians with a reliable set of biomarkers for preconception and earlier post-natal diagnosis of this Maternal Autoantibody-Related form of (MAR) autism.
The study was published online today in the Nature journal, Translational Psychiatry, and was led by immunologist Judy
Van de Water, Ph.D., who is a faculty member in the Department of Internal Medicine, and the UC Davis MIND Institute, a
leading center for research and clinical services on autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders. Dr. Van de Water is
also the Chief Scientific Advisor of PBI.
“Based on these findings, PBI is developing a simple, quantitative blood test for MAR autism, which would be made
available through physicians to the mothers of young children between the ages of 12 – 24 months who may be showing
some signs of developmental delay,” said Jan D’Alvise, Chief Executive officer of PBI. “If the test is positive, the child
would be an immediate candidate for early behavioral intervention, which studies show can dramatically improve outcomes
and quality of life for the child.”
The study was the largest to date and analyzed blood samples from several hundred mothers of children with autism and
control mothers of children without autism to examine the reactivity of their blood sample with the candidate proteins.
Seven proteins were found to be significantly more reactive to the blood of mothers of children with autism than that of the
control mothers. Nearly 23 percent of mothers of children with autism had one of the specific combinations of
autoantibodies against the target proteins, compared with less than 1 percent of mothers of children without the disorder
(p<0.0001).
Earlier studies by Judy Van de Water and her colleagues found that not only were women with a certain specific
combination of autoantibodies in their bloodstreams at a greater risk of having a child with autism, but their children
typically exhibited more severe language delays, irritability and self-injurious behaviors than did the autistic children of
mothers whose blood did not contain these autoantibody biomarkers.
“With the discovery of these biomarkers, we will be able to better determine the role of each protein in brain development,”
Van de Water said. “We hope that in the near future, we can tell a mother more precisely what her autoantibody profile
means for her child, then target interventions more effectively.”
A MAR diagnostic test would also assess a woman’s risk of having a child with autism prior to conception. Women over the
age of 30 are at twice the risk of having a child with autism and, together with women who have already had a child with
autism, could benefit from taking this test before they become pregnant. A positive result would mean that they have a 99
percent likelihood of having a child with autism if they proceed with a pregnancy.
“Women considering In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) would be a potential group to screen with the PBI autism test to assure
themselves that they do not carry these maternal antibodies that have been associated with autism,” said Dr. Mary Lake
Polan, Adjunct Professor, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences at Columbia University
School of Medicine, and a member of the PBI Scientific Advisory Board. “PBI’s clinical data also show that if a woman is
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Pediatric Bioscience Inc. │1901 Royal Oaks Drive Suite 200, Sacramento CA 95815│P: 530 758 1500 F: 530 758 1515
positive for these autoantibodies, she might want to have her baby evaluated immediately by a specialist to be monitored for
autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and be ready with early intervention.”
For a copy of the paper and more information about Pediatric Bioscience, please go to www.pedbio.com.
About Pediatric Biosciences, Inc.
PBI’s mission is to improve the lives of people with autism and those whose lives they touch. The company’s initial focus is
to commercialize its Maternal Antibody-Related Autism Test, to identify women at high risk of having a child with autism.
The PBI MAR autism test is currently under development and is expected to be commercially available in late 2014.
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Pediatric Bioscience Inc. │1901 Royal Oaks Drive Suite 200, Sacramento CA 95815│P: 530 758 1500 F: 530 758 1515