Blood and urine tests to indicate autism in children

Autism spectrum disorders ASDs are defined as developmental disorders mainly affecting social interaction and they can include a wide spectrum of behavioural problems like-speech disturbances, repetitive or compulsive behaviour, hyperactivity, anxiety, and difficulty to adapt to new environments, some with or without cognitive impairment. Since there is a wide range of ASD symptoms diagnosis can be difficult and uncertain at the early stages of development.

The research team which is based at the University's Warwick Medical School involves academics at the University of Warwick's Warwick Systems Biology group, the University of Birmingham, the University of Bologna, the Institute of Neurological Sciences, Bologna, and the Don Carlo Gnocchi Foundation ONLUS. They found a link between ASD and damage to proteins in blood plasma by oxidation and glycation-processes where reactive oxygen species (ROS) and sugar molecules spontaneously modify proteins.

They found the most reliable of the tests they developed was examining protein in blood plasma where, when tested, children with ASD were found to have higher levels of the oxidation marker dityrosine (DT) and certain sugar-modified compounds called "advanced glycation endproducts" (AGEs). Genetic causes have been found in 30-35% of cases of ASD and the remaining 65-70% of cases are thought to be caused by a combination of environmental factors, multiple mutations, and rare genetic variants. However the research team also believe that the new tests could reveal yet to be identified causes of ASD.

The team's research also confirmed the previously held belief that mutations of amino acid transporters are a genetic variant associated with ASD. The Warwick team worked with collaborators at the University of Bologna, Italy, who recruited locally 38 children who were diagnosed as having with ASD (29 boys and nine girls) and a control group of 31 healthy children (23 boys and eight girls) between the ages of five and 12. Blood and urine samples were taken from the children for analysis.

They discovered that there were chemical differences between the two groups. Working with a further collaborator at the University of Birmingham, the changes in multiple compounds were combined together using artificial intelligence algorithms techniques to develop a mathematical equation or "algorithm" to distinguish between ASD and healthy controls. The outcome was a diagnostic test better than any method currently available.
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Ascorbic acid for treating vitamin C deficiency

Ascorbic acid - vitamin C occurs naturally in foods such as citrus fruit, tomatoes, potatoes, and leafy vegetables. Vitamin C is important for bones and connective tissues, muscles, and blood vessels.

Vitamin C also helps the body absorb iron, which is needed for red blood cell production. Ascorbic acid is used to treat and prevent vitamin C deficiency.
Smoking can make ascorbic acid less effective.

Dose needs may be different during pregnancy or while you are breast-feeding a baby. Do not use ascorbic acid without your doctor's advice in either case.

Drink plenty of liquids while you are taking ascorbic acid. The chewable tablet must be chewed before you swallow it. Ascorbic acid gum may be chewed as long as desired and then thrown away.

Do not crush, chew, or break an extended-release tablet. Swallow it whole. Measure liquid medicine with a special dose-measuring spoon or medicine cup. If you do not have a dose-measuring device, ask your pharmacist for one.

Keep the orally disintegrating tablet in the package until you are ready to take it. Use dry hands to remove the tablet and place it in your mouth. Do not swallow the tablet whole. Allow it to dissolve in your mouth without chewing. Swallow several times as the tablet dissolves.

Store ascorbic acid at room temperature away from moisture and heat. Do not stop using ascorbic acid suddenly after long-term use at high doses, or you could have "conditional" vitamin C deficiency.

Symptoms include bleeding gums, feeling very tired, and red or blue pinpoint spots around your hair follicles. Follow your doctor's instructions about tapering your dose. Conditional vitamin C deficiency can be difficult to correct without medical supervision.

Stop using ascorbic acid and call your doctor at once if you have: joint pain, weakness or tired feeling, weight loss, stomach pain; chills, fever, increased urge to urinate, painful or difficult urination; or severe pain in your side or lower back, blood in your urine.
Common side effects may include:
heartburn, nausea, diarrhea and stomach cramps.
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Salty foods can damage the heart

Excess salt intake increases strain on the heart's muscle and increases its beating rate. This can leads to heart damage.

 Researchers examined urine samples from different adults to detect the links between excess salt intake and heart damage.

The ultrasound tests of the heart of adults tested after taking their urine samples showed that excess salt increases muscle strain and heart rate, and this increases heart chambers.

Excess salt intake causes bodies to retain water, which leads to a rise in blood pressure. High blood pressure puts a strain on the heart, arteries, and brain, which can lead to heart attacks and strokes.

Eating too much salt can increase calcium in the urine, this increases the risk of having kidney stones and this can leads to kidney damage.
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Signs of severe hypertension

Hypertension does not have any symptom but severe high blood pressure can increase the risk of stroke, kidney failure, aortic aneurysm, vascular dementia and heart attacks.

An ideal blood pressure is 120/80, Low blood pressure is considered to be 90/60 or lower. High blood pressure is when your readings are consistently equal to or more than 140/90mmHg.

Severe hypertension is when your systolic blood pressure is consistently at or above 180mmHg and/or the diastolic is consistently at or above 110mmHg.

Seek medical help if you experience any of these signs of severe high blood pressure- fatigue, chest pain, severe headache, irregular heartbeat, blood in the urine and difficulty in breathing.

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HIV positive women with cytomegalovirus may infect their babies with the virus

HIV-positive women with cytomegalovirus CMV, in their urine at the time of delivery may pass the virus to their babies.

Women who had gonorrhea when they gave birth may also infect their babies with CMV. Babies infected through their mothers and those with weakened immune systems will experience serious health problems.

CMV can impair fetal growth, cause birth defects and babies born with the virus can have damage to their brain, liver, lung and spleen.

 Researchers examined 260 pairs of mothers and 222 babies from who were enrolled in a perinatal study by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

After testing the mothers' and infants' urine for detectable CMV, the researchers discovered that- 2 percent of the women had detectable CMV and 3.8 percent of babies had the virus.

Eight percent of women with detectable CMV had babies with the virus, as opposed to 2.1 percent of women who did not have CMV.

Two percent of women with detectable CMV transmitted the virus to their babies compared with 8.1 of those who did not have CMV.

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How salty diet triggers hunger

Natalia Rakova of Charite and MDC and her colleagues carried out research on how salty diet triggers hunger, two groups of male volunteers were sealed into a mock spaceship for two simulated flights to Mars.

The two groups in Mars had the same diet initially and later three different levels of salt in their food, the first group was examined for 105 days and the second group over 205 days.

They complained that they are hungry and have appetite for food more than before.

Excess consumption of salt led to a higher salt content in urine, experiment in mice shows that mice on salty diet were eating more, salty diet did not increase their thirst.

This result change the scientists thought about how body achieves water homoeostasis.

Effects of marathons on your kidney

Marathon is a long distance running race with an official distance of 42, 195 kilometers, running marathon can harm your kidney.

Kidney may not be able to filter waste during marathon as s result of reduction in blood flow to the kidney during the race.

Dehydration during the race can cause increase in temperature, the body temperature can rise to 104f during the race, the heat stress can damage the kidney.

Waste product like creatinine in the blood and protein in the urine are the common kidney injury experienced by those involved in marathon.

Marathon related kidney damage may be caused by rise in runners body temperature and dehydration which prevents blood flow to kidney. This last for two days because the kidney will recover after the marathon.