PLT Test Blog

Many readers of this blog, and some of those who leave comments, are using the Bumetanide therapy proposed by Ben-Ari and Lemonnier. At some point it should become an approved autism drug and Ben Ari has already patented it for use in Down Syndrome , so I guess that will come later on. I have been developing my own add-on therapies that might help people for whom a high level of intracellular chloride is part of their autism, or indeed Down Sydrome.   If Bumetanide has a profound impact on your autism, this is almost certainly you. Monty, aged 13 with ASD After 4 years of Bumetanide, it continues to be effective and if Monty stops taking it there is a gradual cognitive decline over a few days, presumably as chloride concentration gradually increases. In spite of an odd temporary Tourette’s type verbal tic that developed after an infection before Christmas, I have been getting plenty of feedback that Monty has got cleverer in 2017.   So it looks like some bumetanide add-o...

Today’s post looks deeper into the biology of those people who respond to the drug bumetanide, which means a large sub-group of those with autism, likely those with Down Syndrome and likely some with schizophrenia. It is a rather narrow area of science, but other than bumetanide treatment, there appears to be no research interest in further translating science into therapy.     So it looks like this blog is the only place to develop such ideas. I did not expect this post would lead to a practical intervention, but perhaps it does. As you will discover, the goal would be to restore a hormone called estradiol to its natural higher level, perhaps by increasing an enzyme called aromatase, which appears to be commonly downregulated in autism.   This should increase expression of neuroligin 2, which should increase expression of the ion transporter KCC2; this will lower intracellular chloride and boost cognition. It seems that those people using Atorvastatin may have alrea...

I expect many readers of this blog have a list of things to trial in 2016; I certainly do. Monty’s older brother, codenamed Ted, did say to me recently, “I thought you said you’d be all finished with this, in a couple of years”; that was indeed the intention.   A medicine cabinet to be proud of, but not mine It has now been three years.  I never really intended to go so deeply into the science, and I never expected there to be so many “obvious” things un/under-investigated by researchers. Most people diagnosed these days with “autism” are fortunate to be relatively mildly affected.  Parents of those kids likely find this blog rather shocking; how can so many pills be needed and still you want more? Some other people also diagnosed with autism, face really big challenges, not limited to:-          ·         Unable to talk ·         Unable to walk ·     ...