title: The plasma zinc/serum copper ratio as a biomarker in children with autism spectrum disorders.
abstract: The frequency of zinc deficiency, copper toxicity and low zinc/copper in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) may indicate decrement in metallothionein system functioning. A retrospective review of plasma zinc, serum copper and zinc/copper was performed on data from 230 children with autistic disorder, pervasive developmental disorder-NOS and Asperger's syndrome. The entire cohort's mean zinc level was 77.2 microg dl(-1), mean copper level was 131.5 microg dl(-1), and mean Zn/Cu was 0.608, which was below the 0.7 cut-off of the lowest 2.5% of healthy children. The plasma zinc/serum copper ratio may be a biomarker of heavy metal, particularly mercury, toxicity in children with ASDs.
authors.affiliation: The Children's Institute, 1405 Shady Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15217, USA. sfa@the-institute.org
authors.forename: Scott
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Faber
authors.forename: Gregory M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Zinn
authors.forename: John C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Kern
authors.forename: H M Skip
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Kingston
mesh_terms: D020817:Asperger Syndrome / Q000097:blood*; D001321:Autistic Disorder / Q000097:blood*; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood*; D002648:Child; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003300:Copper / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015032:Zinc / Q000097:blood*
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D003300:Copper; D015032:Zinc