Hans de Vries

It is included in both DSM-5 and ICD-10 as "autism spectrum discorder" so it is considered a disorder at least at that moment. It may be removed in the future though I myself possess many traits of the spectrum and I'm at least halfway between NT and autism.

If there are other people in his family. Aren't some 1/3 of cases spontaneous though?

@Markus Hanke o you think your autism is inherited? Are there other people in your family who show traits of the spectrum? BTW sorry if you felt offended.

Are there people who possess the advantages of autism but not the disadvantages? Like having advantages of both NTs and aspies but disadvantages of none.

Having brown hair does not make your life harder in any significant way. It's maybe a disadvantage if you're dating someone who does not like bronze hair but it isn't a disadvantage in 99.9% of life situations. Autism on the other hand is very disabling. It's as disabling as being on a wheelchair if not more. If you weren't able to hold simplest jobs and would not be able to sit down at a table with more than 3 other people because the noises would drive you inside, it's possible you would be pissed off and tired as well.

If a cure was available, nobody would be forced to take it. You can have a birthmark on your face and still choose not to have it removed.

Just to note that suicide rate among autistics is several times higher than in the general population and among autistics WITH A COLLEGE DEGREE unemployment rate is over 80% (for comparison, Down Syndrome only has unemployment rate of approx 40%) It can be a fun experience if you are a VERY high functioning autistic with a lot of social support or if you have a well paid job in STEM field that aligns well with your special interests... I think it is the case for a minority of people on the spectrum.

A question. Can autistics just "relax" and enjoy life as NTs do? NTs can sit down drinking beer with friends and just "relax" not thinking or worrying about anything. Can autistics do the same?

@Markus Hanke What do you think are interesting avenues of research in terms of treating/curing autism? What do you think if thinks like FMT and other stuff (if you know any)? FMT alone has shown almost 50% decrease in symptoms of autism and it's a very simple inxpensive thing. Would you try it if you could just for fun? Do NTs also have special interests or interest that approach SIs in intensity? I see in particular people like Neil deGrasse Tyson and Carl Sagan who seem to be extremely involved in their interests yet are mostly NT in the rest of their behavior.

Is there (on this forum) someone more knowledgeable about this topic? It would be good to have such person.

I think the core of autism is lack of flexibility of the brain. The brain simply does not switch between brain networks as efficiently as NT brain and I thought it may something to do with weaker white matter connectivity since long range brain connectivity is mediated by white matter. At the same time I thought increased number of synapses in the cortex is what causes unusually strong abilities in logical subjects and tendency to put things into categories that is common to most individuals with autism.

Do sensory issues occur in all individuals with autism? IIRC there is a small % of individuals on the spectrum (approx. 10%) who are free of them. IIRC restricted repetitve behaviors have something to do with the brain having less flexibility than NT brain although sensory issues do aparently play a role.

IIRC sensory issues are not even considered core aspect of autism. Core symptoms are restricted, repetitive behaviors and problems with social communication due to lack of cognitive empathy. There are many other symptoms of autism: sensory issues, executive/cognitive dysfunction, unusual abilities in subjects involving logic etc.

You're welcome

https://www.spectrumnews.org/news/connectivity-theory-autism-explained/

Autism is characterized by increased short range connectivity in the brain but impaired long term connections. What would happen if one had increased short term connectivity but at the same time normal long range connections?

When I was 13 I experienced two months of feeling psychologically really bad and after that my mind wasn't fully like before. I also kept losing cognitive ability until age 17. Do you think this had something to do with overactive microglia?

My reasoning is that what gut microbiome transplant does is changing gene expression in the brain. Exchanging entire genome would also change gene expression in the brain but to a larger degree. As a side question, how are physical traits inherited? For example every person has genes coding for facial features from both his father and mother yet it's possible to look exactly like one parent (my nephew looks like an exact copy of my sister except for slightly darker and more wavy hair, you wouldn't tell them apart if not that) or like a mix of both. How does it work?

Even mundane shit like Fecal Microbiome transplant can reduce autism symptoms by 50% ... then what would a full blown DNA exchange do?

What about correcting more DNA? If autism in individual X is caused by Y number of DNA fragments, would correcting them correct autism?

autism https://www.spectrumnews.org/news/reversing-shank3-mutations-in-mice-mitigates-autism-like-traits/ schizophrenia https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/10/191009132401.htm

What about brain? Brain is more malleable than bone. Tests on mice have shown that autism and schizophrenia can be reversed by switching single genes on and off.

At what point are human physical traits like facial features and body type set and impossible to change? Would, as an example, altering someone's DNA at age 10 to that of Neil deGrasse Tyson's cause his facial features to diverge significantly from how they would develop with his native DNA?

Can something like psychosis prime miceoglia into a long term proinflammatory profile?

During reproduction it's parts of chromosomes that rccombine in order to create an organism. What if not chromosomes but genes recombined?