(Radio Iowa) – University of Iowa researchers have identified 60 new genes associated with autism. Researcher Jake Michaelson says this builds on a lot of other studies of the disease. “The single greatest contributor to autism, is genetics….we were very certain about that. But the paradox of that is that we don’t know exactly which genes,” he says. Michaelson is an associate professor of psychiatry, and says identifying the new genes helps unravel some of the mystery. “We’re chipping away and building up our understanding of what parts of the genome are involved in brain development in ways that can lead to autism,” he says, “So the human human genome has about 20-thousand different genes.”

He says there’s lots of different kinds of autism –and some kinds of autism have very serious medical implications.  “So things like seizures, or implications for learning in education, like intellectual disability, and those don’t occur in all cases of autism, but they, but there are enough different developmental mechanisms involved that just by understanding what genes are playing a role, we can identify, oh, well, there might be a way that we can intervene and and reduce these medical issues that people are suffering,” according the Michaelson.

He says there needs to be a lot more study done to come up with some answers. “We’re just at the beginning of this, you know, we think that we probably need three or four times the number of participants that we have now to really start to reliably identify the remaining genes that are out there,” Michaelson says. “And so I guess the good news on that front is that if people are out there, and they haven’t yet participated, the name of the study is SPARK, and they can enroll online sparkforautism.org/U-Iowa,” he says.

Michaelson says they seem to always be talking about the deficits and the problems and the challenges of autism — but he says they need to also understand the strengths that go along with that. He says that can lead to resilience and cultivating those strengths and developing the talents that are there as autism research moves into the future.

(Radio Iowa) – Railroads play a vital role in Iowa moving people, farm commodities and all sorts of products, but they can also be lethal to pedestrians, especially kids. A new report ranks Iowa 7th worst in the country for the number of fatal accidents in 2021 involving trains and children under 19. Mark Chandler, senior research associate at Safe Kids Worldwide, says since trains are so big and loud, people assume they’ll be able to get out of the way if one comes along. “That’s a big misperception with folks is that they think they’ll hear a train coming but they actually don’t make that same ‘clickety-clack’ sound that they used to in the past,” Chandler says. “And they may not always have a horn to warn trespassers either. Adding to that, we see kids often wear headphones near the tracks, so in that case, they virtually can’t hear the train coming at all.”

There were eight accidents in the state last year involving children and trains, four of which resulted in deaths. Chandler says his organization’s research finds that many parents don’t consider it a priority to talk to their kids about the extreme dangers of walking or playing near railroads. “Even with parents that live close to train tracks, this is not something that’s top of mind for them,” Chandler says. “Fewer than half of parents surveyed said they’d ever talked with their child about how to be safe around railroad tracks. And then also when it came to modeling behavior, half of the parents admitted that they themselves take risks around railroads, things like walking along the train tracks and driving around the gates.”

People walking along the tracks may think they’re far enough away from the train to avoid getting hit, but Chandler says trains typically extend out at least three feet on either side of the tracks. “Trains weigh several thousand tons and that means that they can take up to a full mile to stop. That’s about the length of 15 football fields,” Chandler says, “so by the time that a train conductor actually sees a person or a vehicle on the tracks, it’s often too late for them to stop.”

The eight train accidents in Iowa involving children last year were in five counties: Black Hawk, Clarke, Mitchell, Muscatine and Polk. One of the deaths was in Black Hawk County while the other three children killed were all in Clarke County. There was also one injury in Clarke County. Chandler urges Iowa parents to talk with their kids about the hazards and to help create a community of rail safety advocates. Nationwide, a child is killed in a train collision every five days.

On the web at https://www.safekids.org/RailSafetyStation

(Radio Iowa) – It was a busy weekend for campaign gatherings in Iowa. Republican Governor Kim Reynolds held her 4th annual fall fundraiser and there were two fundraisers for Democrats. Governor Reynolds rallied with a crowd at the state fairgrounds Saturday, touting policy moves she and the Republican-led legislature have made to cut taxes, get rid of some gun regulations and pass new abortion restrictions.

“The Iowa Democratic Party has lost sight of hardworking Iowans and if elected all the good things we’ve done over the last four years…that would all be undone,” Reynolds said. Reynolds also promised that if she’s reelected, she’ll try to block Biden Administration policies. Reynolds cited the lawsuit that she’s already joined, challenging President Biden’s plan to cancel student loan debt. Reynolds said it’s unfair to shift those expenses to other taxpayers.

That’s a shout out to the Republican challenging the Democrat seeking reelection as attorney general. The Iowa Democratic Party held a fundraiser Sunday afternoon, with candidates drawing cheers for defending abortion rights and supporting unions. Deidre DeJear, the Democrat challenging Reynolds, urged the crowd to focus on finding common ground with potential voters.

DeJear argued Iowans agree about more than they disagree about and she accused Republicans of trying stoke divisions. “The other side’s attack on us is to pit us against one another,” DeJear said, “to magnify our differences. “Mike Franken, the Democrat running for the U.S. Senate, described the 2022 election in stark terms. “All of us are here, I think, with this overarching thing that bugs us,” Franken said, “and that is: we need to save democracy.” Franken held a fundraiser of his own Saturday afternoon in West Des Moines. He told the crowd these are serious times for the country.

Grassley spoke briefly a few hours later at the governor’s fundraiser, but did not mention Franken. A spokeswoman for Grassley says the senator will work to put the economy back on the right track, while Franken would be in lock-step with President Biden.

(Union County, Iowa) – A semi tractor trailer hauling grain rolled over Sunday evening in Union County, causing suspected serious/incapacitating injuries to the driver. The Union County Sheriff’s Office reports a 2009 Peterbilt semi driven by 65-year-old Ronald Lynn Gray, of Mount Ayr, was traversing a curve in the road on westbound 190th Street at around 4:55-p.m., when Gray lost control of the rig.

The vehicle rolled over, losing its cargo of grain, and came to rest on the passenger side. Gray was partially ejected and had his left leg pinned outside the driver’s side window of the cab, between the frame of the truck, and the ground.

He was mechanically extracted from the vehicle by EMS personnel, and transported to the hospital in Creston, for treatment of leg pain and other injuries. The tractor-trailer – registered to Wurster Farms, Inc., from Creston – sustained $30,000 damage and was declared a total loss.