Lack of association between autism and four heavy metal regulatory genes

► Polymorphisms identified through screening 48 unrelated individuals from the general and autistic populations were evaluated for differences in allele frequencies. ► Overall, we identified and characterized 75 variants in MT1a, DMT1, LAT1 and MTF1. ► Despite the fact that the analysis failed to show association with autism for any variant, we believe that given the debate (and unfounded theories on the role of thimerosal in the etiology of autism and related disorders, such as autism spectrum disorder) the results presented herein are highly important and will dispel some of the myths on Hg and these disorders.