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...mail, Mottron wrote, "Baron-Cohen used a questionnaire which scores high in autistics. This questionnaire also scores higher in [nonautistic] men than in women. This only demonstrates that the autism questionnaire is a very weak and broad instrument, which is unable to differentiate autism and male characteristics. It does not demonstrate that autism is linked to testosterone...
Said Mottron: "The parallel between a male cognitive profile and an autistic cognitive profile is weak and is true only for a minority of tasks. The logical fuzziness and possible logical flaws of the Extreme Male Brain model result in the [scientific] community not following Baron-Cohen's work...
Researchers who are more sympathetic to Baron-Cohen's work, like James B. Adams, a professor at Arizona State University's School of Materials, do not discount the theory that testosterone exposure is linked to autism but believe the association may be mediated by other potential causes. For his part, Adams believes autism is related to exposure to mercury - a controversial charge that most research has failed to support - and, Adams says, elevated testosterone levels are linked to the depletion of glutathione, a substance in the body that protects it from toxic metals. "So Baron-Cohen's work ties...
...Baron-Cohen says his theory could also complement the genetic hypothesis, as "it is the baby's genes that determine how much testosterone the baby makes"; the mother's testosterone is believed not to pass through the placenta into the amniotic fluid...
...interview with Britain's Guardian newspaper, Baron-Cohen made front-page headlines in his home country by expressing confidence that his research would soon allow doctors to screen for autism through amniocentesis - which involves extraction of amniotic fluid with a needle - the same procedure that allows parents to test for Down syndrome, and decide whether to terminate a pregnancy. Although a prenatal measure of testosterone is not a definitive test for autism, Baron-Cohen suggested that a debate was needed over whether such a test would be desirable...