Banned PCB Chemicals Still Tied to Autism in U.S. Kids September 6, 2016 A HealthDay story about research by Kristen Lyall, ScD, an assistant professor in the A.J. Drexel Autism Institute, that looked into links between chemicals banned in the 1970s and increased risk of autism, was picked up by several outlets, including , , , , , , , and . Her research was also covered in a video on .