Serotonin Signal Transduction in Two Groups of Autistic Patients
Abstract
About 25-30% of patients with autism show high platelet serotonin while the rest have a normal serotonin level. Some in the highserotonin group show defects in serotonin transporter (SERT), others do not. Furthermore, while treatment with selective serotonin uptake inhibitors (SSRI) is routine for autistic patients, therapeutic benefit is variable and unpredictable. We hypothesized that there is an essential difference in serotonin signal transduction between these two groups and that this could be exploited to determine therapeutic success and to identify new therapeutic complete targets.. Lymphoblasts were prepared from 6 high- and low-serotonin patients as well as controls and these will be used to determine the relationship between IS, serotonin levels and serotonin signaling. These cells, which are normally reserved for genetic studies, were probed for differences in serotonin signaling, and clear differences were seen both in response to serotonin and response to SSRI treatment. The most innovative aspect of this proposal is the development of lymphoblasts as a cellular model to explore the pharmacology and cell biology of autism. Lymphoblasts are made routinely from Autism patients seen at academic medical centers and they are used, almost exclusively, for genetic studies. The ability to use them as a predictive model for therapeutic response and as an experimental model to probe serotonin (or other neurotransmitter signaling) in autism is both innovative and potentially transformative.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 01, 2012
- Accession Number
- ADA584868
Entities
People
- Mark M. Rasenick
Organizations
- University of Illinois at Chicago