Systematic Characterization of the Immune Response to Gluten and Casein in Autism Spectrum Disorders. Revision
Abstract
Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are a heterogeneous group of neurodevelopmental diseases characterized by deficits in communication skills and social interaction, as well as the presence of repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior. The reported prevalence of ASD has increased sharply over the last few decades to greater than 1%, while the pathogenic mechanisms of the disease remain largely unknown and effective treatment options are limited. In addition, a clear barrier to the better understanding of ASD has been the heterogeneity within this spectrum and the lack of biomarkers to characterize disease phenotypes and to understand treatment outcome. Dietary gluten and casein proteins have been suspected of being involved in the etiopathogenesis of ASD in some patients, either directly as circulating partially digested peptides with opioid-like properties, or through the body s immune response to them. Diets that exclude gluten and casein have been reported to be effective in some cases. However, significant methodological shortcomings in some of these reports and contradicting data from other investigators have contributed to a lack of consensus and a high level of ambiguity on the actual existence of these molecules in the body and their relevance to ASD. We have utilized serum samples from well-characterized patients diagnosed with autism according to strict criteria (both ADOS and ADI-R), their unaffected siblings, and age-matched unrelated healthy controls to assess immune reactivity to highly purified gluten and casein molecules or peptides and to evaluate the potential link between autism and celiac disease. Our data show that a subset of children with autism displays increased immune reactivity to gluten and casein, which is associated with presence of gastrointestinal symptoms, but not with celiac disease.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Aug 01, 2013
- Accession Number
- ADA600917
Entities
People
- Armin Alaedini
Organizations
- Columbia University