Decreased serum levels of transforming growth factor-β1 in patients with autism

• Published in: Progress in neuro-psychopharmacology & biological psychiatry 2007, Vol.31 (1), p.187-190
• Main Authors: Okada, Kyoko, Hashimoto, Kenji, Iwata, Yasuhide, Nakamura, Kazuhiko, Tsujii, Masatsugu, Tsuchiya, Kenji J., Sekine, Yoshimoto, Suda, Shiro, Suzuki, Katsuaki, Sugihara, Gen-ichi, Matsuzaki, Hideo, Sugiyama, Toshiro, Kawai, Masayoshi, Minabe, Yoshio, Takei, Nori, Mori, Norio
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Autism; Biological and medical sciences; Child clinical studies; Developmental disorders; Growth factor; Human serum; Infantile autism; Medical sciences; Neurodevelopmental disorder; Neuropharmacology; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry
• ISSN: 0278-5846; 1878-4216
• DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2006.08.020

The neurobiological basis for autism remains poorly understood. Given the key role of transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) in brain development, we hypothesized that TGF-β1 plays a role in the pathophysiology of autism. In this study, we studied whether serum levels of TGF-β1 are altered in patients with autism. We measured serum levels of TGF-β1 in 19 male adult patients with autism and 21 age-matched male healthy subjects using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The serum levels (7.34 ± 5.21 ng/mL (mean ± S.D.)) of TGF-β1 in the patients with autism were significantly ( z = − 5.106, p < 0.001) lower than those (14.48 ± 1.64 ng/mL (mean ± S.D.)) of normal controls. However, there were no marked or significant correlations between serum TGF-β1 levels and other clinical variables, including Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R) scores, Yale-Brown Obsessive–Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS), aggression, Theory of Mind, and Intellectual Quotient (IQ) in patients. These findings suggest that decreased levels of TGF-β1 may be implicated in the pathophysiology of autism.