title: Male gender bias in autism and pediatric autoimmunity.
abstract: Male bias in both autism and pediatric autoimmune disease is thought to involve hormonal perturbations in pregnancy or early childhood in the context of genetic control. These early molecular events, at a time of rapid development, are intimately linked to concurrent development in the brain and immune system. It is suggested here that these early regulatory events may overlap between autism and autoimmunity in determining male sex bias and may provide evidence of an etiological link among autism, immune dysregulation, and autoimmune disease.
authors.affiliation: Gene Expression and Genomics Unit, National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health, Baltimore, MD 21224, USA. beckerk@grc.nia.nih.gov
authors.forename: Kevin G
authors.initials: KG
authors.lastname: Becker
mesh_terms: D001321:Autistic Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D001327:Autoimmune Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002490:Central Nervous System / Q000254:growth & development; D002648:Child; D002659:Child Development Disorders, Pervasive / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology*; D005260:Female; D040181:Genetic Diseases, X-Linked; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012744:Sex Ratio; D013739:Testosterone / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D013739:Testosterone