title: A possible association between elevated serum levels of brain-specific auto-antibodies and reduced plasma levels of docosahexaenoic acid in autistic children.
abstract: Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are not only essential for energy production, but they also exhibit a range of immunomodulatory properties that progress through T cell mediated events. Autoimmunity may have a pathogenic role in a subgroup of autistic children. This study is the first to investigate the relationship between serum levels of anti-myelin basic protein (anti-MBP) brain-specific auto-antibodies and reduced plasma levels of PUFAs in autistic children. Plasma levels of PUFAs (including linoleic, alphalinolenic, arachidonic "AA" and docosahexaenoic "DHA" acids) and serum anti-MBP were measured in 80 autistic children, aged between 4 and 12 years, and 80 healthy-matched children. Autistic patients had significantly lower plasma levels of PUFAs than healthy children. On the other hand, ω6/ω3 ratio (AA/DHA) was significantly higher in autistic patients than healthy children. Low plasma DHA, AA, linolenic and linoleic acids were found in 67.5%, 50%, 40% and 35%, respectively of autistic children. On the other hand, 70% of autistic patients had elevated ω6/ω3 ratio. Autistic patients with increased serum levels of anti-MBP auto-antibodies (75%) had significantly lower plasma DHA (P<0.5) and significantly higher ω6/ω3 ratio (P<0.5) than patients who were seronegative for these antibodies. In conclusions, some autistic children have a significant positive association between reduced levels of plasma DHA and increased serum levels of anti-MBP brain-specific auto-antibodies. However, replication studies of larger samples are recommended to validate whether reduced levels of plasma PUFAs are a mere association or have a role in the induction of the production of anti-MBP in some autistic children.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt; Autism Research and Treatment Center, AL-Amodi Autism Research Chair, Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Electronic address: gehan.mostafa2000@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Gehan A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Mostafa
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: Heba Y
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: El-Khashab
authors.affiliation: Autism Research and Treatment Center, AL-Amodi Autism Research Chair, Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Laila Y
authors.initials: LY
authors.lastname: Al-Ayadhi
mesh_terms: D001321:Autistic Disorder / Q000097:blood*; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000097:blood*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004281:Docosahexaenoic Acids / Q000097:blood*; D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D004676:Myelin Basic Protein / Q000276:immunology*; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales
chemical_list: D001323:Autoantibodies; D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated; D004676:Myelin Basic Protein; D004281:Docosahexaenoic Acids
keywords: Anti-myelin basic protein antibodies; Autism; Autoimmunity; Brain energy; Polyunsaturated fatty acids