title: Endothelial antibody levels in the sera of children with autism spectrum disorders.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The neurobiological basis of autism remains poorly understood. We hypothesized that endothelial antibodies may be associated with the pathophysiology of autism and may predict intellectual/social developmental abnormalities.
  
  
  METHODS
  Plasma levels of antiendothelial cell antibodies (AECAs) were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in autistic children (n = 55) and age-matched healthy controls (n = 25).
  
  
  RESULTS
  The serum level of AECAs in children with autism {n = 55, 306.4 ± 45.6 pg/mL [mean ± standard error of the mean (SEM)]} was higher (two-tailed Student t test: p = 0.05) than that of healthy controls [n = 25, 209.6 ± 24.6 pg/mL (mean ± SEM)]. Children with severe autism exhibited significantly higher AECAs than healthy controls (diagnoses of autistic children based on the Childhood Autism Rating Scale score, >40) [n = 20, 369.6 ± 65.6 pg/mL (mean ± SEM)] (p = 0.03). Disease severity and the Childhood Autism Rating Scale score, which represent stereotyped patterns of behavior in children with autism, were positively correlated (r(2) = 0.27, p = 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Elevated AECA serum levels may be implicated in the pathogenesis of autism. However, these data should be interpreted with caution until further investigations are performed using larger sample sizes to determine whether the increase in serum AECA levels is a mere consequence of autism or it plays a pathogenic role in the disease.
authors.affiliation: Berenson-Allen Center for Noninvasive Brain Stimulation, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; KSU-Autism Research and Treatment Center, Al-Amodi Autism Research Chair, Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Shahid
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bashir
authors.affiliation: KSU-Autism Research and Treatment Center, Al-Amodi Autism Research Chair, Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Electronic address: ayadh2@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Laila
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Al-Ayadhi
mesh_terms: D000067877:Autism Spectrum Disorder / Q000276:immunology*; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000097:blood*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D042783:Endothelial Cells / Q000276:immunology*; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male
chemical_list: D001323:Autoantibodies
keywords: antiendothelial antibodies; autistic spectrum disorder; autoimmunity; biomarker