title: No Association between Mycotoxin Exposure and Autism: A Pilot Case-Control Study in School-Aged Children.
abstract: Evaluation of environmental risk factors in the development of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is needed for a more complete understanding of disease etiology and best approaches for prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. A pilot experiment in 54 children (n = 25 ASD, n = 29 controls; aged 12.4 ± 3.9 years) screened for 87 urinary mycotoxins via liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry to assess current exposure. Zearalenone, zearalenone-4-glucoside, 3-acetyldeoxynivalenol, and altenuene were detected in 9/54 (20%) samples, most near the limit of detection. No mycotoxin/group of mycotoxins was associated with ASD-diagnosed children. To identify potential correlates of mycotoxin presence in urine, we further compared the nine subjects where a urinary mycotoxin was confirmed to the remaining 45 participants and found no difference based on the presence or absence of mycotoxin for age (t-test; p = 0.322), gender (Fisher's exact test; p = 0.456), exposure or not to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (Fisher's exact test; p = 0.367), or to other medications (Fisher's exact test; p = 1.00). While no positive association was found, more sophisticated sample preparation techniques and instrumentation, coupled with selectivity for a smaller group of mycotoxins, could improve sensitivity and detection. Further, broadening sampling to in utero (mothers) and newborn-toddler years would cover additional exposure windows.
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental &amp; Molecular Toxicology, Oregon State University, 139 Oak Creek Building, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA. jennifer.duringer@oregonstate.edu.
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Duringer
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Institute for Development &amp; Disability, Oregon Health &amp; Science University, 840 SW Gaines St., Portland, OR 97239, USA. fombonne@ohsu.edu.
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fombonne
authors.affiliation: College of Veterinary Medicine, Oregon State University, 105 Magruder Hall, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA. a.morrie.craig@oregonstate.edu.
authors.forename: Morrie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Craig
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000067877:Autism Spectrum Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000652:urine; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000652:urine; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002853:Chromatography, Liquid; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007783:Lactones / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000652:urine; D057230:Limit of Detection; D008297:Male; D009183:Mycotoxins / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000652:urine*; D010865:Pilot Projects; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D053719:Tandem Mass Spectrometry; D014255:Trichothecenes / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000652:urine; D016482:Urinalysis; D055815:Young Adult; D015025:Zearalenone / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000652:urine
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D007783:Lactones; D009183:Mycotoxins; D014255:Trichothecenes; C040005:altenuene; C038972:acetyldeoxynivalenol; D015025:Zearalenone
keywords: autism; environmental; mycotoxins; urine