Abstract
The hypothesis of an immune dysfunction in autism spectrum disorders has previously
been put forward without, however, compelling evidence of a direct relation to its
etiology or pathogenesis. To further understand if autoimmunity could play a significant
role in autism, we analyzed autoantibody repertoires to brain tissue extract in the
plasma of 171 autism children, their parents, and 54 controls, by quantitative immunoblotting.
Multiparametric analysis revealed significant differences between patients and controls,
and showed that one single reactivity in Section 32 of the blot had the most power
to discriminate between these samples. Family correlation coefficients and heritability
estimates did not provide any evidence that this reactivity was genetically determined.
While the molecular weight of the target protein suggested that it might be an isoform
of Myelin Basic Protein (MBP), inhibition assays with human MBP argued against this
hypothesis. The study evidences the widespread occurrence of autoreactivities to brain
tissue in autism patients, which may represent the immune system's neuroprotective
response to a previous brain injury occurred during neurodevelopment. The molecular
identification of the target protein in Section 32 will contribute to the understanding
of the role of immune responses against brain antigens in autistic patients.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Accepted:
March 29,
2004
Received:
March 5,
2004
Identification
Copyright
© 2004 Elsevier B.V. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
