scholarly journals Dietary Intake and Plasma Levels of Choline and Betaine in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanna C. Hamlin ◽  
Margaret Pauly ◽  
Stepan Melnyk ◽  
Oleksandra Pavliv ◽  
William Starrett ◽  
...  

Abnormalities in folate-dependent one-carbon metabolism have been reported in many children with autism. Because inadequate choline and betaine can negatively affect folate metabolism and in turn downstream methylation and antioxidant capacity, we sought to determine whether dietary intake of choline and betaine in children with autism was adequate to meet nutritional needs based on national recommendations. Three-day food records were analyzed for 288 children with autism (ASDs) who participated in the national Autism Intervention Research Network for Physical Health (AIR-P) Study on Diet and Nutrition in children with autism. Plasma concentrations of choline and betaine were measured in a subgroup of 35 children with ASDs and 32 age-matched control children. The results indicated that 60–93% of children with ASDs were consuming less than the recommended Adequate Intake (AI) for choline. Strong positive correlations were found between dietary intake and plasma concentrations of choline and betaine in autistic children as well as lower plasma concentrations compared to the control group. We conclude that choline and betaine intake is inadequate in a significant subgroup of children with ASDs and is reflected in lower plasma levels. Inadequate intake of choline and betaine may contribute to the metabolic abnormalities observed in many children with autism and warrants attention in nutritional counseling.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dallah Yoo ◽  
Yunsook Lim ◽  
Yiseul Son ◽  
Hyunkyung Rho ◽  
Chaewon Shin ◽  
...  

Abstract The study aims to determine the correlation between dietary intakes and plasma concentrations of PUFA and their associations with clinical severities in PD. We designed a case-control study to assess dietary fat intakes and disease severity in 38 PD patients and 33 healthy volunteers. Plasma levels of five PUFAs including α-linolenic acid (ALA), eicosapentaenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid, linoleic acid (LA), and arachidonic acid (AA) were measured using gas chromatography. No differences were observed in dietary total energy and lipid intakes including PUFAs between two groups. PD patients had lower plasma levels of ALA, LA, and AA than controls. The associations between dietary intake and plasma concentrations of PUFAs were insignificant, whereas the association between dietary intake and plasma concentration of AA was exceptionally significant in controls. Plasma levels of ALA and LA were inversely associated with motor rating scores in PD patients, while that of AA was positively associated with non-motor symptoms.Plasma levels of ALA, LA, and AA were lower in PD patients than those in healthy controls, suggesting absorption problems in PD or expedited utilization of PUFAs. Contradictory relations on motor and non-motor symptoms imply conflicting clinical effects of PUFAs, raising questions about the usefulness of PUFA supplementation.


2015 ◽  
pp. 231-245
Author(s):  
Joanna Hamlin ◽  
Margaret Pauly ◽  
Stepan Melnyk ◽  
Oleksandra Pavliv ◽  
William Starrett ◽  
...  

2019 ◽  
pp. S315-S323 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. TOMOVA ◽  
P. KEMÉNYOVÁ ◽  
D. FILČÍKOVÁ ◽  
Ž. SZAPUOVÁ ◽  
A. KOVÁČ ◽  
...  

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental condition with increasing incidence. Recent evidences suggest glial cells involvement in autism pathophysiology. S100B is a calcium binding protein, mainly found in astrocytes and therefore used as a marker of their activity. In our study, children with autism had higher plasma concentrations of S100B compared to non-autistic controls. No association of S100B plasma levels with behavioral symptoms (ADI-R and ADOS-2 scales) was found. Plasma S100B concentration significantly correlated with urine serotonin, suggesting their interconnection. Correlation of plasma S100B levels with stool calprotectin concentrations was found, suggesting not only brain astrocytes, but also enteric glial cells may take part in autism pathogenesis. Based on our findings, S100B seems to have a potential to be used as a biomarker of human neurodevelopmental disorders, but more investigations are needed to clarify its exact role in pathomechanism of autism.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathryn Hollowood-Jones ◽  
James B. Adams ◽  
Devon M. Coleman ◽  
Sivapriya Ramamoorthy ◽  
Stephan Melnyk ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Previous research studies have demonstrated abnormalities in the metabolism of mothers of young children with autism.Method: Metabolic analysis was performed on blood samples from 30 mothers of young children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD-M) and from 29 mothers of young typically-developing children (TD-M). Targeted metabolic analysis focusing on the folate one-carbon metabolism (FOCM) and the transsulfuration pathway (TS) as well as broad metabolic analysis were performed. Statistical analysis of the data involved both univariate and multivariate statistical methods.Results: Univariate analysis revealed significant differences in 5 metabolites from the folate one-carbon metabolism and the transsulfuration pathway and differences in an additional 48 metabolites identified by broad metabolic analysis, including lower levels of many carnitine-conjugated molecules. Multivariate analysis with leave-one-out cross-validation allowed classification of samples as belonging to one of the two groups of mothers with 93% sensitivity and 97% specificity with five metabolites. Furthermore, each of these five metabolites correlated with 8-15 other metabolites indicating that there are five clusters of correlated metabolites. In fact, all but 5 of the 50 metabolites with the highest area under the receiver operating characteristic curve were associated with the five identified groups. Many of the abnormalities appear linked to low levels of folate, vitamin B12, and carnitine-conjugated molecules.Conclusions: Mothers of children with ASD have many significantly different metabolite levels compared to mothers of typically developing children at 2-5 years after birth.


2018 ◽  
Vol 106 ◽  
pp. 605-609 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paula Fabiana Saldanha Tschinkel ◽  
Geir Bjørklund ◽  
Lourdes Zélia Zanoni Conón ◽  
Salvatore Chirumbolo ◽  
Valter Aragão Nascimento

2021 ◽  
Vol 75 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. 7512515366p1-7512515366p1
Author(s):  
Janis Leinfuss ◽  
Erin Ohara

Abstract Date Presented Accepted for AOTA INSPIRE 2021 but unable to be presented due to online event limitations. Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often have sensory processing difficulties that impact their occupations. Data were analyzed comparing SCOPE scores at pre- and posttest for children receiving standard-care OT or Ready to Learn and Play (RtLP) framework plus standard care. The intervention group showed statistically significant improvement in SCOPE scores over the control group. The RtLP framework shows promise as an evidence-based tool to positively impact the occupational performance of students with ASD. Primary Author and Speaker: Janis Leinfuss Additional Authors and Speakers: Erin Ohara


Autism ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 24 (6) ◽  
pp. 1566-1571
Author(s):  
Jena McDaniel ◽  
Paul Yoder ◽  
Madison Crandall ◽  
Maria Estefania Millan ◽  
Christina Mich Ardel ◽  
...  

A pivotal response treatment package consisting of clinician-delivered and parent-implemented strategies was recently found to be effective in improving language and social communication deficits in children with autism spectrum disorder. Reciprocal vocal contingency, an automated measure of vocal reciprocity, may provide stronger and complementary evidence of the effects of the pivotal response treatment package. Reciprocal vocal contingency is derived through an automated process from daylong audio samples from the child’s natural environment. Therefore, reciprocal vocal contingency is at lower risk for detection bias than parent report and brief parent–child interaction measures. Although differences were non-significant at baseline and after 12 weeks of intervention for the 48 children with autism spectrum disorder who were randomly assigned to the pivotal response treatment package or a delayed treatment control group, the pivotal response treatment package group had higher ranked reciprocal vocal contingency scores than the control group after 24 weeks ( U = 125, p = .04). These findings are consistent with results from parent report and parent–child interaction measures obtained during the trial. The participants in the pivotal response treatment package exhibited greater vocal responsiveness to adult vocal responses to their vocalizations than the control group. Findings support the effectiveness of the pivotal response treatment package on vocal reciprocity of children with autism spectrum disorder, which may be a pivotal skill for language development. Lay abstract A recent randomized controlled trial found that children with autism spectrum disorder who received a pivotal response treatment package showed improved language and social communication skills following the intervention. The pivotal response treatment package includes clinician-delivered and parent-implemented strategies. Reciprocal vocal contingency is an automated measure of vocal reciprocity derived from daylong audio samples from the child’s natural environment. It may provide stronger and complementary evidence of the effects of the pivotal response treatment package because it is at lower risk for detection bias than parent report and brief parent–child interaction measures. The current study compared reciprocal vocal contingency for 24 children with autism spectrum disorder in the pivotal response treatment package group and 24 children with autism spectrum disorder in the control group. The pivotal response treatment package group received 24 weeks of the pivotal response treatment package intervention. The control group received their usual intervention services during that time. The groups did not differ in reciprocal vocal contingency when the intervention started or after 12 weeks of intervention. However, after 24 weeks the pivotal response treatment package group had higher ranked reciprocal vocal contingency scores than the control group. These findings are consistent with results from parent report and parent–child interaction measures obtained during the trial. The participants in the pivotal response treatment package exhibited greater vocal responsiveness to adult vocal responses to their vocalizations than the control group. Findings support the effectiveness of the pivotal response treatment package on vocal reciprocity of children with autism spectrum disorder, which may be a pivotal skill for language development.


2020 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 239694152097150
Author(s):  
Magda Di Renzo ◽  
Federico Bianchi di Castelbianco ◽  
Elena Vanadia ◽  
Massimiliano Petrillo ◽  
Lidia Racinaro ◽  
...  

Background and aims The daily challenges of caring for a child with autism spectrum disorder affect many areas of everyday life and parental well-being, as well as parents’ ability to manage the needs of the family and the child concerned. A better understanding of parents’ perception of their child’s characteristics can allow better support for them and individualize intervention protocols in a more accurate way. The main objective of this study is the evaluation of the perception of stress by parents of children with autism compared to parents of children with specific language impairment. Methods The parents of 87 children aged between 2 and 6 years were included in this study, 34 children with a specific language impairment diagnosis and 53 children with an autism spectrum disorder diagnosis (ASD) or at risk of developing it. They were asked to complete a self-report on perceived stress and rating scales on adaptive/problematic behaviours, executive functions and sensory profile of the child. Results The results reveal that parents of ASD children, compared to the control group, showed significantly higher levels of stress, mainly due to the difficulty of managing unexpected events, the feeling of loss of control over one's life and the fear of not being able to cope with the adversities they were experiences. The most critical area, both for ASD and control group, concern the executive function related to emotional reactions. Conclusions Thus, we argue that the difficulties in self-control, sensory modulation and emotional regulation, represent an element of stress for parents of children with developmental disorders. Implications: Regarding the difficulties of children with ASD, supporting the ways in which caregivers adapt to the signals of children is an important strategy, which has now become a key element of treatments for autism mediated by parents.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 1436
Author(s):  
Barbara Maria Piskór ◽  
Andrzej Przylipiak ◽  
Emilia Dąbrowska ◽  
Iwona Sidorkiewicz ◽  
Marek Niczyporuk ◽  
...  

Metalloproteinases (MMPs) are a group of proteolytic enzymes involved in the maintenance of a proper structure of extracellular matrix (ECM). Matrilysins (MMP-7 and MMP-26) are members of the MMPs group that show promise as potential breast cancer (BC) markers. The aim of the study was to evaluate plasma levels of MMP-7, MMP-26 and CA 15-3 individually and in combination and assess the diagnostic utility of studied matrilysins in patients with BC. The study group consisted of 120 patients with BC, and the control group consisted of 40 subjects with benign breast cancer and 40 healthy women. Concentrations of MMP-7 and MMP-26 were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and CA 15-3 by chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassay. Plasma levels of MMP-7 were significantly higher in the BC group than in the control group. Concentrations of MMP-26 and CA 15-3 were highest in stages II and IV of the disease. The highest diagnostic sensitivity was observed in stages III and IV BC for the combination of all tested markers (92.5%). The highest diagnostic specificity was noted for all tested parameters combined in the BC group (95.0%). The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) for the combination of markers (MMP-7+MMP-26+CA 15-3) was the largest (0.9138) in stages III and IV. Individual marker analysis showed that MMP-7 had the highest AUC (0.8894) in advanced stages of the disease. Study results indicate that MMP-7 could be used as an additional marker that would improve the diagnostic utility of CA 15-3 in early stages of BC. Therefore, the combined assessment of MMP-7 and MMP-26 with CA 15-3 might be useful in determining disease progression. Further studies are needed to evaluate whether matrilysins show promise as potential markers for improving the diagnosis of BC.


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