U.C. Davis Study Finds Gene Distinctions in Children with Autism
Thursday, January 31, 2008
By: Carin Yavorcik

Analysis may lead to biological diagnosis

Researchers at the U.C. Davis M.I.N.D. Institute have found that a group of genes with known links to natural-killer cells (the first to attack viruses, bacteria and malignancies) are expressed at high levels in the blood of children with autism when compared to children without the disorder.

Experts say the outcomes, published in the January issue of Genomics, offer hope that gene expression analyses can provide biological evidence of autism, currently diagnosed only through behavioral assessments, in some children.

While a number of studies have shown irregular immune systems to be an important factor in autism, this is one of the first to implicate these particular cells, according to a press release from U.C. Davis.

“What we are seeing can reflect something in the environment that is triggering the activation of these genes or something genetic that the children have from the time they were conceived,” said Frank Sharp, senior author of the study and professor of neurology with the M.I.N.D. Institute, in the release. “Such an immune response could be caused by exposure to a virus, another infectious agent or even a toxin. Another possibility is that these changes represent a genetic susceptibility factor that predisposes children to autism when they are exposed to some environmental factor.”