What scientists have achieved in autism research!

In this paper, the editor has compiled several important research results, and jointly interpreted the new achievements of scientists in the field of autism research in the near future to share with you! Photo source: www.pixabay.com [1] nature: promoting IL-17A to produce behavioral symptoms that are expected to improve autism doi: 10.1038/s41586-019-1843-6 for many years, some parents have noticed that their autistic children's behavioral symptoms have been alleviated when they have fever In the past 15 years, at least two large-scale studies have documented this phenomenon, but it is not clear why fever has this effect In a new study, researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of technology and Harvard Medical School in the United States revealed the possible cellular mechanism behind this phenomenon In the study of mice, they found that in some cases of infection, an immune molecule called IL-17A was released and inhibited a small part of the cerebral cortex, which had been previously found to be related to the social behavior defects of mice, and the relevant research results were published in the Nature journal The researchers say it's hard to understand that people have observed this phenomenon (in autistic patients), and I think it's because we don't know the mechanism Now, this field, including my lab, is trying to prove how it works, from immune cells and molecules to receptors in the brain, and how these interactions lead to behavioral changes Although the findings in mice do not always translate into human therapies, this study may help guide the development of strategies to help alleviate behavioral symptoms of autism or other neurological disorders 【2】 Nat Neurosci: key genes regulate both autism and ADHD Doi: 10.1038/s41593-019-0527-8 researchers from the national psychiatric program IPS YCH found that autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have the same genetic variation This new knowledge has further deepened our understanding of the biological causes of two kinds of child psychosis In Denmark, about 1% of schoolchildren are autistic, while 2% to 3% are diagnosed with ADHD Autism and ADHD are different developmental disorders, but they can have some common symptoms For example, autistic children may exhibit violent or aggressive behavior, impulsivity, problems in school and social relations - and ADHD children can share these same symptoms Researchers at IPS YCH, the largest research project in Danish psychiatry, have found that similarities between the two symptoms can be linked to changes in the same gene The new study is the largest ever to look at rare mutations in the genome of people with ADHD and autism 【3】 Ajhg: new research reveals the effect of PTEN mutation on cancer and autism doi: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2019.09.004 recently, an international journal, the American Journal of human In the report on genetics, researchers from the Institute of genomics at the Cleveland Clinic identified a metabolite that can be used to predict whether individuals with PTEN mutations will develop cancer or autism spectrum disorder (ASD) Mutations in the tumor suppressor gene PTEN are associated with a range of rare genetic diseases, increasing the risk of certain cancers, cognitive and behavioral impairments These diseases are collectively referred to as PTEN heterogeneous tumor syndrome (PHTS), but the clinical manifestations of patients vary greatly and are usually unpredictable Previous studies have identified metabolic disorders as a sign of cancer For example, mutations in the SDHx gene can lead to the accumulation of succinic acid metabolites, which is related to the occurrence of tumors Similarly, previous studies have also found succinate accumulation in patients with PTEN mutations, indicating that changes in metabolic levels are related to the risk of diseases such as cancer 【4】 Nat Neurosci: the relationship between genes, leukocytes and autism doi: 10.1038/s41593-019-0489-x researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine found biomarkers related to ASD, which may help early diagnosis and prediction of symptom severity A team of scientists analyzed the blood gene expression data of 302 boys aged 1 to 4, including both ASD patients and healthy controls They found a key gene network that was destroyed in ASD In addition, the authors point out that the disturbed gene network is also related to the brain development of the fetus, which was recently published in the journal Nature Neuroscience, indicating that genetic factors affecting brain development during pregnancy are the main cause of ASD The genetic characteristics of autism are highly diverse, "the researchers said." hundreds of genes are involved, but the underlying mechanism is still unclear Our findings determine how ASD genetics disorders affect the core network of fetal and early life brain development, which in turn affects the severity of subsequent ASD symptoms 【5】 JAMA psychiatry: more than 2 million people's Congress data show that autism is largely caused by genetic factors! Doi: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2019.1375, an international magazine published in JAMA In the study report on psychiatry, researchers from Karolin college in Sweden conducted the largest study involving more than 2 million people in five countries, and found that 80% of autism spectrum disorders depend on genetic genes, which means that environmental factors only account for 20% of the risk This discovery opened a new door for the study of genetic causes of autism The Centers for Disease Control and prevention currently says one in 59 American children has autism It may also help to alleviate concerns that autism is caused by maternal factors - for example, the mother's weight, the way or time of delivery, or nutritional intake The new study found that the role of the mother factor is "nonexistent or minimal, and the current results provide the strongest evidence for our knowledge so far, that most of the risk of autism spectrum disorders comes from genetic factors The new study may help curb public interest in so-called but unproven "environmental" causes of autism, such as vaccines The "anti vaccine" campaign still widely cites long-term untrustworthy and fraudulent data between childhood vaccination and autism The contribution of environment to the risk of autism spectrum disorders seems to be much smaller than that of genes Photo source: jneurosci [6] nature: the monkey model developed by gene editing technology can be used to treat autism doi: 10.1038/s41586-019-1278-0 using the genome editing system CRISPR, researchers from MIT and China have developed the monkey model of autism These monkeys exhibit certain behavioral characteristics and brain connection patterns similar to those of people with autism Previously, scientists have developed a number of candidate drugs for clinical trials based on mouse models of autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders, but none of them succeeded However, the new model could help scientists develop better treatments for some neurodevelopmental disorders Our goal is to create a model to help us better understand the neurobiological mechanism of autism, and ultimately find a treatment plan that is easier to transform into human clinical We urgently need a new treatment plan to treat autism spectrum disorders So far, the treatment method for mice is not satisfactory Although mouse research is still very important, we believe that primate genetic models will help us develop better drugs; previously, scientists have found hundreds of genetic variations related to autism spectrum disorders, many of which only bring small risks In this study, the researchers focused on a gene with a strong association, called Shank3 In addition to being associated with autism, Shank3 mutations or deletions can also cause rare diseases, known as Phelan McDermid syndrome, whose most common features include mental disorders, impaired speech and sleep abilities, and repetitive behaviors 【7】 Cell: intestinal microbiological disorders induce autism doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2019.05.004 autism (ASD) can lead to various difficulties in social communication and repetitive behavior There are many factors that lead to autism, including genetic and environmental effects, and there is no approved treatment Now, using a mouse model, researchers at Caltech have found that gut bacteria directly cause autism behavior in mice, and the results are published in the journal Cell In recent years, many studies have revealed the differences in bacterial composition of intestinal microbiome between ASD patients and neurotypic subjects However, while previous studies have identified potentially significant associations, it is not able to resolve whether observed microbiome changes are the result of ASD, or whether they cause symptoms Our research shows that the gut microbiome is enough to promote autism behavior in mice However, these findings do not suggest that gut microbes can cause autism Further research is needed to address the impact of gut bacteria on humans The microbial community living in the human intestinal tract is called microbiome, and their collective genome is called microbiome These creatures coexist with human beings In order to create a warm and nutritious environment, bacteria can help us digest food, affect metabolism, and educate our immune system 【8】 Jneurosci: autism gene related to brain and behavior defects in mice doi: 10.1523/jneurosci.2529-18.2019 Recently, in a research report published in the International Journal jneurosci, researchers from abroad found that rats without Shank3 gene showed structural and functional defects in the prefrontal cortex through research, which improved our understanding of one of the most common genetic risk factors for autism spectrum disorders Shank3 mutations are common in people with autism and related developmental disorders Previous animal studies have shown a link between Shank3 and basal ganglia dysfunction, which may lead to repetitive behavioral features of autism In humans, Shank3 mutations are also associated with mental and language disorders In this paper, using MRI in adult male mice, researchers found reduced prefrontal cortical connectivity and gray matter volume in animals lacking Shank3 【9】 Science: to reveal the neural cell types related to autism doi: 10.1126/science.aav8130 in a new study, researchers from the University of California, San Francisco and other research institutions in the United States conducted a study on autism spectrum disorder, ASD) and more than 100000 postmortem brain cells of people without ASD were sequenced for nuclear RNA, and the abnormal regulated gene type and cell type were found in this disease These results help to narrow the focus of future ASD research to the most likely molecular and cellular abnormalities, and the relevant research results are published in the journal Science Currently, the incidence rate of ASD in children in the United States is about 1/60, which covers a wide range of diseases, characterized by communication and social interaction.