Decreased serum levels of adiponectin in subjects with autism

• Published in: Progress in neuro-psychopharmacology & biological psychiatry Vol. 34; no. 3; pp. 455 - 458
• Main Authors: Fujita-Shimizu, Azusa, Suzuki, Katsuaki, Nakamura, Kazuhiko, Miyachi, Taishi, Matsuzaki, Hideo, Kajizuka, Masanobu, Shinmura, Chie, Iwata, Yasuhide, Suda, Shiro, Tsuchiya, Kenji J., Matsumoto, Kaori, Sugihara, Genichi, Iwata, Keiko, Yamamoto, Shigeyuki, Tsujii, Masatsugu, Sugiyama, Toshiro, Takei, Nori, Mori, Norio
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier Inc 16.04.2010; Elsevier
• Subjects: Adiponectin; Adiponectin - blood; Adolescent; Autism; Autistic Disorder - blood; Biological and medical sciences; Case-Control Studies; Child; Child clinical studies; Developmental disorders; Humans; Infantile autism; Inflammatory events; Male; Medical sciences; Neuropharmacology; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Serum; Statistics as Topic; Young Adult; BBB; DSM-IV-TR; SCID; IL-6; Adiponectin; SD; ANCOVA; Autism; TNF-α; Inflammatory events; CSF; ADI-R; TGF-β1; Serum; BUN; SPSS; BMI; Human; Biological fluid; Developmental disorder; Inflammation
• ISSN: 0278-5846; 1878-4216; 1878-4216
• DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2009.12.020

The neurobiological basis for autism remains poorly understood. We hypothesized that adipokines, such as adiponectin, may play a role in the pathophysiology of autism. In this study, we examined whether serum levels of adiponectin are altered in subjects with autism. We measured serum levels of adiponectin in male subjects with autism ( n = 31) and age-matched healthy male subjects ( n = 31). The serum levels of adiponectin in the subjects with autism were significantly lower than that of normal control subjects. The serum adiponectin levels in the subjects with autism were negatively correlated with their domain A scores in the Autism Diagnostic Interview—Revised, which reflects their impairments in social interaction. This study suggests that decreased levels of serum adiponectin might be implicated in the pathophysiology of autism.