Sera from children with autism induce autistic features which can be rescued with a CNTF small peptide mimetic in rats.

ABSTRACT: Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized clinically by impairments in social interaction and verbal and non-verbal communication skills as well as restricted interests and repetitive behavior. It has been hypothesized that altered brain environment including an imbalance in neurotrophic support during early development contributes to the pathophysiology of autism. Here we report that sera from children with autism which exhibited abnormal levels of various neurotrophic factors induced cell death and oxidative stress in mouse primary cultured cortical neurons. The effects of sera from autistic children were rescued by pre-treatment with a ciliary neurotrophic factor (CNTF) small peptide mimetic, Peptide 6 (P6), which was previously shown to exert its neuroprotective effect by m

SUBMITTER: Kazim SF 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4359103 | biostudies-literature | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature