The barrier, airway particle clearance, placental and detoxification functions of autism susceptibility genes

Autism genes and the leukocyte transcriptome in autistic toddlers relate to pathogen interactomes, infection and the immune system. A role for excess neurotrophic sAPPα and reduced antimicrobial Aβ

Prenatal and early childhood infections have been implicated in autism. Many autism susceptibility genes (206 Autworks genes) are localised in the immune system and are related to immune/infection pathways. They are enriched in the host/pathogen interactomes of 18 separate microbes (bacteria/viruses and fungi) and to the genes regulated by bacterial toxins, mycotoxins and Toll-like receptor ligands. This enrichment was also observed for misregulated genes from a microarray study of leukocytes from autistic toddlers. The upregulated genes from this leukocyte study also matched the expression profiles in response to numerous infectious agents from the Broad Institute molecular signatures database. They also matched genes related to sudden infant death syndrome and autism comorbid conditions (autoimmune disease, systemic lupus erythematosus, diabetes, epilepsy and cardiomyopathy) as well as to estrogen and thyrotropin responses and to those upregulated by different types of stressors including oxidative stress, hypoxia, endoplasmic reticulum stress, ultraviolet radiation or 2,4-dinitrofluorobenzene, a hapten used to develop allergic skin reactions in animal models. The oxidative/integrated stress response is also upregulated in the autism brain and may contribute to myelination problems. There was also a marked similarity between the expression signatures of autism and Alzheimer's disease, and 44 shared autism/Alzheimer's disease genes are almost exclusively expressed in the blood-brain barrier. However, in contrast to Alzheimer's disease, levels of the antimicrobial peptide beta-amyloid are decreased and the levels of the neurotrophic/myelinotrophic soluble APP alpha are increased in autism, together with an increased activity of α-secretase. sAPPα induces an increase in glutamatergic and a decrease in GABA-ergic synapses creating and excitatory/inhibitory imbalance that has also been observed in autism. A literature survey showed that multiple autism genes converge on APP processing and that many are able to increase sAPPalpha at the expense of beta-amyloid production. A genetically programmed tilt of this axis towards an overproduction of neurotrophic/gliotrophic sAPPalpha and underproduction of antimicrobial beta-amyloid may explain the brain overgrowth and myelination dysfunction, as well as the involvement of pathogens in autism.

Blood-brain barrier regulation in psychiatric disorders

The blood-brain barrier (BBB) is a dynamic interface between the peripheral blood supply and the cerebral parenchyma, controlling the transport of material to and from the brain. Tight junctions between the endothelial cells of the cerebral microvasculature limit the passage of large, negatively charged molecules via paracellular diffusion whereas transcellular transportation across the endothelial cell is controlled by a number of mechanisms including transporter proteins, endocytosis, and diffusion. Here, we review the evidence that perturbation of these processes may underlie the development of psychiatric disorders including schizophrenia, autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and affective disorders. Increased permeability of the BBB appears to be a common factor in these disorders, leading to increased infiltration of peripheral material into the brain culminating in neuroinflammation and oxidative stress. However, although there is no common mechanism underpinning BBB dysfunction even within each particular disorder, the tight junction protein claudin-5 may be a clinically relevant target given that both clinical and pre-clinical research has linked it to schizophrenia, ASD, and depression. Additionally, we discuss the clinical significance of the BBB in diagnosis (genetic markers, dynamic contrast-enhanced-magnetic resonance imaging, and blood biomarkers) and in treatment (drug delivery).

A highly sensitive impedimetric aptasensor for the selective detection of acetamiprid and atrazine based on microwires formed by platinum nanoparticles

A novel impedimetric biosensor was developed for the detection of the two extensively used pesticides, acetamiprid and atrazine. By employing the sputtering and e-beam lithography techniques, platinum nanoparticles (Pt NPs) were deposited in a bridge-like arrangement, in between interdigitated electrodes (IDEs). The resulting Pt NP microwires were chemically functionalized to allow the covalent immobilization of aptamers against the two target analytes onto the sensor surfaces. The biosensing platform facilitated charge transfer through the microwire-bridged IDEs, while upon analyte binding to the immobilized aptamers electron transfer was hindered, resulting in an increase of the electrochemical cell's impedance. The combination of Pt NPs microwires and aptamers allowed the sensitive and highly selective detection of acetamiprid with a linear range of response in the range of 10pM to 100nM with a limit of detection (LoD) at 1pM, and of atrazine with a linear range of responses from 100pM to 1μM and a LoD at 10pM respectively. Its performance was tested against a number of other commonly used pesticides as well as in real water samples.

How does autism spectrum disorder affect the risk and severity of childhood asthma?

BACKGROUND

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and asthma are among the most common chronic disorders in childhood. Both are associated with altered immune regulation and share several risk factors. The effects of ASD on risk for later asthma and asthma severity remain unclear.

OBJECTIVE

To determine whether ASD in children increases the risk of incident asthma and worsens asthma severity.

METHODS

We performed 2 distinct analytic designs (case-control and retrospective longitudinal cohort) using a multistate electronic health records database to assess the odds of new asthma and asthma severity among children with ASD. In both designs, children with ASD were matched with children without ASD according to sex, age, race, ethnicity, location, and insurance status. Pulmonary function, controller medication prescriptions, asthma exacerbations, and asthma-related hospitalizations were collected. The effects of ASD on asthma risk and severity were assessed using multivariable linear and logistic regression.

RESULTS

Among children with asthma, ASD was associated with reduced exacerbations (odds ratio [OR], 0.71; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.54-0.92), better forced expiratory volume in 1 second/forced vital capacity ratio (0.876 vs 0.841, P < .001), and lower odds of airflow obstruction (OR, 0.53; 95% CI, 0.31-0.90) but had higher odds of asthma controller prescription (OR, 2.18; 95% CI, 1.62-2.93). In a longitudinal analysis of children without asthma, ASD was found to be protective for new asthma (OR, 0.44; 95% CI, 0.26-0.74).

CONCLUSION

Among children with asthma, concomitant ASD is associated with better asthma-related outcomes but a higher controller treatment burden. In addition, our data did not support ASD as a risk factor for incident asthma.

Autism genes are selectively targeted by environmental pollutants including pesticides, heavy metals, bisphenol A, phthalates and many others in food, cosmetics or household products

The increasing incidence of autism suggests a major environmental influence. Epidemiology has implicated many candidates and genetics many susceptibility genes. Gene/environment interactions in autism were analysed using 206 autism susceptibility genes (ASG's) from the Autworks database to interrogate ∼1 million chemical/gene interactions in the comparative toxicogenomics database. Any bias towards ASG's was statistically determined for each chemical. Many suspect compounds identified in epidemiology, including tetrachlorodibenzodioxin, pesticides, particulate matter, benzo(a)pyrene, heavy metals, valproate, acetaminophen, SSRI's, cocaine, bisphenol A, phthalates, polyhalogenated biphenyls, flame retardants, diesel constituents, terbutaline and oxytocin, inter alia showed a significant degree of bias towards ASG's, as did relevant endogenous agents (retinoids, sex steroids, thyroxine, melatonin, folate, dopamine, serotonin). Numerous other suspected endocrine disruptors (over 100) selectively targeted ASG's including paraquat, atrazine and other pesticides not yet studied in autism and many compounds used in food, cosmetics or household products, including tretinoin, soy phytoestrogens, aspartame, titanium dioxide and sodium fluoride. Autism polymorphisms influence the sensitivity to some of these chemicals and these same genes play an important role in barrier function and control of respiratory cilia sweeping particulate matter from the airways. Pesticides, heavy metals and pollutants also disrupt barrier and/or ciliary function, which is regulated by sex steroids and by bitter/sweet taste receptors. Further epidemiological studies and neurodevelopmental and behavioural research is warranted to determine the relevance of large number of suspect candidates whose addition to the environment, household, food and cosmetics might be fuelling the autism epidemic in a gene-dependent manner.