- 作者：Genichi Sugihara ; Kenji Hashimoto ; Yasuhide Iwata ; Kazuhiko Nakamura ; Masatsugu Tsujii ; Kenji J. Tsuchiya ; Yoshimoto Sekine ; Katsuaki Suzuki ; Shiro Suda ; Hideo Matsuzaki ; et al.
- 关键词：Autism ; Developmental disorders ; ELISA ; Hepatocyte growth factor ; Human blood
- 刊名：Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry
- 出版年：2007
- 期刊代码：222_02785846
- 类别：med
- 出版时间：30 March 2007
- 卷：31
- 期：2
- 页码：412-415
- 文件大小：164 K
The mechanisms underlying the pathophysiology of autism are currently unknown. Given the role of hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) in brain development, we hypothesized that HGF plays a role in the pathophysiology of autism. In this study, we studied whether serum HGF levels are altered in subjects with high-functioning autism.
Methods
Using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), we measured serum levels of HGF in 17 male adults with high-functioning autism and age-matched 18 male healthy subjects.
Results
The serum levels (503.5 ± 160.5 pg/mL (mean ± SD)) of HGF in the subjects with high-functioning autism were significantly (Mann–Whitney U = 34.0, p < 0.001) lower than those (817.6 ± 232.4 pg/mL (mean ± SD)) of control subjects. However, there were no correlations between serum HGF levels and clinical variables in the patients.
Conclusions
This study suggests that reduced HGF levels may play a role in the pathophysiology of high-functioning autism.