Elevated plasma concentrations of S100 calcium-binding protein B and tumor necrosis factor alpha in children with autism spectrum disorders

Abstract

Objective: To investigate plasma concentrations of S100B (a calcium-binding protein derived primarily from the glia) and inflammatory cytokines in children with autism and the relationship between S100B and cytokine concentrations. Methods: Plasma levels of S100B, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-a), interferon gamma, interleukin (IL)-1b, IL-4, IL-6, IL-10, and IL-17A were measured in 40 unmedicated children with autism and 35 normally developing healthy children. The severity of autism was assessed using the Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS). Results: Concentrations of both S100B and TNF-a were higher in children with autism before and after adjusting for a priori-selected confounders (age, sex, and body mass index). S100B concentrations were higher in children with severe autism compared to children with mild-moderate autism. However, this association remained as a trend after adjusting for confounders. S100B concentrations correlated positively with TNF-a concentrations. Conclusion: Our findings showing an increase in peripheral concentrations of S100B and TNF-a provide limited support to the hypothesis about the roles of altered immune function and S100B in autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Studies of larger numbers of well-characterized individuals with ASD are needed to clarify the potential role of the immune system in the pathophysiology of this disorder.

A powerful approach to estimating annotation-stratified genetic covariance using GWAS summary statistics

“…We also draw attention to the significant negative correlation between MS and ASD. This replicates a previous genetic association between MS and ASD, with more recent evidence suggesting shared biomedical markers, such as increase in concentrations of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), in serum in ASD and in cerebrospinal fluid in MS [37,38]. However, previous treatment of MS with anti-TNF-alpha led to an increase in the number of demyelinating lesions and a significantly higher relapse rate [39].…”

Autism spectrum disorder, anxiety and severe depression in a male patient with deletion and duplication in the 21q22.3 region: A case report

“…Of interest, certain SNPs of PCNT located in this 200 kb region have been associated with schizophrenia (28) and major depressive disorder (29). The second candidate gene in the etiology of major mood disorders is S100B, encoding S100 calcium-binding protein B, which has been associated with the etiology of schizophrenia (30), bipolar depression (31,32) and autism (33). However, these studies predominantly refer to protein overexpression compared with levels observed for healthy controls.…”

Blood-brain barrier regulation in psychiatric disorders

“…One recent study found that S100B, GFAP, and NSE did not differ between ASD and control children but did find that GFAP levels were significantly higher in ASD individuals and GFAP levels positively correlated with scores on the Childhood Autism Rating Scale [147]. Other studies did find significantly increased levels of S100β in serum [148] and in plasma [149] for children with ASD and that this correlated with increased levels of the cytokine tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) [149]. In a neonatal population, there were significantly higher levels Table 1 Summary of findings from 1 Fiorentino et al [154], Greene et al [57], and Nishiura et al [123].…”