Autism Spectrum Disorder linked with bacteria in gut
A study linking autism with bacteria in the gut today raised hopes that the condition could be treated using probiotics.
The result are very preliminary, but the scientist responsible, Professor Glenn Gibson of the University of Reading, said he was "cautiously optimistic" about them. He added that the study did not suggest any connection between autism and childhood vaccinations.
Prof Gibson told the annual British Association Festival of Science in Norwich that autistic children often suffered with bowel problems such as diarrhoea and constipation, suggesting that they may not have a normal collection of microbes in their guts.
His team compared the bacteria in faeces samples taken from 50 autistic children with those taken from 50 non-autistic subjects, and found that the samples from autistic children had raised levels of the bacterium clostridium.
"Whatever is going on there, [it] is not doing these children any good, and I think almost certainly explains their gastro problems," said Prof Gibson.
More speculatively, he said that some species of clostridium could produce toxins that affected the brain, possibly causing autistic symptoms. But he warned: "The problem with these kinds of studies is, you never know whether it is cause or effect."
To find out, the team set up a trial of a probiotic treatment to reduce the level of clostridium. The trial involved 40 autistic children aged between four and eight. Half were given a harmless bacterium naturally present in the gut, called lactobacillus lantarum; half were given a placebo.
The probiotic was administered as a gramme of powder each day containing around 1bn bacteria. Without being told which group their children were in, parents were asked to record their symptoms.
The results are inconclusive because around half of children dropped out. Some parents withdrew their kids because they did not want them to be swapped on to the placebo.
"Some of the parents worked out that their child was on the [probiotic] and didn't want to move on to the placebo because they were seeing some positive results," said Prof Gibson.
Parents reported that their child's concentration and behaviour had improved, and one mother said it was "heartbreaking" to be told to move on to the placebo.
The result are very preliminary, but the scientist responsible, Professor Glenn Gibson of the University of Reading, said he was "cautiously optimistic" about them. He added that the study did not suggest any connection between autism and childhood vaccinations.
Prof Gibson told the annual British Association Festival of Science in Norwich that autistic children often suffered with bowel problems such as diarrhoea and constipation, suggesting that they may not have a normal collection of microbes in their guts.
His team compared the bacteria in faeces samples taken from 50 autistic children with those taken from 50 non-autistic subjects, and found that the samples from autistic children had raised levels of the bacterium clostridium.
"Whatever is going on there, [it] is not doing these children any good, and I think almost certainly explains their gastro problems," said Prof Gibson.
More speculatively, he said that some species of clostridium could produce toxins that affected the brain, possibly causing autistic symptoms. But he warned: "The problem with these kinds of studies is, you never know whether it is cause or effect."
To find out, the team set up a trial of a probiotic treatment to reduce the level of clostridium. The trial involved 40 autistic children aged between four and eight. Half were given a harmless bacterium naturally present in the gut, called lactobacillus lantarum; half were given a placebo.
The probiotic was administered as a gramme of powder each day containing around 1bn bacteria. Without being told which group their children were in, parents were asked to record their symptoms.
The results are inconclusive because around half of children dropped out. Some parents withdrew their kids because they did not want them to be swapped on to the placebo.
"Some of the parents worked out that their child was on the [probiotic] and didn't want to move on to the placebo because they were seeing some positive results," said Prof Gibson.
Parents reported that their child's concentration and behaviour had improved, and one mother said it was "heartbreaking" to be told to move on to the placebo.
posted by kevin at 1:29 PM
