TY - JOUR
T1 - Increased IgG4 levels in children with autism disorder
AU - Enstrom, Amanda
AU - Krakowiak, Paula
AU - Onore, Charity
AU - Pessah, Isaac N
AU - Hertz-Picciotto, Irva
AU - Hansen, Robin L
AU - Van de Water, Judith A
AU - Ashwood, Paul
PY - 2009/3
Y1 - 2009/3
N2 - Accumulating evidence indicates that immune dysfunction is associated with autism disorders in a significant subset of children. Previous reports have shown abnormal immunoglobulin (Ig) levels, including an increased presence of autoreactive antibodies in the circulation of individuals with autism. As IgG is the predominant antibody isotype in circulation, we expected that an altered immune response could result in an abnormal IgG subclass profile in children with autism. We examined circulating plasma levels of IgG1, IgG2, IgG3, and IgG4 in 241 children from the CHARGE (Childhood Autism Risks from Genetics and the Environment) study, a large epidemiologic case-control investigation, including 114 children who meet full criteria for autism disorder (AU), 96 typically developing control children (TD) from a randomly selected sample of the general population, and 31 children with developmental delays (DD). We report significantly increased levels of the IgG4 subclass in children with AU compared with TD control children (p = 0.016) and compared with DD controls (p = 0.041). These results may suggest an underlying immunological abnormality in AU subjects resulting in elevated IgG4 production. Further investigation is necessary to elucidate the relationship between immunological findings and behavioral impairments in autism.
AB - Accumulating evidence indicates that immune dysfunction is associated with autism disorders in a significant subset of children. Previous reports have shown abnormal immunoglobulin (Ig) levels, including an increased presence of autoreactive antibodies in the circulation of individuals with autism. As IgG is the predominant antibody isotype in circulation, we expected that an altered immune response could result in an abnormal IgG subclass profile in children with autism. We examined circulating plasma levels of IgG1, IgG2, IgG3, and IgG4 in 241 children from the CHARGE (Childhood Autism Risks from Genetics and the Environment) study, a large epidemiologic case-control investigation, including 114 children who meet full criteria for autism disorder (AU), 96 typically developing control children (TD) from a randomly selected sample of the general population, and 31 children with developmental delays (DD). We report significantly increased levels of the IgG4 subclass in children with AU compared with TD control children (p = 0.016) and compared with DD controls (p = 0.041). These results may suggest an underlying immunological abnormality in AU subjects resulting in elevated IgG4 production. Further investigation is necessary to elucidate the relationship between immunological findings and behavioral impairments in autism.
KW - ADOS
KW - Antibodies
KW - Autism
KW - Behavior
KW - IgG4
KW - Immunoglobulin
KW - Immunology
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UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=61549093383&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.bbi.2008.12.005
DO - 10.1016/j.bbi.2008.12.005
M3 - Article
C2 - 19136055
AN - SCOPUS:61549093383
VL - 23
SP - 389
EP - 395
JO - Brain, Behavior, and Immunity
JF - Brain, Behavior, and Immunity
SN - 0889-1591
IS - 3
ER -