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Query: UMLS:C0004352 (autism)
 32,579 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Magnesium has a profound effect on neural excitability; the most characteristic signs and symptoms of Mg deficiency are produced by neural and neuromuscular hyperexcitability. These create a constellation of clinical findings termed tetany syndrome (TS). TS symptoms include muscle spasms, cramps and hyperarousal, hyperventilation and asthenia. Physical signs (Chvostek's, Trousseau's or von Bonsdorff's) and abnormalities of the electromyogram or electroencephalogram can usually be elicited. Signs and symptoms of TS are frequently encountered in clinical practice, especially among patients with functional or stress-related disorders. The role of Mg deficit in TS is suggested by relatively low levels of serum or erythrocyte Mg and by the clinical response to oral Mg salts, which has been demonstrated in controlled studies. Among the more serious neurologic sequelae of TS are migraine attacks, transient ischemic attacks, sensorineural hearing loss and convulsions. Mg deficiency may predispose to hyperventilation and may sensitize the cerebral vasculature to the effects of hypocarbia. Mg deficiency increases susceptibility to the physiologic damage produced by stress, and Mg administration has a protective effect; studies on noise stress and noise-induced hearing loss are taken as an example. In addition, the adrenergic effects of psychological stress induce a shift of Mg from the intracellular to the extracellular space, increasing urinary excretion and eventually depleting body stores. Drugs used in neurology and psychiatry may affect Mg levels in blood and may diminish signs of tetany, making assessment of Mg status more difficult. Pharmacologic use of Mg can decrease neurologic deficit in experimental head trauma, possibly by blockade of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors. In conjunction with high doses of pyridoxine, Mg salts benefit 40% of patients with autism, possibly by an effect on dopamine metabolism.
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PMID:Magnesium, stress and neuropsychiatric disorders. 184 61

Autism was previously thought to be caused by environmental factors. However, genetic factors are now considered to be more contributory to the pathogenesis of autism, based on the recent findings of mutations in the genes which encode synaptic molecules associated with the communication between neurons. Epigenetic is a mechanism that controls gene expression without changing DNA sequence but by changing chromosomal histone modifications and its abnormality is associated with several neurodevelopmental diseases. Since epigenetic modifications are known to be affected by environmental factors such as nutrition, drugs and mental stress, autistic diseases are not only caused by congenital genetic defects, but may also be caused by environmental factors via epigenetic mechanism. In this chapter, we introduce autistic diseases caused by epigenetic failures and discuss epigenetic changes by environmental factors and discuss new treatments for neurodevelopmental diseases based on the recent epigenetic findings.
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PMID:Epigenetics in autism and other neurodevelopmental diseases. 2241 Dec 36

Epidemiological studies show that maternal viral infection during pregnancy plays a key role in the etiology of neurodevelopmental disorders, such as schizophrenia and autism. Prenatal maternal immune activation and peripubertal psychological stress are key environmental risk factors for neurodevelopmental disorders. Viral mimic polyriboinosinic-polyribocytidylic acid is known to act as a Toll-like receptor-3 agonist. Polyriboinosinic-polyribocytidylic acid has been typically used to establish this rodent model of prenatal immune activation. Recently, Giovanoli et al. reported on a new neurodevelopmental model of schizophrenia based on combined prenatal immune activation and peripubertal stress. In this report, we place these findings into context and discuss their significance.
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PMID:Prenatal immune activation and subsequent peripubertal stress as a new model of schizophrenia. 2344 93

The number of children with mild neurodevelopmental disorders, such as autism, has been recently increasing in advanced countries. This increase is probably caused by environmental factors rather than genetic factors, because it is unlikely that genetic mutation rates suddenly increased within a short period. Epigenetics is a mechanism that regulates gene expression, depending not on the underlying DNA sequence but on the chemical modifications of DNA and histone proteins. Because mental stress can alter the epigenetic status in neuronal cells, environmental factors may alter brain function through epigenetic changes. However, one advantage of epigenetic changes is their reversibility. Therefore, diseases due to abnormal epigenetic regulation are theoretically treatable. In fact, several drugs for treating mental diseases are known to have restoring effects on aberrant epigenetic statuses, and a novel therapeutic strategy targeting gene has been developed. In this review, we discuss epigenetic mechanisms of congenital and acquired neurodevelopmental disorders, drugs with epigenetic effects, novel therapeutic strategies for epigenetic diseases, and future perspectives in epigenetic medicine.
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PMID:Epigenetic mechanisms and therapeutic perspectives for neurodevelopmental disorders. 2428 7

Regulation of the immune system is an important function of the gut microbiota. Increasing evidence suggests that modern living conditions cause the gut microbiota to deviate from the form it took during human evolution. Contributing factors include loss of helminth infections, encountering less microbial biodiversity, and modulation of the microbiota composition by diet and antibiotic use. Thus the gut microbiota is a major mediator of the hygiene hypothesis (or as we prefer, "Old Friends" mechanism), which describes the role of organisms with which we co-evolved, and that needed to be tolerated, as crucial inducers of immunoregulation. At least partly as a consequence of reduced exposure to immunoregulatory Old Friends, many but not all of which resided in the gut, high-income countries are undergoing large increases in a wide range of chronic inflammatory disorders including allergies, autoimmunity and inflammatory bowel diseases. Depression, anxiety and reduced stress resilience are comorbid with these conditions, or can occur in individuals with persistently raised circulating levels of biomarkers of inflammation in the absence of clinically apparent peripheral inflammatory disease. Moreover poorly regulated inflammation during pregnancy might contribute to brain developmental abnormalities that underlie some cases of autism spectrum disorders and schizophrenia. In this chapter we explain how the gut microbiota drives immunoregulation, how faulty immunoregulation and inflammation predispose to psychiatric disease, and how psychological stress drives further inflammation via pathways that involve the gut and microbiota. We also outline how this two-way relationship between the brain and inflammation implicates the microbiota, Old Friends and immunoregulation in the control of stress resilience.
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PMID:Microbiota, immunoregulatory old friends and psychiatric disorders. 2499 41

Neurofibromatosis 1 (NF1) arises de novo in a striking 30-50% of cases, pointing toward an environmental etiology, though none has been clearly identified. The Biome Depletion Theory posits that the absence of mutualistic and commensal organisms within the human body coupled with modern lifestyle alterations may have profoundly deleterious effects, inclusive of immunologic derangement that is thought to result in allergy, atopy, and numerous autoimmune diseases. Biome depletion has been implicated as a factor in the etiology of both multiple sclerosis and autism spectrum disorders; biome reconstitution, i.e. replenishment of the biome with certain keynote species, is being used in the treatment of these and other autoimmune states. Neurofibromatosis 1 has been associated with allergy, various autoimmune states, multiple sclerosis, and autism. Recent research has posited that NF1, multiple sclerosis and autism may all arise from disturbances in the neural crest during gestation. This paper hypothesizes that there is indirect evidence that a highly inflammatory uterine state may precipitate epigenetic changes in vulnerable NF-related genes in the course of fetal development. The etiology of NF1 may lie in the absence of immunomodulation by commensal and mutualistic species once ubiquitously present in the environment, as well as through adoption of a modern lifestyle that contributes to chronic inflammation. Replenishment of helminths and other missing organisms to the human biome prior to conception as well as addressing nutritional status, psychological stress, and environmental exposures may prevent the development of NF1.
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PMID:Biome depletion in conjunction with evolutionary mismatches could play a role in the etiology of neurofibromatosis 1. 2566 56

Chronic psychological stress is associated with accelerated aging and premature morbidity and mortality; however, the biology linking chronic psychological stress and its maladaptive effects remains largely unknown. Klotho is a pleiotropic hormone that regulates the aging process and promotes better brain and body health. Whether klotho is linked to psychosocial stress or its negative impact in humans has not been investigated. To address this gap, we recruited 178 healthy women who were either chronically high-stress maternal caregivers for a child with autism spectrum disorder (n = 90) or low-stress control mothers of a typically developing child (n = 88). We found that women under high chronic stress displayed significantly lower levels of the longevity hormone klotho compared with low-stress controls (t(176) = 2.92, P = 0.004; d = 0.44), and the decrease among those under high stress was age-dependent. In addition, high-stress caregivers who reported more depressive symptoms displayed even lower klotho levels compared with low-stress participants. These findings provide the first evidence that klotho levels are sensitive to psychosocial stressors and raise the possibility that klotho may serve as a novel biological link connecting stress, depression and risk for accelerated disease development. Furthermore, these findings have important implications for understanding the plasticity of the aging process and may represent a therapeutic target for mitigating the deleterious effects of chronic psychological stress on health and well-being.
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PMID:Longevity factor klotho and chronic psychological stress. 2608 Mar 20

The rehabilitation program has been conducted at our psychiatric clinic for depressive patients who are absent from work, with the aim of assisting them to return to work. We have noticed that a substantial number of the patients have traits of developmental disorders, which contribute to chronicity and/or recurrence of depression. Therefore, we have recently created a new rehabilitation program in addition to the specialty outpatient clinic and peer support group. All these programs specialize in treating adult patients with mild developmental disorders [mostly autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)]. Since then, we have investigated a lot of depressive patients whose ASD symptoms have been identified for the first time in their life. Symptoms were first noted after they started work where they experienced impaired social functioning because the social demands were higher than those at schools. To assist patients with their goals of improving symptoms and stabilizing social functions, it is valid to evaluate whether the autistic traits cause mental stress and impairment during occupational functioning, even if the diagnosis of ASD is not definitive or the symptoms are below the diagnostic threshold for ASD. The profile of ASD symptoms is different for each patient, and therefore personalized support is essential.
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PMID:[The Outpatient Clinic and Rehabilitation Program Specialized in Adult Developmental Disorders]. 2652 47

Substantial empirical evidence has highlighted the psychological stress and negative well-being of parents whose children are diagnosed with autism. It has further indicated a need for understanding the mechanisms through which these parents come to successfully meet the challenges of caregiving for these children whose condition are often characterized by persistent behavioral, social, and communication problems. This qualitative study aims to bridge the research gap in 3 ways. First, we sought to understand the ways in which mothers of children having autism foster their parenting self-efficacy (PSE) when caring for their child. Second, we sought to identify additional PSE sources. Third, we attempted to understand how these mothers successfully manage negative experiences that were often in the way of their parenting efforts. Ten mothers with children between 7 and 9 years of age were interviewed. Bandura's social-cognitive framework guided the analyses of the sources of PSE (Bandura, 1997). Mastery experiences were identified as the most critical PSE source, and the physiological and affective states of the mothers were second most important in shaping their PSE. Vicarious experiences and verbal persuasion did not emerge as salient sources. "Support in parenting" was also found to be significant in fostering the mothers' perceived capability. Furthermore, we noted that while multiple negative experiences were encountered, these mothers tended to frame their experiences in adaptive ways to allow them to use these as feedback for subsequent parenting endeavors to booster their perceived capability. Implications for future research were discussed in the light of these findings. (PsycINFO Database Record
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PMID:Parenting self-efficacy beliefs in parents of children with autism: Perspectives from Singapore. 2707 47

Both environmental factors and genetic factors are involved in the pathogenesis of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). Epigenetics, an essential mechanism for gene regulation based on chemical modifications of DNA and histone proteins, is also involved in congenital ASDs. It was recently demonstrated that environmental factors, such as endocrine disrupting chemicals and mental stress in early life, can change epigenetic status and gene expression, and can cause ASDs. Moreover, environmentally induced epigenetic changes are not erased during gametogenesis and are transmitted to subsequent generations, leading to changes in behavior phenotypes. However, epigenetics has a reversible nature since it is based on the addition or removal of chemical residues, and thus the original epigenetic status may be restored. Indeed, several antidepressants and anticonvulsants used for mental disorders including ASDs restore the epigenetic state and gene expression. Therefore, further epigenetic understanding of ASDs is important for the development of new drugs that take advantages of epigenetic reversibility.
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PMID:Epigenetic Effect of Environmental Factors on Autism Spectrum Disorders. 2718 41


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