Increased Serum Levels of Epidermal Growth Factor in Children with Autism

Overview

Journal J Autism Dev Disord

Publisher Springer

Date 2010 Jun 15

PMID 20544265

Citations 13

Authors

Elvan Iseri

Esra Guney

Mehmet F Ceylan

Aysegul Yucel

Arzu Aral

Sahin Bodur

Sahnur Sener

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

The etiology of autism is unclear, however autism is considered as a multifactorial disorder that is influenced by neurological, environmental, immunological and genetic factors. Growth factors, including epidermal growth factor (EGF), play an important role in the cellular proliferation and the differentiation of the central and peripheral nervous system. In this study we hypothesized that EGF may play a role in the pathophysiology of autism and examined serum EGF levels in children with autism. We measured serum levels of EGF in the 27 autistic children and 28 age- matched normal controls. The serum levels of EGF in the subjects with autism were significantly higher than those of normal control subjects. However, there were no correlations between serum EGF levels and clinical variables in the subjects with autism. This is the first report demonstrating the increased serum levels of EGF in children with autism. This study suggests that increased levels of EGF might have an importance in the pathophysiology of autism.

Citing Articles

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Gestational autoantibody exposure impacts early brain development in a rat model of MAR autism.

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Increased serum EGF but not SDF-1 levels are associated with the pathophysiology and development of generalized anxiety disorder.

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Serum Epidermal Growth Factor is Low in Schizophrenia and Not Affected by Antipsychotics Alone or Combined With Electroconvulsive Therapy.

Zhang X, Xiao W, Chen K, Zhao Y, Ye F, Tang X Front Psychiatry. 2020; 11:104.

PMID: 32194452 PMC: 7062789. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00104.

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