Increased production of IL-17 in children with autism spectrum disorders and co-morbid asthma

Marjannie Eloi Akintunde; Melissa Rose; Paula Krakowiak; Luke Heuer; Paul Ashwood; Robin Hansen; Irva Hertz-Picciotto; Judy Van de Water

doi:10.1016/j.jneuroim.2015.07.003

Increased production of IL-17 in children with autism spectrum disorders and co-morbid asthma

J Neuroimmunol. 2015 Sep 15:286:33-41. doi: 10.1016/j.jneuroim.2015.07.003. Epub 2015 Jul 11.

Authors

Marjannie Eloi Akintunde¹, Melissa Rose², Paula Krakowiak³, Luke Heuer⁴, Paul Ashwood⁵, Robin Hansen⁶, Irva Hertz-Picciotto², Judy Van de Water⁷

Affiliations

¹ School of Medicine, Division of Rheumatology, Allergy and Clinical Immunology, University of California, Davis, United States; NIEHS Center for Children's Environmental Health, University of California, Davis, United States. Electronic address: mdeloi@ucdavis.edu.
² NIEHS Center for Children's Environmental Health, University of California, Davis, United States; The M.I.N.D. Institute, University of California, Davis, United States; School of Public Health Sciences, University of California, Davis, United States.
³ The M.I.N.D. Institute, University of California, Davis, United States; School of Public Health Sciences, University of California, Davis, United States.
⁴ School of Medicine, Division of Rheumatology, Allergy and Clinical Immunology, University of California, Davis, United States; The M.I.N.D. Institute, University of California, Davis, United States.
⁵ NIEHS Center for Children's Environmental Health, University of California, Davis, United States; The M.I.N.D. Institute, University of California, Davis, United States; School of Medicine, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, United States.
⁶ NIEHS Center for Children's Environmental Health, University of California, Davis, United States; The M.I.N.D. Institute, University of California, Davis, United States; Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, University of California, Davis, United States.
⁷ School of Medicine, Division of Rheumatology, Allergy and Clinical Immunology, University of California, Davis, United States; NIEHS Center for Children's Environmental Health, University of California, Davis, United States; The M.I.N.D. Institute, University of California, Davis, United States.

Abstract

Inflammation and asthma have both been reported in some children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). To further assess this connection, peripheral immune cells isolated from young children with ASD and typically developing (TD) controls and the production of cytokines IL-17, -13, and -4 assessed following ex vivo mitogen stimulation. Notably, IL-17 production was significantly higher following stimulation in ASD children compared to controls. Moreover, IL-17 was increased in ASD children with co-morbid asthma compared to controls with the same condition. In conclusion, children with ASD exhibited a differential response to T cell stimulation with elevated IL-17 production compared to controls.

Keywords: Asthma; Autism; Food allergies; IL-17.

Publication types

Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

Asthma / epidemiology
Asthma / pathology*
Case-Control Studies
Child Development Disorders, Pervasive / epidemiology
Child Development Disorders, Pervasive / pathology*
Child, Preschool
Cytokines / metabolism
Female
Humans
Interleukin-7 / metabolism*
Male
Mitogens / pharmacology
Phytohemagglutinins / pharmacology
Statistics, Nonparametric
Th17 Cells / drug effects
Th17 Cells / metabolism*
Th2 Cells / drug effects
Th2 Cells / metabolism*

Substances

Cytokines
IL7 protein, human
Interleukin-7
Mitogens
Phytohemagglutinins

Abstract

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances

Grants and funding