Plasma Leptin Levels are Elevated in Autism

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Brief Report: Plasma Leptin Levels are Elevated in Autism: Association

with Early Onset Phenotype?

J Autism Dev Disord. 2007 Mar 9; [Epub ahead of print]

Ashwood P, Kwong C, Hansen R, Hertz-Picciotto I, Croen L, Krakowiak P,

W,

Pessah IN, Van de Water J.

Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, University of

California at

, , CA, USA.

There is evidence of both immune dysregulation and autoimmune

phenomena in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). We

examined the hormone/cytokine leptin in 70 children diagnosed with

autism (including 37 with regression)compared with 99 age-matched

controls including 50 typically developing (TD)

controls, 26 siblings without autism, and 23 children with

developmental disabilities (DD). Children with autism had

significantly higher plasma leptin levels compared with TD controls (p

< .006). When further sub-classified into regression or early onset

autism, children with early onset autism had significantly higher

plasma leptin levels compared with children with regressive

autism (p < .042), TD controls (p < .0015), and DD controls (p <

..004). We demonstrated an increase in leptin levels in autism, a

finding driven by the early onset group.

PMID: 17347881 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]