New Research Has Led To A Clearer Understanding Of How Autism Develops In The Womb
New research has led to a clearer understanding of how autism develops in the womb. The latest findings may be able to help experts explain why some children have symptoms that are more severe than others.
Perhaps they can also give rise to improved treatments for symptom management in the future.
Scientists from the University of California, San Diego, made a groundbreaking discovery after using lab-grown miniature brains to determine differences in brain development during the first few weeks of pregnancy between neurotypical children and children with autism.
Autism spectrum disorder is a neurodevelopmental condition marked by restricted/repetitive patterns of behavior and varying degrees of difficulty with communication and social interaction. According to the World Health Organization, it affects roughly one in 100 children all over the world.
Until now, the mechanisms behind the variation in cognitive, language, and social deficits were unclear.
The scientists found that one of the first signs of autism can be seen in the size of the embryo’s brain as early as the first trimester of pregnancy.
They conducted an experiment with miniature brains that were grown in a laboratory. These brains are referred to as brain cortical organoids.
To create them, the researchers collected stem cells from the blood samples of six neurotypical children and 10 toddlers with autism of the same age. Then, they reprogrammed the stem cells to grow into the cells of the brain’s cortex.
As a result, they were able to make brain-like structures that resembled what is typically seen during the first few weeks of embryonic development. After a few weeks, they began to notice distinct differences in the mini brains.
stockbusters – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only, not the actual person
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“We found the larger the embryonic brain cortical organoid size, the more severe the child’s later autism social symptoms,” said Eric Courchesne, the lead author of the study and the co-director of the Autism Center of Excellence in the neuroscience department at UC San Diego.
“Toddlers who had profound autism, which is the most severe type of autism, had the largest brain cortical organoid overgrowth during embryonic development,” he continued. “Those with mild autism social symptoms had only mild overgrowth.”
The mini brains grown from the stem cells of children with autism were about 40 percent larger than the brains of neurotypical children.
This indicates that dramatically large brain growth during the first trimester of pregnancy could be an early sign of autism.
Brain overgrowth may be caused by lower levels of a protein called NDEL1. It is known for the regulation of brain growth during embryonic development.
In the study, the team of scientists discovered that in the brain organoids of children with autism, levels of the protein were lower compared to those of the neurotypical children. The lower the protein levels were, the larger the mini brains grew.
The new study was published in the journal Molecular Autism.
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