Neurotrophins
Neurotrophins
Neurotrophins are responsible primarily for the regulation of cell proliferation, migration, and survival. They also have a hand in the modulation of axonal and dendritic outgrowth, and synapse formation. They have an abnormal expression patter in autistic patients.
BDNF, a neurotrophin, and its receptor, trkB, are expressed in cortical and hippocampal neurons and influences axonal and dendritic growth in a neuro specific and age-dependent manner. BDNF abnormalities have been implicated in schizophrenia and depression, brain disorders which show altered cortical maturation and plasticity. Some studies have found elevated levels of BDNF and NT4/5 in neonatal blood samples of ASD patients. One study found elevated levels of of BDNF along with auto-antibodies against BDNF. There is some evidence that BDNF regulation abnormalities could be a primary factor in autism development from a study on the gene CADPS2, which controls the exocytosis of BDNF-containing vesicles. It was found that CADPS2 was differently spliced in some autistic patients and that CADPS2 knockout mice have autistic-like phenotypes.1
References
1. Pardo, CA et. al. The Neurobiology of Autism.Brain Pathol. 2007 Oct;17(4):434-47. PMID 17919129
