Autism Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Autism, including details on symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, causes, effects.

Genetic analyses of the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene in autism.

Nishimura K, Nakamura K, Anitha A, Yamada K, Tsujii M, Iwayama Y, Hattori E, Toyota T, Takei N, Miyachi T, Iwata Y, Suzuki K, Matsuzaki H, Kawai M, Sekine Y, Tsuchiya K, Sugihara G, Suda S, Ouchi Y, Sugiyama T, Yoshikawa T, Mori N

Department of Psychiatry and Neurology, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Hamamatsu, Japan.

Autism is a severe neurodevelopmental disorder defined by social and communication deficits and ritualistic-repetitive behaviors that are detectable in early childhood. Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) plays a critical role in the pathogenesis of autism. In this study, we examined the SNP- and haplotypic-association of BDNF with autism in a trios-based association study (the Autism Genetic Resource Exchange). We also examined the expression of BDNF mRNA in the peripheral blood lymphocytes of drug-naïve autism patients and control subjects. In the TDT of autism trios, the SNP haplotype combinations showed significant associations in the autism group. BDNF expression in the drug-naïve autistic group was found to be significantly higher than in the control group. We suggest that BDNF has a possible role in the pathogenesis of autism through its neurotrophic effects on the serotonergic system.

Published 20 March 2007 in Biochem Biophys Res Commun, 356(1): 200-6.
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