[The activity of complement system in children with autistic spectrum disorders]

Area of Science:

• Immunology
• Neuroscience
• Pediatrics

Background:

• The complement system (CS) plays a crucial role in immune responses.
• Dysregulation of the CS has been implicated in various neurological and psychiatric disorders.
• Understanding CS activity in pediatric conditions like autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and schizophrenia is essential.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and implement a new method for assessing complement system (CS) activity.
• To evaluate CS activity in children diagnosed with autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) and schizophrenia.
• To compare CS activity levels between these patient groups and healthy controls.

Main Methods:

• A novel method was developed to determine integral CS activity (T50) using the ciliata Tetrahymena pyriformis.
• The study included 249 patients (aged 3-14 years) with ASD or schizophrenia and 279 age-matched healthy children.
• CS activity was measured by the time of death of 50% of ciliata in a 5% blood serum concentration.

Main Results:

• Significant differences in median T50 values were observed between patient groups and controls (p<0.005).
• Patients were categorized into three groups based on CS activity: below, above, and within the control range.
• Lower CS activity was found in children with ASD compared to children with schizophrenia (p<0.005).

Conclusions:

• The developed method provides a reliable assessment of integral CS activity.
• Altered CS activity is evident in children with ASD and schizophrenia.
• CS activity is lower in children with ASD than in those with schizophrenia, suggesting distinct immune profiles.