Enteric Dysbiosis in Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder and Associated Response to Stress

Background Microbiome studies in humans, though limited, have facilitated the evaluation of the potential connection between the microbiome and brain function. Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have several behavioral challenges and avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder, which may contribute to gut microbiome dysbiosis. Aim The aim of this study is to examine the extent to which the gut microbiome of children with ASD differs in comparison to children with neurotypical development (CWND) and to assess whether a probiotic intervention has the potential to influence the gut microbiome in mediating positive behavior change and stress regulation. Methods This pilot study collected data from three children with ASD and four CWND before and after a four-week probiotic intervention. Data collection included microbiome diversity screening from stool samples as well as the following biophysiological measures: salivary alpha-amylase (sAA) levels, response to simulated stressor and calming stimulus (behavior), including pulse rate, galvanic skin response, and pupil diameter (PD). In addition, telomere length was assessed. All measures, except for telomere length, were repeated after the four-week intervention on the ASD and CWND groups for pre-/post-comparison. Data analysis consisted of multivariate analyses, including ANOVA. Results While greater heterogeneity in the ASD group was evident in all measures, the gut microbiome of participants who received probiotic intervention differed from pretreatment results within and across the groups investigated. Further, the biophysiological parameter sAA displayed a significant increase between baseline and exposure to stress in both groups, whereas PD increased in both groups from baseline, F(11, 26615) = 123.43, p = 0.00. Conclusion Though gut microbiome diversity is diminished in children with ASD compared to CWND, the gap is narrowed following a brief probiotic intervention. The results suggest that probiotic interventions have the potential to rescue microbiome diversity and abundance, potentially supporting stress regulation in pediatric populations.