Plasma amino acid levels in children with autism and their families

Sarah Aldred, KM Moore, M Fitzgerald, Rosemary Waring

Research output: Contribution to journalArticle

140 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Plasma amino acid levels were measured in autistic and Asperger syndrome patients, their siblings, and parents. The results were compared with values from age-matched controls. Patients with autism or Asperger syndrome and their siblings and parents all had raised glutamic acid, phenylalanine, asparagine, tyrosine, alanine, and lysine (p <.05) than controls, with reduced plasma glutamine. Other amino acids were at normal levels. These results show that children with autistic spectrum disorders come from a family background of dysregulated amino acid metabolism and provide further evidence for an underlying biochemical basis for the condition.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)93-97
Number of pages5
JournalJournal of Autism and Developmental Disorders
Volume33
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jan 2003

Keywords

  • plasma
  • autism
  • amino acids
  • glutamate/glutamine ratio
  • Asperger syndrome

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