Autism spectrum disorder currently affects 1 in 100 children worldwide, according to the World Health Organization. For reasons that are still obscure, these numbers seem to be on the rise as researchers and doctors struggle to find effective treatments, according to what was published by the “Neuroscience News” website. Neuroscience News.
More recently, a new approach to treating symptoms associated with autism spectrum disorder has emerged thanks to widespread research on the trillions of non-human cells that inhabit the digestive tract, collectively known as the gut microbiome. The treatment, called germline transfer therapy, is a process in which healthy gut bacteria are transferred to children with autism.
microbial metabolism
In a new study, ASU researchers and colleagues specifically explored changes in the gut microbiota after transfusion therapy, using whole-genome sequencing, to monitor changes in bacterial species and genes involved in microbial metabolism.
The researchers discovered that microbial taxa and genes important for microbial pathways associated with improvements in the physical and behavioral symptoms of autism spectrum disorder improved after the vector treatment.
Expressive
New technology
In the first research of its kind, the research team used a whole-genome-sequencing technique known as “Shotgun metagenomics” to extract detailed data from more than 5,000 bacterial species present in the guts of children with ASD before and after the transfusion of the microorganisms. The researchers then compared the results with the bacteria in the gut of healthy children.
The results showed a significant improvement in the overall abundance of bacteria after the transfer treatment, confirming previous findings published in Scientific Reports in 2019. There were also significant increases in the populations of beneficial bacterial species that are normally found in smaller numbers in children with autism.
The results are encouraging because the severity of gastrointestinal dysfunction in children with autism appears to be proportional to the degree of behavioral and cognitive problems, highlighting the importance of the gut-brain axis, a topic of great interest in the world of microbiomes.
Understanding the job role
“The study highlights altered levels of important bacterial species and metabolic genes in children with autism and improvements after Microbial transfer therapy.
The long-term goal, noted Nirmalakar, is to “understand the functional role of the gut microbiome, fill in the knowledge gap of the gut axis in autism, and identify therapeutic targets to improve gastrointestinal health and behavior in children with autism.”
Future research
The researchers are currently conducting phase II studies of microbe transfer therapy for children and adults with autism, and plan to investigate whether these findings hold true in these two studies. Future research is likely to explore the role of specific microbial species, functional gene expression and production of a range of receptors associated with autism before and after transfusion therapy.