RIO DE JANEIRO (EFE).— A group of researchers from the Butantan Institute in Brazil identified a series of proteins and amino acids that can facilitate the diagnosis of autism from urine samples.
The potential biomarkers would have the capacity to “help in the development of complementary methods for diagnosing and monitoring the evolution of the state” of people with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), according to the Butantan Institute in a press release.
The results of the research were published in the most recent edition of the scientific journal “Biomarkers Journal”, coinciding with the commemorative activities of World Autism Awareness Day.
Brazilian researchers discovered differences in the total concentration of proteins and amino acids in urine samples from people with autism and people without the disorder, according to the scientific center, which is linked to the government of the Brazilian state of Sao Paulo.
The study coordinator, Nádia Isaac da Silva, compared the urine samples of 22 children aged 3 and 10 years diagnosed with ASD with those of children without the disorder.
The work detected alterations in the amounts of some proteins and amino acids, such as glycine, leucine, aspartic acid and tyrosine, in the samples of minors with the disorder.
“Abnormal levels of proteins and amino acids may be related to various signals observed in people with ASD,” according to the Butantan Institute statement.
According to the agency, given the complexity of diagnosing and treating autism, various ways have been developed to address the disorder, including the creation of data banks with blood samples and genetic sequences.
Such studies seek, among other things, to identify new genes associated with autism and biomarkers to characterize it.
The discovery of possible biomarkers in urine, however, can facilitate diagnosis, since samples can be collected at home by parents or guardians of people with autism.
#detect #autism #urine
2024-04-20 09:37:12
