A research team led by Professor Chan-Young Shin of the National Institute of Medical Sciences revealed the cause of the increase in autism.

Identification of the fact that autism spectrum disorder can be transmitted over three generations.

A research team in Korea has identified the cause of the increase in autism.

A research team led by Professor Chan-Young Shin (Department of Pharmacology) at Konkuk University Graduate School of Medicine has identified the fact that autism spectrum disorders caused by environmental factors can be passed down through three generations through the next generation.

This study is evaluated to have identified the cause of the continuous increase in autism and provided important clues for the development of autism treatments, such as autism behavior improvement treatment substances.

The research team said, “It is known that excessive exposure to certain medicines during pregnancy can cause deformities and autism spectrum disorder.” It has been confirmed through animal experiments that this can occur.” .

Autism spectrum disorder (autism) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by symptoms in which social interaction is not performed properly and the same behavior is repeatedly performed. In particular, Korea has the highest prevalence rate in the world, with a report that the prevalence rate reaches 2.6%.

It is known that autism is caused by genetic and environmental factors, but it has not been clearly identified why the prevalence of autism is increasing so far and what treatment methods are available.

Professor Shin's research team studied whether transmission between generations occurred through autistic animals exposed to environmental factors (valproic acid). As a result of examining the physical deformity, it was observed in the first generation, but not inherited in the second or third generation.

However, phosphorylation of GSK3β (Glycogen Synthase Kinase-3β) in the prefrontal cortex, which is an indicator signaling system for macrocephaly and autism spectrum behavior disorder observed in autism, was significantly higher in autistic animals than in the normalized group. It was confirmed that it was inherited from generation to generation.

The lack of social skills in autism is also inherited up to the third generation. In addition, an imbalance of excitatory and inhibitory neurons in the prefrontal cortex, which is the cause of autism, was confirmed to be inherited up to the third generation of autism animal models. Abnormal expression of NMDA receptors and AMPA receptors, which are involved in neurotransmission, also continued until the third generation.

AMPA receptors are ionotropic receptors that transmit excitatory signals in the brain and are involved in rapid synaptic transmission. The NMDA receptor is a neuroreceptor of nerve cells, and functions to regulate cell death or induce normal cell-to-cell communication.

Professor Shin's team administered Agmatine, known as an endogenous neuromodulator, to an autistic animal model, and observed autistic behavioral improvements, such as improvement in social deficits and suppression of hyperactivity.

Professor Shin said, "Physical deformities, such as a bent tail, caused by drug exposure appear only in the first generation and are not passed on to grandchildren or great-grandchildren, but symptoms of autism spectrum disorder continue to appear until at least the third generation." "The results of this study show It is evaluated as proving that environmental factor-induced autism spectrum disorder is inherited across multiple generations and will be one of the causes of the continuous increase in the prevalence of autism."

The research team also identified the fact that abnormal differentiation of excitatory neurons in brain tissue occurs over three generations, and found that symptoms of autism spectrum disorder can be alleviated by controlling it. This is evaluated as providing a turning point for the treatment of autism, for which there is no suitable treatment so far.

It was confirmed that not only hereditary autism spectrum disorder, but also autism spectrum disorder caused by environmental factors can be inherited throughout the generations of grandchildren and great-grandchildren. said.

This research was carried out with government R&D support, such as the Ministry of Health and Welfare's disease overcoming technology development project and the Ministry of Education's basic research support project. It was published in the latest issue of Neuropharmacology.