Toxoplasmosis and Metabolic Disorders among Children with Autism
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.4314/njpar.v45i2.19Keywords:
Autism, children, Toxoplasmosis, IraqAbstract
It has recently come to light that toxoplasmosis may be linked to a number of neurological and developmental conditions, including autism, and the current study aimed to screen for anti-Toxoplasma antibodies in children with autism and metabolic changes that may be related to toxoplasmosis. The study was conducted from November 2023 to February 2024 in Baghdad, Iraq. A total of 88 children
between the ages of 2-11 years participated in this study. A psychopathologist diagnosed 44 of them with autism, while the remaining 44 were regarded as the control group because they did not exhibit any autistic symptoms. Each child had serum samples drawn and analysed for the following: lipid profile, anthropometric measurements, anti-Toxoplasma antibodies, adiponectin, leptin, chemerine, and Adipocyte Fatty Acid-Binding Protein (AFABP). Metabolic syndrome was assessed in each participant. Of the patients with autism, 31.82% showed anti-Toxoplasma antibodies compared to only 11.36% in the control group. A significant correlation (p<0.01) was found between the seropositivity rates of T. gondii and autism. Four subgroups were established based on previous findings: Autism-Toxoplasma-positive, Autism-Toxoplasma-negative, control Toxoplasma-positive, and control-Toxoplasma-negative. There was no
statistically significant difference in body mass index (BMI) between the control group and the autistic patients, whereas the control group with Toxoplasma +ve had the highest BMI value when compared to the other groups. Cholesterol levels were significantly lower than the control, while no significant differences were observed in cholesterol levels among the four subgroups. No significant
differences were observed in HDL levels among the four subgroups. The results also revealed that leptin was the only adipokine that was significantly increased in patients with autism. In contrast, adiponectine, chemerine, and AFABP levels did not significantly vary among the subgroups. Finally, metabolic syndrome was significantly associated with autism (P< 0.05).
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