Violation of the intestinal flora may be the cause of autism. Insufficient amounts of Lactobacillus Reuteri is associated with behavioral disorders, scientists say.
The lack of certain types of intestinal bacteria associated with symptoms of autism, concludes a study published in the medical journal Cell. It should be noted that the study is conducted on mice.
Inspired by the results of epidemiological studies that claim that maternal obesity during pregnancy may increase the chance of development in children of developmental disorders such as autism, scientists from the Medical College of Baylor in Houston (USA) conducted experiments using rodents, to understand whether there is a connection between intestinal bacteria and behavioral disorders.
The intestinal flora is associated with behavioral disorders
In the experiment, the researchers “planted” 60 female mice on a diet high in saturated fat, equivalent to eating several times a day, fast food, and kept them on this diet until birth of the pups. The newborn spent three weeks with their mothers and getting a balanced diet.
The researchers found that the offspring of rodents do not have the skills of normal social behavior, and the number of bacteria (Lactobacillus Reuteri) in the intestinal flora of mice born to mothers whose intake was exclusively foods high in fat, was significantly less than the normal level.
“We found a clear difference in the intestinal flora of two groups of mice, one received a normal diet and the other was on an unhealthy diet,” says Shelly Buffington, researcher and co-author of the report in the journal Cell.
“It is enough to analyze the intestinal flora of mice to tell whether the animal to suffer from behavioral problems or no,” says the scientist.
Bacteria treat autism?
After the restoration of the intestinal flora of mice, the researchers saw that the symptoms that resemble autism, then gradually pass.
“We don’t yet know how the results of our experiments correlate with the human body and whether our method of treatment of the symptoms of autism as effective as in the case of mice, but the effects on the brain through the intestinal flora is extremely interesting and understudied area,” said Dr. Mauro Costa-Mattioli, a Professor at the Medical College of Baylor.
