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Dietary glycemic index modulates the behavioral and biochemical abnormalities associated with autism spectrum disorder

Molecular Psychiatry volume 21, pages 426–436 (2016)Cite this article

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Abstract

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder of unknown etiology, but very likely resulting from both genetic and environmental factors. There is good evidence for immune system dysregulation in individuals with ASD. However, the contribution of insults such as dietary factors that can also activate the immune system have not been explored in the context of ASD. In this paper, we show that the dietary glycemic index has a significant impact on the ASD phenotype. By using BTBR mice, an inbred strain that displays behavioral traits that reflect the diagnostic symptoms of human ASD, we found that the diet modulates plasma metabolites, neuroinflammation and brain markers of neurogenesis in a manner that is highly reflective of ASD in humans. Overall, the manuscript supports the idea that ASD results from gene–environment interactions and that in the presence of a genetic predisposition to ASD, diet can make a large difference in the expression of the condition.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Fritz B. Burns Foundation. We thank Dr Christine Pelkman from Ingredion for supplying the starches for the diets.

Author Contributions

PM designed the study. AC, CF, RD, MG-S and PM performed the experiments and analyzed the data. AC, CF and PM wrote the manuscript.

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  1. The Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA, USA

    A Currais, C Farrokhi, R Dargusch, M Goujon-Svrzic & P Maher

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  1. A Currais
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Correspondence to P Maher.

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Currais, A., Farrokhi, C., Dargusch, R. et al. Dietary glycemic index modulates the behavioral and biochemical abnormalities associated with autism spectrum disorder. Mol Psychiatry 21, 426–436 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1038/mp.2015.64

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