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Frequency of Dendritic Cells and Their Expression of Costimulatory Molecules in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

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Abstract

The aim of our study was to evaluate the frequencies of myeloid dendritic cells (mDCs) and plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) in children with ASD. Subjects were 32 children with ASD and 30 healthy children as controls. The numbers of mDCs and pDCs and the expression of CD86 and CD80 on the entire DCs were detected by flow cytometry. ASD children had significantly higher percentages of mDCs and pDCs when compared to controls. We found significant inverse relationships between serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels and the frequencies of mDCs and pDCs in autistic children. Our data suggested that DCs could play a role in the clinical course of ASD. The relationship of DCs to immune disorders in ASD remains to be determined.

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Abbreviations

25 (OH)D:

25-hydroxycholecalciferol

ABC:

Aberrant behavior checklist

ASD:

Autism spectrum disorder

CARS:

Childhood autism rating scale

DCs:

Dendritic cells

mDCs:

Myeloid dendritic cells

pDCs:

Plasmacytoid dendritic cells

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to extend their sincere appreciation to the Deanship of Scientific Research at king Saud University for its funding this Research group No. (RG-1435-019).

Author Contributions

KE, KS, AAA, MH, AA and YE designed the study, followed the patients, analyzed the data, and drafted the manuscript. AZ performed all laboratory investigations in the study. All authors were involved in the critical analysis of the final version of the manuscript. All authors approved the manuscript as submitted and agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Pediatric Department, Faculty of Medicine, Assiut University, Assiut, 71516, Egypt

    Khaled Saad, Khalid I. Elsayh & Almontaser Hussein

  2. Clinical Pathology Department, South Egypt Cancer Institute, Assiut University, Assiut, Egypt

    Asmaa M. Zahran

  3. Department of Neuropsychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Assiut University, Assiut, Egypt

    Ahmed A. Abdel-Rahman

  4. Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, Almajmaah University, Almajmaah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

    Abdulrahman A. Al-Atram

  5. Pediatric Department, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt

    Yasmin G. El-Gendy

Authors
  1. Khaled Saad
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  2. Asmaa M. Zahran
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  3. Khalid I. Elsayh
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  4. Ahmed A. Abdel-Rahman
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  5. Abdulrahman A. Al-Atram
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  6. Almontaser Hussein
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  7. Yasmin G. El-Gendy
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Correspondence to Khaled Saad.

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Saad, K., Zahran, A.M., Elsayh, K.I. et al. Frequency of Dendritic Cells and Their Expression of Costimulatory Molecules in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders. J Autism Dev Disord 47, 2671–2678 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-017-3190-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-017-3190-5

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