‘Gut Bacteria Linked to Autism Spectrum Disorder Behavior’ This is the core content of a paper published in the international academic journal Nature in 2017. When pregnant mice were infected with the virus when they carried certain gut bacteria, the offspring of them exhibited autistic behavior.
The link between two seemingly unrelated objects is an ‘immune response’. The immune response caused by the gut bacteria affected the brains of the pups. Nature introduced this research result as ‘the most important research achievement of this issue’. The main characters of the study were a couple of Korean scientists, Gloria Choi, a professor in the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and Jun-ryeol Heo, a professor at Harvard Medical School. The research team also succeeded in discovering the mechanism by which autism symptoms are alleviated in a fever state.
In a recent interview with Maeil Business News, Professor Choi explained, “Cytokines, which are water-soluble proteins made by the immune system, control behavior in neurons in the brain. They act on different areas of the brain and affect various behaviors.” Cytokines produced by changes in the immune system act in the brain and can induce autistic behaviors, and conversely, they can have the effect of mitigating autistic behaviors.
He continued, “If we map these immune systems and brain signaling systems, we can find ways to alleviate not only social behavior but also other abnormal symptoms.”
Professor Choi visited Korea to attend the ‘Basic Science Institute (IBS) Keystone Symposia Conference’ held on the 4th and 7th of the last month and accepted an interview.
Professor Choi said, “The immune system is designed to recognize substances coming from outside and fight in response to external invasion. “He said.
A study showing that autism symptoms are relieved when the body is hot is also the result of the same mechanism. When mice were given a fever, their immune system was activated and specific cytokines were released. This substance acts on the brain and leads to actual symptom relief. Professor Choi said, “There were often reports from doctors that people with autism symptoms relieved their symptoms in a fever state. It has paid off,” he explained.
Professor Choi speculated that the sequelae of COVID-19 infection, known as ‘long covid’, may also be caused by abnormalities in the immune system. He said, “If you get Corona, there are many cases of people complaining of not being able to smell well, depression, memory loss, insomnia, etc. even after they have recovered.
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