Abstract
We measured CSF levels of β-endorphin, an opioid hormone, in 19 patients with infantile autism and in 3 patients with Rett syndrome, and compared them with control values. In infantile autism, CSF levels of β-endorphin did not differ significantly from those of age-matched controls. There was no significant correlation between CSF levels and clinical symptoms, including self-injurious behavior, pain insensitivity, and stereotyped movement. However, CSF levels of β-endorphin were significantly higher in the patients with Rett syndrome than in the control (p < .05). Data suggest that neurons containing β-endorphin may not be involved in patients with infantile autism. Thus, there is no relationship between dysfunction of brain opioid and autism.
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Nagamitsu, S., Matsuishi, T., Kisa, T. et al. CSF β-Endorphin Levels in Patients with Infantile Autism. J Autism Dev Disord 27, 155–163 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1025839807431
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1025839807431