Dopamine autism

Dysfunction of the dopamine system has been implicated in autism. Abnormalities have been observed in levels of whole blood, urinary and CSF dopamine and HVA. Also dopamine antagonists alleviate some autistic symptoms. It is thought that the levels of the HVA in the CSF reflect central... 

The conventional antipsychotics have little effect on the negative psychotic symptoms such as autism, stupor and emotional withdrawal. The so-called atypical antipsychotics, or second-generation antipsychotics, like the heterocyclic compound risperidone, the benzamide sulpiride and several diben-zepines of which clozapine is the best known, have a broader spectrum which means that they also have an effect on the negative psychotic symptoms. Most share a common attribute of working on serotonin receptors as well as dopamine receptors. They have a low risk of extrapyramidal side effects. 

Keywords Dopamine transporter Norepinephrine transporter Serotonin transporter Polymorphism Attention deficit h5rperactivity disorder Parkinson s disease Addiction Anxiety Depression Autism... 

Cook EH, Leventhtil BL (1996) The serotonin system in autism. Curr Opin Pediatr 8 348-354 Cook EH Jr., Stein MA, Krasowski MD, Cox NJ, Olkon DM, Kieffer JE, Leventhal BL (1995) Association of attention-deficit disorder and the dopamine transporter gene. Am J Hum Genet 56 993-998... 

Makkonen I, Riikonen R, KokM H, Airaksinen MM, Kmkka JT (2008) Serotonin and dopamine transporter binding in children with autism determined by SPECT. Dev Med Child Neurol 50 593-597... 

Dopamine is a major catecholamine neurotransmitter in the central nervous system that has been implicated in the regulation of locomotor activity, emotion, cognition, and behavior reward and in neuroendocrine regulation [39]. Clinically, dopaminergic drugs (e.g., risperidone) that block or activate dopamine receptors are used to treat neurodegenerative, neuropsychiatric, and neurode-velopmental conditions such as Parkinson s, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and autism [40],... 

Lake CR, Ziegler MG, Murphy DL (1977) Increased norepinephrine levels and decreased dopamine-beta-hydroxylase activity in primary autism. Arch Gen Psychiatry 34 553-556. 

Oxidative Stress in Autism and Its Implications for Dopamine-Stimulated Phospholipid Methylation... 

Neurons operate under unique redox conditions, increasing their vulnerability to oxidative stress, and recent studies provide evidence of oxidative stress and neuroinflammation in autism. Impaired methylation is a consequence of oxidative stress, mediated in major part by inhibition of the folate- and cobalamin-dependent enzyme methionine synthase. Since methionine synthase activity is essential for dopamine-stimulated phospholipid methylation, some symptoms of autism may reflect impairment of this process. For example, dopamine D4 receptor activation... 

Another idea is that prenatal impact on the activity of the neurotransmitter dopamine, including the effects of maternal psychosocial stress, maternal fever, maternal genetics and hormonal status, use of certain medications, and fetal hypoxia, may be involved in the epigenetic etiology of autism.67... 

Previc, F. H. (2007). Prenatal influences on brain dopamine and their relevance to the rising incidence of autism. Med. Hypotheses. 

Patients with autism have decreased serotonin, dopamine, nicotine, and other neurotransmitters in certain regions of the brain, but no single abnormality. Chugani (2004) examined the evidence for anomalous development of the serotonin system in the brain of children with autism. Serotonin levels in the blood are often elevated in children with autism. Serotonin synthesis is decreased in the frontal region and thalamus on one side of the brain and increased in the dentate nucleus of the opposite cerebellum. 

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