PLT Test Blog

Today’s post is about cholesterol, statins and autism. There is a well-documented condition associated with autism called SLOS (Smith-Lemli-Opitz Syndrome). It is caused by mutations in the DHCR7 gene encoding the enzyme that catalyzes the final step in cholesterol biosynthesis. Toe syndactyly (webbed toes), one symptom of SLOS Reduced activity of the enzyme 7DHCR typically leads to low levels of cholesterol, but markedly increased levels of precursor 7DHC (and its isomer, 8DHC) in blood and tissues. Typical SLOS manifestations include intellectual disability, growth retardation, minor craniofacial anomalies, microcephaly and 2-3 toe syndactyly (webbed toes). SLOS is rare, but some cases do get missed because you can have a DHCR7 mutation and have normal levels of cholesterol and have normal cognitive function. Cholesterol and the blood brain barrier (BBB) You do have a lot of cholesterol in your brain, but it does not cross the blood brain barrier (BBB), it was made in the brain. ...

Far back in this blog, I wrote a post about fish oil.   Omega 3 oils are definitely good for your general health, but do they help with autism?   They are also claimed to help with ADHD and improve your NT child’s cognitive performance. On critical review of the evidence, it seemed that the benefit was far from conclusive.  There was one very positive study, that neither the authors nor anyone else could repeat. The following review of the literature by the University of Maryland show that, as with autism, studies on fish oil in depression, ADHD, bipolar and schizophrenia show conflicting results. Omega-3 fatty acids Some of the “cognitive enhancing” fish oil products are extremely expensive and I showed that regular fish consumption was far cheaper and likely to be as effective. There is an issue of just how big an effect you are looking for.  We can all imagine tiny effects, but you really want an effect that everyone else notices. Monty, aged 11 with ASD, eats lo...

When I first started this blog and my investigation into the biology of autism, I did shy away from the more complex areas like genetics.  I assumed that this would be best left to the “experts” and be beyond the powers of those without fancy laboratory tools. My literature review took me early on to oxidative stress and then neuroinflammation.  I deduced that in the case of neuroinflammation, it might be possible to control inflammatory cytokines using statins.  I also noted the use of statins in TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury). I thought it would be harmless to do a quick trial, not really expecting anything to happen; but it did, and from the very first dose. The literature is full of references to lipid dysfunction in autism and one large sub-group in autism is known to have high cholesterol.  Cholesterol and inflammation are now known to go hand in hand.  When inflammation is present, the body can react by laying down a protective layer of cholesterol....