Association between basic fibroblast growth factor and autism spectrum disorders

Objective To investigate the level of human blood basic fibroblast growth factor (FGF2) among children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and its correlation with behavioral phenotypes, to provide a reference for etiological research of ASD. Methods ASD Children were selected to get rehabitation training in reseach center of children development behavior in Harbin Medical University and the rehabitation constitution for ASD disabilities in Heilongjiang, 40 children were induded as ASD group, 41 healthy children in Harbin kindergarten was classified as control group. The Autism Behavior Checklist (ABC), Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS) and Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT) were used to assess the severity and intelligence of ASD children, respectively. Results No difference was found in FGF2 level between ASD children (4.95 pg/mL) and normal children (8.51 pg/mL) (P>0.05). However, difference in FGF2 level between the two groups were found in 4-year-old group (P<0.05). The level of FGF2 differed across different severity and intelligence of ASD children (P<0.05). Conclusion Abnormal levels of FGF2 in ASD children may correlate with severity of autistic traits and intelligence of children.