“The microbiome can shape the developing brain in multiple ways,” John Lukens, lead researcher and PhD student from the University of Virginia School of Medicine, said in a statement.
“The microbiome is really important to the calibration of how the offspring’s immune system is going to respond to an infection or injury or stress.”
What holds the clue between microbiome and autism might be a molecule produced by the immune system called interleukin-17a, or IL-17a.
So far, research showed that this cytokine plays a role in diseases such as psoriasis, multiple sclerosis, and rheumatoid arthritis, and is vital in defending the body against fungal infections. However, it also appears to influence brain development in the womb.
Scientists performed the research on mice with different gut microbiota. While one group had bacteria linked to a stronger inflammatory response triggered by IL-17a, the control group did not.
