Abstract
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is currently diagnosed in 1:54 children, appears during early childhood, and the manifestations of which can last for a lifetime. While there is currently no “cure” for ASD, the current treatment is an early behavioral intervention that, with early detection, can greatly improve the behavioral deficits associated with autism. The etiology of ASD is thought to be multifactorial—a combination of genetic predisposition and environmental insults/stressors during gestation and the first years of life. In this chapter, we review maternal immune dysregulation as an environmental insult during gestation that can trigger altered neurodevelopment potentially contributing to the etiology of ASD. We focus herein on the data supporting the concept that the presence of dysregulated cytokine profiles (pro-inflammatory) and/or antibrain maternal autoantibodies during gestation can increase ASD risk in the exposed offspring. We further address the potential of these immune anomalies as early biomarkers of ASD risk.
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