| First Author | Wei H | Year | 2012 |
| Journal | Biochim Biophys Acta | Volume | 1822 |
| Issue | 6 | Pages | 831-42 |
| PubMed ID | 22326556 | Mgi Jnum | J:185009 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:5427058 | Doi | 10.1016/j.bbadis.2012.01.011 |
| Citation | Wei H, et al. (2012) Brain IL-6 elevation causes neuronal circuitry imbalances and mediates autism-like behaviors. Biochim Biophys Acta 1822(6):831-42 |
| abstractText | Abnormal immune responses have been reported to be associated with autism. A number of studies showed that cytokines were increased in the blood, brain, and cerebrospinal fluid of autistic subjects. Elevated IL-6 in autistic brain has been a consistent finding. However, the mechanisms by which IL-6 may be involved in the pathogenesis of autism are not well understood. Here we show that mice with elevated IL-6 in the brain display many autistic features, including impaired cognitive abilities, deficits in learning, abnormal anxiety traits and habituations, as well as decreased social interactions. IL-6 elevation caused alterations in excitatory and inhibitory synaptic formations and disrupted the balance of excitatory/inhibitory synaptic transmissions. IL-6 elevation also resulted in an abnormal change in the shape, length and distributing pattern of dendritic spines. These findings suggest that IL-6 elevation in the brain could mediate autistic-like behaviors, possibly through the imbalances of neural circuitry and impairments of synaptic plasticity. |
