Are there other studies that support defective cholesterol metabolism in autism?
Yes, a research group at the University of California at Davis and the Mind Institute reported in 2007 that in a group of 69 children with autism there were significant reductions in peptide fragments from a lipoprotein called apolipoprotein B-100 that is associated with LDL and very low density lipoprotein (VLDL). Values were lowest in children with the most severe symptoms but were still somewhat low in high functioning children with autism. The same study showed that peptides corresponding to apolipoprotein A-IV were significantly lower in children with low-functioning compared to high-functioning autism. Another study found that brains of children with autism contained elevated amounts of Apolipoprotein E messenger ribonucleic acid (RNA), perhaps suggesting a more generalized dysregulation of apolipoprotein metabolism in autism.
