Urinary Steroid Metabolites in Autism

NCT ID: NCT01197131

Last Updated: 2019-02-19

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

Get a concise snapshot of the trial, including recruitment status, study phase, enrollment targets, and key timeline milestones.

Recruitment Status

UNKNOWN

Total Enrollment

160 participants

Study Classification

OBSERVATIONAL

Study Start Date

2010-09-30

Study Completion Date

2019-04-30

Brief Summary

Review the sponsor-provided synopsis that highlights what the study is about and why it is being conducted.

Deviation of hormone formation within nerve cells and nerve system provides autism spectrum disorder and neurodevelopment retardation through interaction of steroids with neurotransmitter-receptors, calcium-channel receptors and genomic interaction via nuclear steroid receptors.

Urinary steroid metabolites will be compared between children with autism spectrum disorder and healthy controls.

Detailed Description

Dive into the extended narrative that explains the scientific background, objectives, and procedures in greater depth.

Autism spectrum disorder presents many alterations in amino acid metabolism and in neurotransmitter systems (gamma amino acid system, glutamate-glutamine, nicotine-acid, serotonin-system) . Also alteration in gene activation within nerve cells and lymphocyte cultures encloses over 600 genes, affecting a wide field of enzymes , metabolic pathways and hormone formation. Male hormones and their precursors are often increased and their influence to nerve cell growth and spine formation is evident.

The diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder is made in accordance of criteria of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders IV (DSM-IV) of the American Psychiatric Association by an experienced and specialised paediatrician or psychologist and /or by an Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R) or Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS) .

Overnight urine with measurement of quantity and time will be collected and a little part of the urinary samples will be frozen for storage till analysis. Age, weight and length of the children at collection time will be ascertained.

Four stratified groups (autistic boys, girls, and healthy controls, boys and girls, each age 5-15) will be formed.

Urinary samples will further remain anonymous through an Identification-Number (ID).

Analysis of hormones and the most of the known metabolites excreted in urine will be performed by a specialised laboratory using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS) analysis (University Hospital Bern, Steroid Laboratory, Switzerland).

The statistical analysis, with age, gender, weight, diagnosis and hormone analysis results as factors , consists in linear regression analysis to detect deviation in hormone formation and metabolism.

Conditions

See the medical conditions and disease areas that this research is targeting or investigating.

Autism Autism Spectrum Disorder

Study Design

Understand how the trial is structured, including allocation methods, masking strategies, primary purpose, and other design elements.

Observational Model Type

COHORT

Study Time Perspective

PROSPECTIVE

Study Groups

Review each arm or cohort in the study, along with the interventions and objectives associated with them.

autistic boys

Boys with autism spectrum disorder, age 5-15 years, diagnosis meets DSM-IV criteria ascertained by ADI-R or ADOS schedule or specialised paediatrician

No interventions assigned to this group

autistic girls

Girls with autism spectrum disorder, age 5-15 years, diagnosis meets DSM-IV criteria ascertained by ADI-R or ADOS schedule or specialised paediatrician.

No interventions assigned to this group

control boys

Healthy boys, age 5-15 years, mental status assessed by "Marburger Beurteilungsskala zum Asperger-Syndrome" (MBAS).

No interventions assigned to this group

control girls

Healthy girls, age 5-15 years, mental status assessed by "Marburger Beurteilungsskala zum Asperger Syndrome" (MBAS).

No interventions assigned to this group

Eligibility Criteria

Check the participation requirements, including inclusion and exclusion rules, age limits, and whether healthy volunteers are accepted.

Inclusion Criteria

* Autism spectrum disorder
* Age 5-15 years

Exclusion Criteria

* Epilepsia
* Psychotropic medication
* other severe illness
Minimum Eligible Age

5 Years

Maximum Eligible Age

15 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sponsors

Meet the organizations funding or collaborating on the study and learn about their roles.

Intersci Research Association, Austria

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

Identify the individual or organization who holds primary responsibility for the study information submitted to regulators.

Kurz Johann MD

Medical Doctor,

Responsibility Role PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

Learn about the lead researchers overseeing the trial and their institutional affiliations.

Johann Kurz, MD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Intersci Research Association, Austria

Locations

Explore where the study is taking place and check the recruitment status at each participating site.

Intersci Research Association

Leibnitz, Styria, Styria, Austria

Site Status

Countries

Review the countries where the study has at least one active or historical site.

Austria

References

Explore related publications, articles, or registry entries linked to this study.

Hu VW, Nguyen A, Kim KS, Steinberg ME, Sarachana T, Scully MA, Soldin SJ, Luu T, Lee NH. Gene expression profiling of lymphoblasts from autistic and nonaffected sib pairs: altered pathways in neuronal development and steroid biosynthesis. PLoS One. 2009 Jun 3;4(6):e5775. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0005775.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 19492049 (View on PubMed)

Hu VW, Sarachana T, Kim KS, Nguyen A, Kulkarni S, Steinberg ME, Luu T, Lai Y, Lee NH. Gene expression profiling differentiates autism case-controls and phenotypic variants of autism spectrum disorders: evidence for circadian rhythm dysfunction in severe autism. Autism Res. 2009 Apr;2(2):78-97. doi: 10.1002/aur.73.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 19418574 (View on PubMed)

Purcell AE, Jeon OH, Zimmerman AW, Blue ME, Pevsner J. Postmortem brain abnormalities of the glutamate neurotransmitter system in autism. Neurology. 2001 Nov 13;57(9):1618-28. doi: 10.1212/wnl.57.9.1618.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 11706102 (View on PubMed)

Geier DA, Geier MR. A prospective assessment of androgen levels in patients with autistic spectrum disorders: biochemical underpinnings and suggested therapies. Neuro Endocrinol Lett. 2007 Oct;28(5):565-73.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 17984958 (View on PubMed)

Related Links

Access external resources that provide additional context or updates about the study.

Other Identifiers

Review additional registry numbers or institutional identifiers associated with this trial.

protocol 1.0/18/06/2010

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id

More Related Trials

Additional clinical trials that may be relevant based on similarity analysis.

Intranasal Oxytocin in Youth With Autism
NCT05934812 NOT_YET_RECRUITING PHASE2
Folinic Acid in Autism
NCT03771560 COMPLETED PHASE2/PHASE3
Cholesterol in ASD: Characterization and Treatment
NCT00965068 COMPLETED PHASE1/PHASE2