Wang Bing, Dong HanYu, Li HongHua, Yue XiaoJing, Xie Lin
Department of Nutrition and Food Hygiene, School of Public Health, Jilin University, Changchun, China.
Department of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, First Affiliated Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, China.
Front Psychiatry. 2022 May 26;13:908895. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2022.908895. eCollection 2022.
Vitamin D (VD) deficiency during pregnancy and early brain development is an important environmental risk factor for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Its specific mechanism of action is still unclear. However, one study on the correlation between metabolomics and VD levels in children with ASD has found that the whole-blood arginine (Arg) levels of children with ASD are significantly negatively correlated with serum VD levels, suggesting that the effect of VD on ASD may be related to the signaling pathway involving Arg. Arg is a precursor of nitric oxide (NO), and changes in its levels most directly affect NO levels and signal transduction pathways. NO, a biologically active free radical, is both a neurotransmitter and a neuromodulator in the central nervous system and is related to the pathogeneses of various neurological diseases. The NO signaling pathway is not only affected by VD levels but also closely related to ASD through a series of mechanisms, such as neurotransmitter imbalance, immune disorders, and oxidative stress. Therefore, the effect of VD on ASD may be achieved via regulation of the NO signaling pathway. The current review discusses the relationship among VD, NO, and ASD as suggested by a large body of evidence in the literature in an effort to provide clues for researchers on the pathogenesis of ASD and the mechanism of VD's impact on ASD.
孕期及早期大脑发育期间的维生素D（VD）缺乏是自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）的一个重要环境风险因素。其具体作用机制仍不清楚。然而，一项关于ASD患儿代谢组学与VD水平相关性的研究发现，ASD患儿的全血精氨酸（Arg）水平与血清VD水平显著负相关，这表明VD对ASD的影响可能与涉及Arg的信号通路有关。Arg是一氧化氮（NO）的前体，其水平变化最直接影响NO水平和信号转导通路。NO作为一种生物活性自由基，既是中枢神经系统中的神经递质，也是神经调节剂，与多种神经疾病的发病机制有关。NO信号通路不仅受VD水平影响，还通过一系列机制（如神经递质失衡、免疫紊乱和氧化应激）与ASD密切相关。因此，VD对ASD的影响可能是通过调节NO信号通路实现的。本综述讨论了文献中大量证据所表明的VD、NO和ASD之间的关系，旨在为研究人员提供有关ASD发病机制以及VD对ASD影响机制的线索。
