Lack of Association between Parental ABO Blood Type and Autism Spectrum Disorders

Abstract

The first two authors contributed equally to this work.Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), including autism as well as pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS) and Asperger's disorder, are characterized by impairments of reciprocal social interactions, problems in communication, and a restricted range of behaviors and interests [1]. Although specific causes of ASDs have yet to be found, many risk factors have been identified that may contribute to the development of ASDs. These risk factors include genetics, environmental factors, prenatal and perinatal factors, and neuroanatomical abnormalities [2].There is ample evidence suggesting that genetic factors play a role in the etiology of ASDs [3]. With the accomplishment of several systematic family studies, it is found that the consistent sibling recurrence rate is substantially higher than the population prevalence [4,5]. The results of twin studies suggest a dramatically higher concordance rate in monozygotic twins than in dizygotic twins [6]. In addition, by means of single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) microarrays and karyotyping, structural variation of chromosomes has been identified in some individuals with ASD, including 9p24.1 as a recurrent and overlapping locus in ASDs [1].The ABO blood type is controlled by the ABO gene encoding a glycosyltransferase, an enzyme that modifies the carbohydrate content of the red blood cell antigens. The gene consists of seven exons, and is located on chromosome 9q34 [7]. A series of single nucleotide polymorphisms across the seven exons form three different alleles of the ABO gene, referring to the A, B and O alleles [8].As the ABO gene is located on the ninth chromosome, of which structural variation is also observed in some individuals with ASD, it seemed reasonable to surmise that ABO blood type was functionally related to ASDs. Blood types are inherited from both parents. We hypothesized that if parental ABO blood type was associated with the development of filial ASDs, there would be a higher probability of filial ASDs in parents with a specific ABO blood type. If so, medical workers can utilize the parental ABO blood type as an easy way to roughly predict the morbidity of filial ASDs.To determine whether there is a specific ABO blood type in parents of children with ASD, we surveyed families of children with ASD ascertained through Shanghai Mental Health Center. To ensure an unbiased study population for our investigation, the program was designed to obviate ascertainment biases with the same inclusion criteria including diagnosis and treatment. individuals. To compare possible differences between distributions of blood types in parents of children with ASD and in the control population, the Chi-square test was carried out. Distribution of ABO blood types in fathers/mothers of children with ASD and the control population showed no statistically significant differences (χ 2 = 7.01, df = 6, P = 0.28) ( Table 1). Numerous studies have been trying to disentangle the complex pathophysiology of AS...

A case-control study along with an epidemiological approach to CNTNAP2 polymorphism among Bangladeshi ASD children

“…The epigenetic alteration, confounding by genetic responsibility or social determinants of reproductive age, and mediation by age-related pregnancy risks are all probable mechanisms that could underpin these associations (Lee and McGrath, 2015). It seemed believed that ABO blood type was linked to ASDs in some way as parents' blood types are passed on to their children (Wu et al, 2012). We surveyed families with ASD to see if they have a particular ABO blood type where it has been shown that ASD mothers had 23.8% A+, 31.7% B+, 12.7% AB+, 23.8% O+ blood types while fathers had 14.3% A+, 23.8% B+, 12.7% AB+ and 20.6% O+ blood group.…”

“…In this result, we can say that the B+ blood group of parents probably had a trend of risk for having an ASD child. In another study, It is also postulated that some unknown genetic mechanisms of a parent's blood type can contribute to the risk of autism, disrupting fetal neurodevelopment (Wu et al, 2012). However, through antibody transfer and the impact of immune markers on the developing nervous system, maternal immune-mediated conditions and autoimmune reactions can influence the risk of ASD (Kohane et al, 2012), (Zerbo et al, 2015).…”