Background: To provide data on the etiology and potential biomarkers of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), this study evaluated serum lipid levels and nutritional profiles in Chinese children diagnosed with ASD. Methods: A total of 32 children with ASD and 59 healthy controls were enrolled. Thirteen biochemical indicators reflecting serum lipid status and overall nutrition were assessed. Univariate and multivariate analyses, Spearman correlation analysis, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to identify differential indicators between the ASD and control groups and to evaluate their diagnostic value for ASD. Results: Triglycerides (TG) (odds ratio OR = 2.187, 95% confidence interval CI: 1.299–3.682), cholesterol (CHOL) (OR = 1.808, 95% CI: 1.055–3.097), and albumin (ALB) (OR = 4.709, 95% CI: 1.294–17.135) were significantly associated with an ASD diagnosis. Each of these indicators showed statistically significant differences between groups but demonstrated limited diagnostic power, including TG (AUC = 0.6504, P = 0.0182), CHOL (AUC = 0.7055, P = 0.0013), and ALB (AUC = 0.7587, P < 0.0001). Conclusion: Impaired lipid metabolism may be related to the pathogenesis of ASD. TG, CHOL, and ALB were found to be key factors associated with ASD and may serve as potential biomarkers for early diagnosis.
Li et al. (Wed,) studied this question.