Is neuroinflammation always present in the brain of autistic patients?
NOT necessarily. Since autism is a disorder that is highly variable in the ways it presents, and may be associated with multiple causes, it is possible that our sample of cases does not represent the entire autistic spectrum. Also, some of our patients had other associated neurological disorders frequently found in autism, such as epilepsy and mental retardation. However, the presence of microscopic and immunological findings showing neuroimmune reactions in all of our autistic patients and the cytokine findings in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) support a potential role for neuroglia and neuroinflammation in the CNS effects in a number of individuals with autism. • Why are neuroglial activation and neuroinflammation relevant to the neurobiology of autism? The presence of increased neuroglial responses is relevant to the neurobiological mechanisms involved in autism, as both microglia and astroglia are essential for neuronal activity and synaptic [neural transmission] function, neuronal-
