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Background: Exposure to maternal depression bears long-term negative consequences for children's well-being. Yet, no study has tested the joint contribution of maternal and child's hypothalamic pituitary axis and immune systems in mediating the effects of maternal depression on child psychopathology., Methods: We followed a birth cohort over-represented for maternal depression from birth to 10 years (N = 125). At 10 years, mother and child's cortisol (CT) and secretory immunoglobulin A (s-IgA), biomarkers of the stress and immune systems, were assayed, mother-child interaction observed, mothers and children underwent psychiatric diagnosis, and children's externalizing and internalizing symptoms reported., Results: Depressed mothers had higher CT and s-IgA levels and displayed more negative parenting, characterized by negative affect, intrusion, and criticism. Children of depressed mothers exhibited more Axis-I disorders, higher s-IgA levels, and greater social withdrawal. Structural equation modeling charted four paths by which maternal depression impacted child externalizing and internalizing symptoms: (a) increasing maternal CT, which linked with higher child CT and behavior problems; (b) augmenting maternal and child's immune response, which were associated with child symptoms; (c) enhancing negative parenting that predicted child social withdrawal and symptoms; and (d), via a combined endocrine-immune pathway suppressing symptom formation., Conclusions: Our findings, the first to test stress and immune biomarkers in depressed mothers and their children in relation to social behavior, describe mechanisms of endocrine synchrony in shaping children's stress response and immunity, advocate the need to follow the long-term effects of maternal depression on children's health throughout life, and highlight maternal depression as an important public health concern., (© 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

A link between atopic dermatitis (AD,eczema) and emotional and behavioral dysfunction is more or less well recognized but concern still exists. Children with a chronic health condition have long been considered at excess risk for psychosocial morbidity. But psychosocial morbidity is less linked and studied in connection with other disease, especially AD. As mentioned before, AD is the most prevalent chronic disease in young children. The aim of the study was assessment of incidence of atopic dermatitis in children of 5-6 years with developmental and behavioral problems. The cross sectional study was conducted. Children with developmental and behavioral problems according to medical records and aged five to six years were recruited consecutively from a preventive care register in M. Iashvili Childrens Hospital Child Developmental Center in 2010-2014 years. Recruitment was done according developmental and behavioral assessment performed on the basis of team approach by pediatrician and psychologist. Parents evaluation of development status: developmental milestones (PEDS:DM) and Pictorial Checklist ( PIK -17) was used for assessment. 639 children with language delays, problems of externalization and internalization were enrolled in study. Children were examined by pediatricians based on the presence of at least three major and three minor criteria of Hanifin and Rajka's diagnostic criteria(H&R) and by semi structured, one-to-one interview with the parents. According our study: 1. Significant amount of children with developmental and behavioral problems and symptoms are developing AD(36%). 2. Children with language delay were more frequently developing AD symptoms than children with behavioral problems.3.There was not significant difference in children with language delay and behavioral problems in terms of impact on QL. In both cases everyday activities, sleep and recreational actives were affected and there more affected then in children with developmental and behavioral problems and symptoms with AD comparable to children without AD, especially sleep.4. Date represents that boys are more likely to develop AD than girls, this information is in correlation with known facts about dermatitis. Both boys and girls were similarly affected by QL problems in case of AD and developmental and behavioral problems and symptoms. Chronic diseases and development and behavior of children in further dilemma for researchers. Our study gives us further impulse for more deep insight in factors affecting children with delays and behavioral problems and prospective studies in group with developmental and behavioral problems and symptoms and AD.

A wide range of clinical presentations including neuromuscular disorders and autoimmune encephalopathies is being recognized to be associated with various autoantibodies. Glycine receptor (GlyR) antibodies have so far been found mainly in adult patients with phenotypes comprising progressive encephalomyelitis with rigidity and myoclonus or stiff-person syndrome. We report a four-year-old boy who presented with a two-year-history of drug-resistant focal epilepsy with unusual seizure semiology, temper tantrums, headache, clumsiness, and intermittently impaired speech. While MRI and CSF were normal, screening for autoimmune antibodies revealed GlyR antibodies in serum. Immunomodulatory treatment with steroids resulted in rapid and complete resolution of symptoms. Our observation widens the spectrum of clinical presentations associated with GlyR antibodies and emphasizes the potential relevance of neuronal autoantibodies in epilepsies of unknown cause in children as well as in adults., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Objective: A heritable behavioral phenotype, the so-called Dysregulation Profile (DP), characterized by extreme scores on the syndrome scales Anxious/Depressed (A/D), Attention Problems (AP), and Aggressive Behavior (AGG), has been identified on the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). It characterizes children with severe affective and behavioral dysregulation. The present study examined possible alterations of the inflammatory system in CBCL-DP using a clinical sample of n = 133 children and adolescents., Method: Participants with the CBCL-DP scoring ≥ 2.5 SDs above average constituted the CBCL-DP subgroup (n = 51). Those with CBCL-DP scores of 1 SD or less above average were regarded as controls (n = 82). Groups were compared in terms of serum levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) and albumin., Results: Participants showing the CBCL-DP exhibited increased CRP and decreased albumin levels compared to controls. CRP was correlated with AGG, AP, and the CBCL-DP total score. A negative correlation was observed between albumin and AGG, AP, the CBCL-DP score, and A/D. These associations could not be attributed to differences in age, sex, weight, socioeconomic status, global functioning, or duration of illness., Conclusions: This is the first study to demonstrate associations between the CBCL-DP and a proinflammatory state. Limitations include the lack of a healthy control group, the use of a single measurement of inflammatory markers, and the lack of follow-up data. Future research should address whether inflammatory diathesis in these children confers increased susceptibility to later development of cardiovascular disease and other medical morbidities.

Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) affect approximately 1 in 110 children in the United States. This report profiles fetal-brain reactive autoantibodies of a large cohort of mothers of children with autism and controls, yielding significant associations between the presence of IgG reactivity to fetal brain proteins at 37 and 73 kDa and a childhood diagnosis of full autism (p = 0.0005), which also correlated with lower expressive language scores (p = 0.005). Additionally, we report on reactivity to proteins at 39 and 73 kDa, which correlated with the broader diagnosis of ASD (p = 0.0007) and increased irritability on the Aberrant Behavioral Checklist (p = 0.05). This study provides evidence of multiple patterns of reactivity to fetal brain proteins by maternal antibodies associated with ASD and specific childhood behavioral outcomes.

Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are characterized by impaired language and social skills, often with restricted interests and stereotyped behaviors. A previous investigation of blood plasma from children with ASDs (mean age=5½ years) demonstrated that 21% of samples contained autoantibodies that reacted intensely with GABAergic Golgi neurons of the cerebellum while no samples from non-sibling, typically developing children showed similar staining (Wills et al., 2009). In order to characterize the clinical features of children positive for these autoantibodies, we analyzed plasma samples from children enrolled in the Autism Phenome Project, a multidisciplinary project aimed at identifying subtypes of ASD. Plasma from male and female children (mean age=3.2 years) was analyzed immunohistochemically for the presence of autoantibodies using histological sections of macaque monkey brain. Immunoreactivity to cerebellar Golgi neurons and other presumed interneurons was observed for some samples but there was no difference in the rate of occurrence of these autoantibodies between children with ASD and their typically developing peers. Staining of neurons, punctate profiles in the molecular layer of the dentate gyrus, and neuronal nuclei were also observed. Taken together, 42% of controls and subjects with ASD demonstrated immunoreactivity to some neural element. Interestingly, children whose plasma reacted to brain tissue had scores on the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) that indicated increased behavioral and emotional problems. Children whose plasma was immunoreactive with neuronal cell bodies scored higher on multiple CBCL scales. These studies indicate that additional research into the genesis and prevalence of brain-directed autoantibodies is warranted., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Cross-sectional studies suggest an association between eczema and mental health problems, but the temporal relationship is unclear., Objective: To assess the association between infant-onset eczema and mental health problems in a prospective study., Methods: Between 1995 and 1998, a birth cohort study was recruited and followed until age 10 years. Physician-diagnosed eczema, comorbidities, and a broad set of environmental exposures were assessed at age 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, and 10 years. First, we investigated the association between infant-onset eczema (age 1-2 years) and mental health problems at age 10 years according to the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Second, we analyzed the likelihood of mental health problems at age 10 years in relation to the course of eczema., Results: A total of 2916 infants were eligible for analysis. Compared with participants never diagnosed as having eczema, children with infant-onset eczema had a significantly increased risk for possible/probable mental health problems (Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire total score) at age 10 years (odds ratio, 1.49; 95% CI, 1.13-1.96) and for emotional symptoms (odds ratio, 1.62; 95% CI, 1.25-2.09). Eczema limited to infancy predicted a significantly higher risk for conduct problems at age 10 years. The strength of the association between eczema and emotional problems at age 10 years increased with increasing eczema persistence., Conclusion: Infants with eczema are at increased risk for mental health problems at age 10 years. Even if cleared afterward, eczema at age 1 to 2 years may cause persistent emotional and behavioral difficulties., (Copyright 2010 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Behavioral and movement disorders may have antibody responses where mimicry and signal transduction may lead to neuropsychiatric abnormalities. In our study, antibodies in pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorders associated with streptococci (PANDAS) reacted with the neuronal cell surface and caudate-putamen and induced calcium-calmodulin dependent protein (CaM) kinase II activity in neuronal cells. Depletion of serum IgG abrogated CaM kinase II cell signaling and reactivity of CSF was blocked by streptococcal antigen N-acetyl-beta-d-glucosamine (GlcNAc). Antibodies against GlcNAc in PANDAS sera were inhibited by lysoganglioside G(M1). Results suggest that antibodies from an infection may signal neuronal cells in some behavioral and movement disorders.

Objective: To determine whether adolescents with major depressive disorder have disturbances in their cellular immunity and to study whether the immunological changes detected are specific to depression or are general responses to stress., Method: Twenty subjects with major depressive disorder, 17 nondepressed subjects with conduct disorder, and 17 normal adolescents were recruited. Subjects were assessed with a clinical interview for DSM-III-R and a modified version of the Coddington Life Events Checklist. Blood samples were drawn for total white blood cells, lymphocytes subsets, natural killer cell activity, lymphocyte proliferation response to phytohemagglutinin, and cortisol plasma levels., Results: Overall, there were no significant between-group differences in any of the cellular immune measurements. Natural killer cell activity was significantly negatively correlated with past year and lifetime adverse life events across all effector-target cell ratios. Controlling for diagnoses and socioeconomic status yielded similar results. There were no significant effects of age, sex, race, sleep, nutrition, cigarette use, menstrual cycle, or cortisol on any of the immunological variables., Conclusions: In this sample of adolescents, we found that independent of the diagnoses and socioeconomic status, increases in adverse life events were associated with low natural killer cell activity.

Lymphocyte subpopulations were analyzed in 11 adolescents with major depressive disorder, 11 with conduct disorder, and eight normal age-matched subjects. No significant differences were noted on any T or B cell measure between the groups. Further, no significant correlations were found between any cortisol measure (baseline cortisol, post-dexamethasone cortisol, urinary free cortisol) and any lymphocyte measure in either depressed or conduct-disordered adolescents. The negative findings in this small sample contrast with those reported in adult patients and suggest that an aging effect may be associated with the immunological changes reported in older depressed patients.

The prevalence of herpes simplex virus (HSV) antibodies has been investigated in 123 child psychiatric patients and 86 normal children. HSV antibodies were measured by ELISA technique. The prevalence of HSV antibodies in different diagnostic groups (conduct disorder, emotional disorder, hyperkinetic syndrome, anorexia nervosa, infantile autism and borderline schizophrenia in childhood) was compared with age-matched normal children, but no significant differences were found.

Sixteen children whose behavior was said to become aggressive, overly active, loud, and noncompliant when ingesting sugar were tested. Sugar-free home diet was maintained and an "open" challenge to a large dose (3 g/kg) of candy bar sucrose was given. Subsequent behavior was noted by actometer, quantitative playroom observation using several standard behavioral tests, and ability to do maze drawings. No significant changes were found on the open challenge test. A slight change from baseline was noted in seven cases on three or four behavioral parameters. Five of these children agreed to a double-blind challenge test utilizing lemon-flavored slushes of sucrose, honey, tapioca starch, or aspartame, administered after a standard lunch free of sucrose. One child reacted to both sucrose and honey and another child reacted only to sucrose. These two children were challenged a second time. The child who reacted to honey again did so according to actometer readings, but this time not by Stony Brook test. To sugar, he reacted only at the 70-minute Stony Brook. The other child reacted to placebo instead of sucrose when rechallenged. The results indicate that high doses of sugar are not related to abnormal behavior. "Open" challenge was sufficient to rule out such a relationship in most instances. A repeated double-blind challenge confirmed the absence of a sugar effect in cases showing initial possibility of response.