Where does autism come from when it鈥檚 not genetic? One hypothesis suggests maternal viral infection could be a cause. But how does this work? Research from CSHL Associate Professor Lucas Cheadle and postdoc Irene Sanchez Martin offers possible answers. You may have read the story in the . Now, hear it from the researchers themselves At the Lab.
Read the related story: CSHL postdoc presents breakthrough autism findings
Transcript
Sam Diamond: You鈥檙e now At the Lab with 黑料吃瓜资源. My name is Sam Diamond, and this week At the Lab, 鈥淧roducts of an unseen environment.鈥�
SD: All of us are, in a way, products of our environment. When you think about it, the younger you are, the smaller your environment is.
SD: Before life begins, the fetus鈥� environment is limited to the mother鈥檚 womb. Over the past two decades, research has shown that when a pregnant mouse is exposed to a virus, it may affect the future health of her pup. We know this from studying well-established animal models.
Lucas Cheadle: Specifically, a mouse model called the maternal immune activation model.
SD: That鈥檚 CSHL Associate Professor Lucas Cheadle. His lab is interested in the intersection of the brain and the immune system. Lately, they鈥檝e begun to incorporate the maternal immune activation model into their research. But what does that mean, and how does it work?
LC: It鈥檚 not a genetic model. It鈥檚 an environmentally driven model that some use to study autism-like disorders. And the way it works is you activate the immune system of a pregnant mouse.
SD: Say, by injecting it with a virus.
LC: Right. And if you activate the immune system at the right time of gestation, the offspring have mouse versions of autism.
SD: What scientists don鈥檛 fully understand is the role immune cells play. That鈥檚 where Cheadle鈥檚 lab comes in.
SD: CSHL postdoc Irene Sanchez Martin has been interested in the immune system since she began her studies in veterinary medicine. Today, she鈥檚 looking at maternal immune activation in a new light.
Irene Sanchez Martin: The difference is in my work I check what happened 24 hours after treatment. We track what is happening in the placenta, all the membranes that surround the embryo, and the amniotic fluid. We鈥檙e trying to characterize what鈥檚 going on in the surrounding environment of the embryo in development.
SD: They鈥檝e already spotted potential early warning signs of developmental deficits. Excitingly, they鈥檙e only seeing them in male embryos, which may speak to autism鈥檚 higher incidence among boys than girls. Ultimately, this research could point to prenatal care that helps protect a fetus from developmental disorders. It could also provide a better understanding of development itself.
SD: We know we鈥檙e products of our environment. Someday we may know when, where, why, and how our environment influences who we are.
SD: Thanks again for joining us At the Lab. Remember to hit subscribe and visit www.cshl.edu for more fascinating science stories like this one. For 黑料吃瓜资源, I鈥檓 Sam Diamond, and I鈥檒l see you next time At the Lab.