Abstract
Arachidonic acid (ARA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) may be related to brain network maturation. ARA has more important role in signal transduction related to neuronal maturation. Supplementation with larger ARA doses added to DHA may therefore mitigate social impairment. In a double-blind, placebo-controlled 16-week trial we administered daily doses of either ARA and DHA (240 mg each) or placebo in 13 participants with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) aged 6 to 28 years old (mean age ± SD=14.6 ± 5.9 years) . The outcome measures were the Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS) and the Aberrant Behavior Checklist-Community (ABC) . Repeated measures analysis of variance revealed that the treatment group significantly improved SRS-measured communication as well as ABC-measured social withdrawal compared to the control group. Plasma levels of transferrin as well as superoxide dismutase showed difference in the change between the two groups. This clinical study suggests that supplementation with larger ARA doses added to DHA improves social impairment in individuals with by upregulating signal transduction or reducing oxidative stress.
