Candida spp. in the gut microbiota of people with autism: a systematic review
*Correspondencia: Dr. Agustín Ernesto Martínez González. Campus San Vicente del Raspeig. Edificio Facultad de Educación. Universidad de Alicante. Apdo. Correos 99. E-03080 Alicante.
E-mail: agustin.emartinez@ua.es
Introduction: There is great interest in studies on the implications that gut microbiota exerts on the behavior of people with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), through the microbiota-gut-brain axis. Most studies on microbiota are focused on the possible involvement of bacteria on people with ASD, but few of them are focussed on the effect of microorganisms in the Fungi kingdom.
Subjects and methods: The present study performs a systematic review of the presence of Candida spp. in people with ASD using the PRISMA method.
Results: A total of three articles were found after applying the exclusion and inclusion criteria of the systematic review. Two studies coincided in reporting significant differences in the increase in the frequency of the Candida spp. genus in people with ASD. while the third study did not report significant differences of Candida spp. genus between people with ASD.
Conclusions: Although there is a clear lack of investigation of both the Candida ssp. genus and the whole Fungi kingdom in people with ASD, the studies point to an important presence of this genre in this group. Specifically, in the results found in this review, the highest prevalence of the C. albicans in children with ASD stands out. However, little is still known about the involvement of Candida spp., and other types of fungi, on gastrointestinal symptoms and ASD symptoms, in children with ASD.
Sujetos y métodos Se realiza una revisión sistemática mediante el protocolo PRISMA de la presencia de Candida spp. en las personas con TEA.
Resultados Se encontró un total de tres artículos tras aplicar los criterios de exclusión e inclusión de la revisión sistemática. Dos estudios coincidieron en mostrar diferencias significativas en el aumento de la frecuencia del género Candida spp. en personas con TEA, mientras que en otro no se hallaron diferencias.
Conclusiones Pese a que existe una clara falta de investigación tanto del género Candida ssp. como de todo el reino Fungi en las personas con TEA, los estudios apuntan a una importante presencia de dicho género en este colectivo. Concretamente, en los resultados encontrados se destaca la mayor prevalencia del género C. albicans en los niños con TEA. Sin embargo, aún se sabe poco sobre la implicación de Candida spp. y otros tipos de hongos sobre los síntomas gastrointestinales y la sintomatología del autismo en niños con TEA.