SynthesisPloS one2016
Blood Glutamate Levels in Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Synthesis in PloS one, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 41 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
41 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 80 citations in OpenAlex.
- Might the fungus candida albicans a risk factor for autism? A meta-analysis study.African health sciences · 2023Pooled it
- Neurometabolite levels in the brains of patients with autism spectrum disorders: A meta-analysis of proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy studies (N = 1501).Molecular psychiatry · 2023Pooled it
- The effectiveness and adverse effects of D-cycloserine compared with placebo on social and communication skills in individuals with autism spectrum disorder.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2021Pooled it
- Maternal excessive gestational weight gain as a risk factor for autism spectrum disorder in offspring: a systematic review.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2020Pooled it
- Evidence-based umbrella review of 162 peripheral biomarkers for major mental disorders.Translational psychiatry · 2020Pooled it
- Association among obesity, overweight and autism spectrum disorder: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Scientific reports · 2017Pooled it
- Selective Plasmatic Amino Acid Alterations as a Potential Biomarker for Pathological Stratification in Autism Spectrum Disorders.Biomedicines · 2026Article
- Amino acid profiles and clinical phenotypes in young children with autism spectrum disorder.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2026Article
- Local activity alterations in individuals with autism correlate with neurotransmitter properties and ketamine-induced brain changes.Nature communications · 2025Article
- Neuroplasticity-Based Approaches to Sensory Processing Alterations in Autism Spectrum Disorder.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Review
- Gut microbiota and brain-resident CD4Nature communications · 2025Article
- The relationship between autism spectrum disorder and screen time in children: a literature review.Annals of medicine and surgery (2012) · 2025Review
- Unraveling the Interplay Between Metabolism and Neurodevelopment in Health and Disease.CNS neuroscience & therapeutics · 2025Review
- Prostaglandins: Biological Action, Therapeutic Aspects, and Pathophysiology of Autism Spectrum Disorders.Current issues in molecular biology · 2025Review
- Amino Acid Patterns in Children with Autistic Spectrum Disorder: A Preliminary Biochemical Evaluation.Nutrients · 2025Article
- Immunoexcitoxicity as the possible major pathophysiology behind multiple sclerosis and other autoimmune disorders.Surgical neurology international · 2025Article
- RFW captures species-level metagenomic functions by integrating genome annotation information.Cell reports methods · 2024Article
- Examining Erythrocytes as Potential Blood Biomarkers for Autism Spectrum Disorder: Their Relationship to Symptom Severity and Adaptive Behavior.Biomedicines · 2024Article
- Large-scale metagenomic analysis of oral microbiomes reveals markers for autism spectrum disorders.Nature communications · 2024Article
- Abnormal Porphyrin Metabolism in Autism Spectrum Disorder and Therapeutic Implications.Molecular neurobiology · 2024Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveGlutamate plays an important role in brain development, neuronal migration, differentiation, survival and synaptogenesis. Recent studies have explored the relationship between blood glutamate levels and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, the findings are inconsistent. We undertook the first systematic review with a meta-analysis of studies examining blood glutamate levels in ASD compared with controls.
methodsA literature search was conducted using PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library for studies published before March 2016. A random-effects model was used to calculate the pooled standardized mean difference (SMD) of the outcomes. Subgroup analyses were used to explore the potential sources of heterogeneity, and the publication bias was estimated using Egger's tests.
resultsTwelve studies involving 880 participants and 446 incident cases were included in this meta-analysis. The meta-analysis provided evidence for higher blood glutamate levels in ASD [SMD = 0.99, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) = 0.58-1.40; P < 0.001] with high heterogeneity (I2 = 86%, P < 0.001) across studies. The subgroup analyses revealed higher glutamate levels in ASD compared with controls in plasma [SMD = 1.04, 95% CI = 0.58-1.50; P < 0.001] but not true in serum [SMD = 0.79, 95% CI = -0.41-1.99; P = 0.20]. Studies employing high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) or liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS) assays also revealed higher blood glutamate levels in ASD. A sensitivity analysis found that the results were stable, and there was no evidence of publication bias.
conclusionsBlood glutamate levels might be a potential biomarker of ASD.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.