Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38696601›Full record

ArticleCerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991)2024

Increased number of excitatory synapsis and decreased number of inhibitory synapsis in the prefrontal cortex in autism.

Gelareh Vakilzadeh, Busisiwe C Maseko, Trevor D Bartely, Yingratana A McLennan, Verónica Martínez-Cerdeño

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Cerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991), 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
10citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

10 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. GABAFrontiers in pharmacology · 2026
    Review
  3. Article
  4. Review
  5. Article
  6. Ultrafast endocytosis in mouse cortical inhibitory synapses.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025
    Article
  7. Review
  8. Article
  9. Observational
  10. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Gelareh VakilzadehDepartment of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of California, Davis School of Medicine, Sacramento, CA, United States.
Busisiwe C MasekoFaculty of health Sciences, School of Anatomical Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, The Republic of South Africa.
Trevor D BartelyDepartment of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of California, Davis School of Medicine, Sacramento, CA, United States.
Yingratana A McLennanDepartment of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of California, Davis School of Medicine, Sacramento, CA, United States.
Verónica Martínez-CerdeñoDepartment of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of California, Davis School of Medicine, Sacramento, CA, United States.

Funding

Research Project: Pathologic Significance of Maternal AutoantibodiesP50HD103526 · NICHD · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT DAVIS · PI LEONARD J. ABBEDUTO, Melissa Dawn Bauman · 2020 to 2026
$9.7M
Cortical and subcortical chandelier cell pathophysiology and symptomatology in autismR01MH094681 · NIMH · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT DAVIS · PI Veronica Martinez-Cerdeno · 2011 to 2026
$6.5M
NICHD NIH HHS P50 HD103526NIMH NIH HHS MH094681NIMH NIH HHS R01 MH094681
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Previous studies in autism spectrum disorder demonstrated an increased number of excitatory pyramidal cells and a decreased number of inhibitory parvalbumin+ chandelier interneurons in the prefrontal cortex of postmortem brains. How these changes in cellular composition affect the overall abundance of excitatory and inhibitory synapses in the cortex is not known. Herein, we quantified the number of excitatory and inhibitory synapses in the prefrontal cortex of 10 postmortem autism spectrum disorder brains and 10 control cases. To identify excitatory synapses, we used VGlut1 as a marker of the presynaptic component and postsynaptic density protein-95 as marker of the postsynaptic component. To identify inhibitory synapses, we used the vesicular gamma-aminobutyric acid transporter as a marker of the presynaptic component and gephyrin as a marker of the postsynaptic component. We used Puncta Analyzer to quantify the number of co-localized pre- and postsynaptic synaptic components in each area of interest. We found an increase in the number of excitatory synapses in upper cortical layers and a decrease in inhibitory synapses in all cortical layers in autism spectrum disorder brains compared with control cases. The alteration in the number of excitatory and inhibitory synapses could lead to neuronal dysfunction and disturbed network connectivity in the prefrontal cortex in autism spectrum disorder.

Indexed as

Membrane ProteinsPrefrontal CortexSynapsesAdolescentAdultAutism Spectrum DisorderAutistic DisorderChildFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedNeural InhibitionVesicular Glutamate Transport Protein 1Young AdultgephyrinMembrane ProteinsVesicular Glutamate Transport Protein 1autismexcitatoryhumaninhibitorypostmortemsynapsis

Identifiers

PMID38696601
PMCPMC11065106

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.