Gut-Brain axis in children and young adults with cerebral palsy (CP)

Background

The high frequency of food antibodies previously found in our studies on children and young adults with cerebral palsy (CP), were most seen in the underweighted children and might be due to dysfunctional intestinal barrier allowing entrance of undigested food proteins, into the systemic circulation. This raise the question whether other barriers of the body could be affected. We are investigating if these antibodies previously found in our studies, are associated with markers of blood-brain barrier disruption and/or the neural injury of these children and their comorbidities.

To have serological brain injury markers early in life, would be extremely helpful for the child, parents and in clinical practice.To have serological brain injury markers early in life, that may indicate which sub-diagnosis of CP a child is likely have, since it differs between the subtypes, would be extremely helpful for the child, parents and in clinical practice. It could facilitate the possibility to make a prognosis of the outcome of the child’s brain damage and it is also a prerequisite for optimizing the medical care of the disabled child.

Aim

To examine different markers of blood-brain barrier disruption and neural injury and their association with antibody response to gluten determined by specific immunoassays, such as ELISA.