Interconnection between Microbiota–Gut–Brain Axis and Autism Spectrum Disorder Comparing Therapeutic Options: A Scoping Review

Abstract

Background: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a group of neurodevelopmental illnesses characterized by difficulty in social communication, social interaction, and repetitive behaviors. These clinical diagnostic criteria can be seen in children as early as one year old and are commonly associated with long-term difficulties. ASD is connected with a higher frequency of various medical diseases such as gastrointestinal complaints, seizures, anxiety, interrupted sleep, and immunological dysfunction, in addition to the range of developmental abnormalities listed. Methods: From 1 January 2013 to 28 February 2023, we searched PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science for English-language papers that matched our topic. The following Boolean keywords were utilized in the search approach: “autism” AND “microbiota”. After deleting duplicates, a total of 2370 publications were found from the databases, yielding 1222 articles. (1148). Nine hundred and eighty-eight items were excluded after their titles and abstracts were scrutinized. The method resulted in the removal of 174 items for being off-topic. The final 18 articles for qualitative analysis are included in the evaluation. Conclusion: The findings of this extensive study revealed that probiotics, prebiotics, their combination as synbiotics, fecal microbiota transplantation, and microbiota transfer therapy may benefit ASD patients suffering from both gastrointestinal and central nervous system symptoms.