Abstract

Autism spectrum disorder is a group of neurodevelopmental disorders that clinically presents in children as a lack of social interaction,restricted interests,and repetitive patterns of behavior.The most recent studies and publications demonstrate the enormous role of infectious agents and chronic inflammation not only in various comorbid conditions in these patients but also in the dysregulation of the immune system,which in turn leads to the accumulation of immunodeficiency states and to a worsening of the autistic phenotype.Therefore,the focus of this article is on how congenital and early postnatal infections found in children with ASD may trigger the chain of pathological events found in autism. We discuss how some infectious agents such as Toxoplasma gondii, measles,rubella, cytomegalovirus, Epstein-Barr virus, and herpes-simplex virus-1 and 2 are involved in the dysregulation of immunity and nervous system abnormalities.Furthermore, we want to provide recommendations for potential combined treatment methods for patients with autism with concomitant immune dysfunction.