What is the relationship between autism and folate?
There is a disorder called Cerebral Folate Deficiency (CFD) which in many cases have symptoms compatible with autism, such as developmental regression, speech problems, seizures, agitation and insomnia, hypotonia, psychomotor retardation, epilepsy, gait disorders, ataxia...
CFD is caused, in some cases, by folate receptor alpha antibodies (FRAAs) that block folate from entering the brain. CFD in many cases can be treated with folinic acid. When folinic acid is administered, active metabolic levels of folate increase and clinical improvements occur in these patients.
Folinic acid is a type of folic acid that can enter the brain through a different channel than the more common folic acids.
The doctor. Richard Frye noted a very high prevalence of Folate Receptor Antibodies (FRAA) in the blood of children with ASD, and that some had low levels of folate in their central nervous system, similar to children with CFD.
Dr. Frye and his group published the results of a multi-year study showing that folinic acid improves speech, language, and other symptoms in children with autism (improvement in verbal communication and other behaviors such as life skills daily, irritability, stereotyped behavior and hyperactivity).
Link to the study: https://www.nature.com/articles/mp2011175
The study also showed that the FRAA biomarker could help predict who will respond to folinic acid treatment.