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Clinical Trials/NCT04948814
NCT04948814
Enrolling by Invitation
Phase 1

Clinical Trial of Fecal Microbiota Transplantation in Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder

Tongji Hospital1 site in 1 country40 target enrollmentJune 1, 2022

Overview

Phase
Phase 1
Intervention
Fecal microbiota transplantation
Conditions
Autism Spectrum Disorder
Sponsor
Tongji Hospital
Enrollment
40
Locations
1
Primary Endpoint
Change in gastrointestinal symptoms among children with ASD
Status
Enrolling by Invitation
Last Updated
3 years ago

Overview

Brief Summary

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a group of serious neurodevelopmental disorders. Intestinal microbial disturbance is common in children with ASD, and about 40% of ASD children suffer from gastrointestinal dysfunction. A great deal of evidence shows that intestinal microbes can influence the brain to play its role through "brain-intestinal-microbiota axis". Fecal microbial biota transplantation (FMT) is the most direct way to change the intestinal flora rapidly. We intend to study the difference of intestinal flora structure and metabolism between ASD children and control children at the level of phylum, genus and species; To explore the role of fecal bacteria transplantation in improving core symptoms and gastrointestinal dysfunction of children in autism spectrum disorder; To study the potential etiological mechanism of autism spectrum disorder.

Detailed Description

20 ASD children and 20 healthy children who are 3 to 18 years of age will be enrolled in the trial. The fecal donors who are 20 healthy children, will be extensively screened for infectious diseases prior to providing stool for the transplant. After being informed about the study and potential risks, all patients giving written informed consent will undergo screening period to determine eligibility for study entry. 20 ASD children who meet the eligibility requirements will receive a fecal microbiota transplantation following a 2-week treatment with Vancomycin. Fecal bacteria transplantation will be achieved through nasogastric tube, nasojejunal tube, esophagogastroduodenoscopy, colonoscopy or enema. The amount of fecal bacterial liquid transplantation for children is 5ml/kg each time. Microbiota analysis will also be performed on both the donor and recipient stool sample prior to transplantation, and on the recipient sample at 1 month, 3 month and 6 months post transplantation. We evaluate the difference of intestinal flora structure and metabolism between ASD children and control children at the level of phylum, genus and species, and explore the role of fecal bacteria transplantation in improving core symptoms and gastrointestinal dysfunction of children in autism spectrum disorder.

Registry
clinicaltrials.gov
Start Date
June 1, 2022
End Date
December 1, 2024
Last Updated
3 years ago
Study Type
Interventional
Study Design
Single Group
Sex
All

Investigators

Responsible Party
Principal Investigator
Principal Investigator

Yan Hao

Professor

Tongji Hospital

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

  • Not provided

Exclusion Criteria

  • Not provided

Arms & Interventions

ASD children

20 ASD children who meet the eligibility requirements will receive a fecal microbiota transplantation following a 2-week treatment with Vancomycin (40mg/kg/day) after 3 month waiting period. Fresh stool sample will be obtained from the donor. Fecal bacteria transplantation will be achieved via endoscopy, nasogastric/nasointestinal tubes, the proximal colon by colonoscopy, or the distal colon by enema, rectal tube, or sigmoidoscopy or a combined approach. The amount of fecal bacterial liquid transplantation for children is 5ml/kg each time. Fecal microbiota transplantation will be conducted at week 3-4, week 6-7, week 9, week 11 and week 13 for total 5 round.

Intervention: Fecal microbiota transplantation

ASD children

20 ASD children who meet the eligibility requirements will receive a fecal microbiota transplantation following a 2-week treatment with Vancomycin (40mg/kg/day) after 3 month waiting period. Fresh stool sample will be obtained from the donor. Fecal bacteria transplantation will be achieved via endoscopy, nasogastric/nasointestinal tubes, the proximal colon by colonoscopy, or the distal colon by enema, rectal tube, or sigmoidoscopy or a combined approach. The amount of fecal bacterial liquid transplantation for children is 5ml/kg each time. Fecal microbiota transplantation will be conducted at week 3-4, week 6-7, week 9, week 11 and week 13 for total 5 round.

Intervention: Vancomycin

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

Change in gastrointestinal symptoms among children with ASD

Time Frame: baseline, 2 weeks, 5 weeks , 8 weeks , 10 weeks , 12 weeks and 14 weeks, and 1 month, 3 month, 6 months post transplantation

Assessment will be conducted for the Rome IV diagnoses of cyclic vomiting, functional vomiting, functional dyspepsia, and/or functional constipation. The presence or absence of meeting criteria for the Rome IV diagnoses will be coded as a binary variable (true/false) to represent resolution of symptoms. The assessment will be conducted before and after each intervention, namely baseline, 2 weeks, 5 weeks , 8 weeks , 10 weeks , 12 weeks and 14 weeks, and 1 month, 3 month, 6 months post transplantation.

Change in Autism Diagnostic Observation Scale (ADOS) in ASD children

Time Frame: baseline, 2 weeks, 5 weeks , 8 weeks , 10 weeks , 12 weeks and 14 weeks, and 1 month, 3 month, 6 months post transplantation

The ADOS consists of a series of structured and semi-structured tasks that involve social interaction between the examiner and the person under assessment. The examiner observes and identifies segments of the subject's behavior and assigns these to predetermined observational categories. Categorized observations are subsequently combined to produce quantitative scores for analysis and diagnostic classification of ASD. Children at or above predetermined cutoff lines are considered to be positive for ASD. The assessment will be conducted before and after each intervention, namely baseline, 2 weeks, 5 weeks , 8 weeks , 10 weeks , 12 weeks and 14 weeks, and 1 month, 3 month, 6 months post transplantation.

Changes in the Autism Behavior Checklist (ABC) in ASD children

Time Frame: baseline, 2 weeks, 5 weeks , 8 weeks , 10 weeks , 12 weeks and 14 weeks, and 1 month, 3 month, 6 months post transplantation

ABC is a scale used for nonadaptive behaviors created to screen and indicate the probability of a diagnosis of autism. The questionnaire including 57 items related to five areas: sensorial, relational, use of body and objects, and social skills. Scale score\> 67 strongly suggests the presence of autism. The assessment will be conducted before and after each intervention, namely baseline, 2 weeks, 5 weeks , 8 weeks , 10 weeks , 12 weeks and 14 weeks, and 1 month, 3 month, 6 months post transplantation.

Changes in the Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS) in ASD children

Time Frame: baseline, 2 weeks, 5 weeks , 8 weeks , 10 weeks , 12 weeks and 14 weeks, and 1 month, 3 month, 6 months post transplantation

CARS assesses the child on a scale from 1 to 4 in each of 15 dimensions or symptoms. A total score of at least 30 strongly suggests the presence of autism. Children with score between 30 and 36 have mild-to-moderate autism while those with score between 37 and 60 have severe autism. The assessment will be conducted before and after each intervention, namely baseline, 2 weeks, 5 weeks , 8 weeks , 10 weeks , 12 weeks and 14 weeks, and 1 month, 3 month, 6 months post transplantation.

Change in Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS) in ASD children

Time Frame: baseline, 2 weeks, 5 weeks , 8 weeks , 10 weeks , 12 weeks and 14 weeks, and 1 month, 3 month, 6 months post transplantation

The SRS is a 65-item rating scale with standardized measure of the core symptoms of autism. Each item is scored on a 4-point Likert scale. The score of each individual item is summed to create a total raw score. A total scores results are as follows: 0-62: Within normal limits 63-79: Mild range of impairment 80-108: Moderate range of impairment 109-149: Severe range of impairment. The assessment will be conducted before and after each intervention, namely baseline, 2 weeks, 5 weeks , 8 weeks , 10 weeks , 12 weeks and 14 weeks, and 1 month, 3 month, 6 months post transplantation.

Change in Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist (ATEC) in ASD children

Time Frame: baseline, 2 weeks, 5 weeks , 8 weeks , 10 weeks , 12 weeks and 14 weeks, and 1 month, 3 month, 6 months post transplantation

ASD symptoms will be assessed using the Chinese version of the Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist (ATEC), which comprise four subscales to measure child speech/language/communication, sociability, sensory/cognitive awareness, and health/physical/behavior. The scale has 77 items that are scored by parents. The health/physical/behavior subscale is rated using a 0 (not a problem)-to-3 (serious problem) point scale, whereas the other three subscales are rated using a 0 (not true)-to-2 (very true) point scale. Higher scores represent more ASD symptoms. The assessment will be conducted before and after each intervention, namely baseline, 2 weeks, 5 weeks , 8 weeks , 10 weeks , 12 weeks and 14 weeks, and 1 month, 3 month, 6 months post transplantation.

Evaluate the difference of the gut microbe composition between children with ASD and healthy children by sequencing faecal metagenome.

Time Frame: 6 months post transplantation

Fecal samples from ASD and healthy children were collected at baseline, 2 weeks, 5 weeks , 8 weeks , 10 weeks , 12 weeks and 14 weeks, and 1 month, 3 month, 6 months post transplantation.The composition of the gut microbe was evaluated by sequencing faecal metagenome. We evaluate the differences in the structure of the flora and its metabolism between the two at the phylum, genus and species levels of the intestinal flora and control children, and to develop a model for predicting the structure of the flora.

Study Sites (1)

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