Abstract 22: Autologous Cord Blood vs Personalised Supplements for Autistic Spectrum Disease – CORDUS Study

Abstract Introduction Cord blood (CB) administered intravenously for Autistic Spectrum Disease (ASD), has so far yielded mixed results, likely due to the diversity of ASD pathophysiology and the different characteristics of CB; also, a possible bias in evaluations – due to both temporal fluctuations in child’s behaviour and differences between various psychometric scales. Objectives The CORDUS Clinical Study is a crossover study in which autologous CB was administered intravenously to 56 ASD children between 2019 and 2023, and compared CB efficacy versus a personalised combination of supplements (PCS). Based on age and body weight (BW), children were divided in two groups: Group 1 (n=28), children less than 8 yo and 35 kg BW, and group 2 (n=28), kids more than 8 yo and 35 kg BW. Methods Treatment efficacy was evaluated pre- and post- treatments at 1-12 months by an independent psychotherapist with ATEC, Q-CHAT and a 16-item comparative table score, after interviews with both the children’s parents and therapists. An inflammatory panel, Neuron-specific enolase (NSE), and other blood tests, also CD34+, CD45+ CD 133+, CD271+ cell surface markers from CB were performed. Results There were no serious adverse reactions after administration of CB or PCS; temporary agitation was the most common side effect. NSE was elevated in more than 95% of ASD kids. CB was more efficacious in Group 1 (n=28; 78.57% - improved scores), but much less effective in Group 2 (n=28; 10% of children improved scores). In group 1, PCS was more efficacious than CB in 5 cases out of 28, while in 23 kids CB was better than PCS; 6 kids had minor or no improvement. Statistically significant improvements were seen after CB on ATEC total scores, verbalization and social interaction, but not on irritability or aggressive behaviour; ample differences were noted between children. Improvement after CB was correlated negatively weakly with percentages from TNC of CD34+ and CD271+, and positively with the ratio CD34+/CD271. Discussion NSE alongside inflammatory markers (TNF-alpha, GFAP, NFkB, etc), or markers related to the ASD pathology or the CB qualities may select the ASD children most likely to benefit from CB. More clinical studies are needed.