RESUMEN
El autismo, ahora conocido como síndrome del espectro autista (SEA), es un trastorno neuropsiquiátrico que comienza antes de los tres años de edad y dura toda la vida. Los síntomas conductuales y cognitivos parecen ser el resultado de una conectividad sináptica anormal que conduce a alteraciones en el filtrado de la información sensorial, limitando su integración y procesamiento neuronal. El autismo no es un trastorno neurodegenerativo por lo que, en condiciones adecuadas, su sintomatología puede mejorar con el tiempo. Esto se debe a que el individuo autista aprende a filtrar la información sensorial por medio de centros neuronales alternativos, lo que favorece su comprensión del medio que lo rodea y por consecuencia le permite aprender. La intervención temprana en infantes, diagnosticados antes de los dos años de edad, mejora notablemente el pronóstico. Actualmente el SEA puede ser detectado alrededor de los 18 meses de edad, pero los padres y expertos en autismo pueden detectar los síntomas aun antes. La participación del sistema de salud en preparar padres, pediatras y personal de guarderías en la detección temprana del SEA es de suma importancia. Esto permitirá mejorar la calidad de vida tanto de los individuos autistas como de las personas involucradas en su cuidado.
Autism, currently known as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), is a lifelong neuropsychiatric disorder that starts before three years of age. The behavioral and cognitive symptoms seem to be caused by an abnormal synaptic connectivity that leads to deficits in the ability to filter sensory information. Poor filtering seems to constitute a barrier for the integration and processing of neuronal information. Because ASD is not a neurodegenerative disorder, under appropriate conditions, symptoms usually improve over time, probably because the autistic person learns to filter sensory information by alternative neuronal routes. This allows him/her to have a better understanding of the surrounding environment and in turn facilitates learning. Early intervention on children identified before age 2 notably improves prognosis. Currently, ASD can be detected in boys and girls when they are about 18 months old. However, parents and autism experts can observe symptoms before that age. The participation of the health system in order to prepare parents, pediatricians, and caregivers is highly important and leads to significant improvements in the quality of life of autistic individuals and of caregivers.
Asunto(s)
Humanos , Lactante , Trastorno Autístico/diagnóstico , Protocolos Clínicos , Diagnóstico Precoz , Encuestas y CuestionariosRESUMEN
Vestibular afferent neurons have been classified on the basis of their spontaneous activity as regular and irregular; this has been attributed to their synaptic input, but it remains to be defined the participation of some intrinsical properties of the afferent neurons in the determination of their discharge pattern. In this work, we have developed tissue cultures of the rat vestibular ganglia. Isolated cells were plated using poly-D-lysine or collagen as substrates and L-15 or Neurobasal as culture media. After 48 hrs cells in the four experimental conditions give forth neurites of variable longitude. By using antibodies against the neurofilaments 160 kDa the cell structure was studied. Monopolar (30.6), bipolar (63.9) and multipolar (5.5) cells were found. By using the voltage and current clamp procedures the voltage dependence and kinetics of the tetrodotoxin sensitive Na+ current was fully characterized. Cultured cells were shown to generate action potentials under electrical stimulation, and they were capable of repetitive spike discharge under the influence of 4-aminopyridine. These results demonstrate that tissue cultures constitute an excellent system to study the intrinsical properties of vestibular afferent neurons.