Assessing the Impact of Probiotic Supplementation in Children Diagnosed With Autism Spectrum Disorder: the PROBI-O-TISM Study

Summary

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) present with stereotyped behaviors and often with comorbidities including gastrointestinal symptoms and sleep disturbances. These affect the quality of life of both children and parents. As of now, interventions available to manage ASD-related behaviors rely heavily on the services of professionals who are often difficult to access. What is even more striking is that there are currently no approved medications to treat the core symptoms of ASD. There is an important need for additional strategies to manage severity of ASD and to develop new treatments.

Targeting the bacteria living in the intestine, named 'gut microbiota', by using probiotics is an avenue that has been proposed by other groups to improve behaviors associated with ASD and gastrointestinal symptoms. However, these studies have important limitations, pressing the need for robustly designed interventions.

Previously, the PROBI-O-TISM pilot study was conducted at CHU Sainte-Justine. The investigators confirmed that the Bio-K+ probiotic beverage is acceptable and safe for autistic children and that the proposed study protocol is feasible. The study also led to promising preliminary results suggesting a beneficial effect of the probiotics on behaviors, gastrointestinal symptoms and sleep.

The proposed study will answer the question: ''Does supplementing with Bio-K+ probiotics reduce the severity of autistic behaviors and comorbidities in children with a diagnosis of ASD? '' The investigators will use a solid study design, a double-blinded randomized controlled-trial with placebo, to test the efficacy of a 14-week treatment with daily Bio-K+ probiotic supplement in children aged 4 to 11 years old. The investigators will also study the impact of the supplementation on other parameters such as quality of life, gut microbiota and brain signaling.

This is a unique opportunity to test a simple approach to improve behaviors and comorbidities in autistic children.

Conditions

• Autism Spectrum Disorder

Interventions

DIETARY_SUPPLEMENT

Three strains of Lactobacillus: L. acidophilus CL1285®, L. casei LBC80R® and L. rhamnosus CLR2®

A probiotic beverage (98 g) at dose of 50.10\^9 CFU, taken once daily for 14 weeks.

OTHER

Placebo

Non fermented beverage (98 g) with no probiotic strains, taken once daily for 14 weeks.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal (CIUSSS - NIM)

  collaborator UNKNOWN

• University of Ottawa

  collaborator OTHER

• Institut universitaire de cardiologie et de pneumologie de Québec, University Laval

  collaborator OTHER

• Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique - Centre Armand Frappier Santé Biotechnologie

  collaborator UNKNOWN

• Valérie Marcil

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Valérie Marcil, Professor · St. Justine's Hospital

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

SUPPORTIVE_CARE

Masking

QUADRUPLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

4 Years

Max Age

11 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2025-06-02

Primary Completion

2028-04-30

Completion

2028-04-30

Countries

• Canada

Study Locations