Abstract: It has been increasingly recognized that the presence of a healthy and diverse gut microbiota is important to the development of central nervous system and emotional processing for children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). The interconnection of gut microbiome and brain function has significantly contributed to establishing the microbiota-gut-brain axis as an extension of the well-accepted gut-brain axis concept. The bidirectional interaction between the gut microbiota and the brain occurs through various pathways including serotonin, hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis, neurotrophin, and the immune system. The microbiota-gut-brain axis has been shown to influence the behaviors associated with neuropsychiatric conditions. Modulation of this gut microbiota as a novel therapy for ASD is gaining interest. This paper summarized the status of neuropsychological microbiome, which provided evidence supporting the role of gut microbiota in modulating neuropsychological functions of the central nervous system and exploring the potential underlying mechanisms.

Key words: autism spectrum disorders, microbiota-gut-brain axis, review