A Pilot Treatment Study of Insulin-Like Growth Factor-1 (IGF-1) in Autism Spectrum Disorder

Summary

The proposed project will pilot the use of IGF-1 as a novel treatment for core symptoms of autism. We will use a double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial design in five children with autism to evaluate the impact of IGF-1 treatment on autism-specific impairments in socialization, language, and repetitive behaviors. We expect to provide evidence for the safety and feasibility of IGF-1 in ameliorating social withdrawal in children with Autistic Disorder. Further, we expect to demonstrate that IGF-1 is associated with improvement on secondary outcomes of social impairment, language delay, and repetitive behavior, as well as on functional outcomes of global severity.

Timeline

Start

2014-05

Primary completion

2017-09-13

Completion

2017-09-13

Publications

• Long J, Liao X, Han K, Niu M, Chen J, Wang X, Liu J, Zhang Y, Zhang H. Association of Thyroid Hormone and Insulin-Like Growth Factor-1 Levels With Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Autism Res. 2025 Jul;18(7):1497-1512. doi: 10.1002/aur.70052. Epub 2025 May 12.
• Iffland M, Livingstone N, Jorgensen M, Hazell P, Gillies D. Pharmacological intervention for irritability, aggression, and self-injury in autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2023 Oct 9;10(10):CD011769. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD011769.pub2.

Drugs

Indications