(A) Representative western blots of p-mTOR, t-mTOR, p-S6, t-S6, PSD95 and synapsin I in temporal lobe of ASD patients and control subjects aged 2-9y (ASD, n = 8; Controls, n=7) and 13-19y (ASD, n = 5; Controls, n=9). A, ASD patients; C, controls; (B-E) The relative density (Mean±SD) for p-mTOR (B) and p-S6 (C) were normalized to t-mTOR and t-S6, respectively. PSD95 (D) and synapsin I (E) levels were normalized to actin and are presented as scatter plots for ASD patients and controls in two age groups. Each point represents each individual subject. ** p<0.01; *** p<0.001 (2-way ANOVA, Bonferroni's post hoc test); (F) Western blot of autophagy markers, LC3-II and p62, in temporal lobe of ASD patients and control subjects aged 2-9 yrs and 13-20 yrs; (G) LC3-II levels normalized to actin in controls and patients. ** p<0.01; *** p<0.001 (2-way ANOVA, Bonferroni post hoc test); (H) p62 levels normalized to actin in controls and patients. ** p<0.01; *** p<0.001 (2-way ANOVA, Bonferroni post hoc test); (I) Correlation between p-mTOR and PSD95 (r2 =0.598, P<0.001); (J) Correlation between p-mTOR and LC3-II in individuals younger than 10 yrs (R2 =0.347, p<0.0001), indicating that LC3-II is regulated by mTOR in both ASD patients and controls; (K) Correlation between LC3-II and PSD95 in individuals younger than 10 years (R2 =0.422, p<0.0001), suggesting a relationship between synaptic structure protein levels and autophagy.