Dr. Geschwind

(Best Syndication) Researchers say that they have found a genetic link to autism, which could lead to a treatment or therapy for the behavioral disorder. After examining the genes of nearly 1,200 families containing individuals with autism, University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) scientists say that identified a group of genes that may play a role in the development of autism.

Dr. Daniel Geschwind said “This degree of collaboration is an unprecedented effort in autism research and demonstrates that a genetic approach is a powerful way to deepen understanding of the disease.” Geschwind is director of the Neurogenetics Program at the Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA. UCLA was one of 13 research centers involved in the study.

The five-year effort, dubbed the Autism Genome Project, involved 50 institutions in 19 countries. “This large-scale study reveals that autism is an extremely diverse condition,” Geschwind explains. “Our findings suggest that autism has numerous genetic origins, rather than a single or few major causes.”

The consortium used gene-chip technology to search for genetic commonality in autistic individuals. They also scanned the DNA for variations in gene copy numbers. These variations are tiny genomic insertions and deletions that scientists believe might be involved with autism.

Not every child with autism will behave similarly or display the same characteristics. So the researchers categorized the children into separate clusters. Professor Rita Cantor said “The large number of families in this study permitted us to organize autistic children with similar features of this disorder into smaller groups, where gene linkages may be more easily detected.” Cantor is professor of human genetics at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.

Results of the two-pronged approach implicated a previously unidentified region of chromosome 11 and neurexin 1, a member of a gene family believed to play a key role in communication between brain cells. The neurexin findings highlighted a group of brain cells called glutamate neurons and the genes affecting their development and function, suggesting that they play a critical role in autism spectrum disorders.

Autism is a complex brain disorder which affects one in 150 children, and disrupts a child’s ability to communicate and develop social relationships. Dr. Stanley Nelson said “We are excited by the results from this large-scale study. At the same time, we must greatly increase the number of autistic persons in our genetic analysis in order to fully describe heredity’s role in the disease.” Nelson is professor of human genetics at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA,

“We hope that identifying these genes will provide new insights into what underlies autism,” added Geschwind. “We are optimistic that this approach will lead to improved interventions for autistic children and better quality of life for their families.”

Hopefully this research can lead to a treatment for autism. Recently we reported that researchers in Europe were able to reverse the disabling autism spectrum disorder, Rett Syndrome, in mice. Scientists discovered a defective gene and were able to switch it with chemicals.

It is hoped that this new genetic discovery involving autism will help scientists find a gene therapy or other therapy to correct the defect. It may be possible to turn on or silence defective genes as a treatment.

By Marsha Quinn
Best Syndication Health Writer