Study to Identify Genetic Makeup of Autism

A genome-wide discovery effort aimed at identifying the key genetic components of autism and autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) has been announced by deCODE genetics (Reykjavik, Iceland). The study is being funded by a U.S.$2.8 million grant from the Simons Foundation (NY, NY, USA).

Autism and ASDs run in families, but the identification of the specific inherited causes may provide valuable insights into the neurologic dysfunctions they evoke. Knowledge of the biology of these disorders may in turn clarify the role of environmental factors and contribute to the development of new methods of diagnosis and treatment. The deCODE study aims to include several hundred individuals with autism and ASDs and several thousand of their relatives, which will enable researchers to identify key genes linked to these disorders and pinpoint which elements of these complex phenotypes are inherited.

The deCODE study team is working with a number of Icelandic organizations. Questionnaires will be given to family members that are designed to capture subtle behavioral and personality traits that may constitute important components of autism and ASDs. Although the number of people diagnosed with autism and ASDs has risen rapidly in recent years, since so little is known about the causes of these disorders it is unclear whether this is due to better diagnosis or to an actual prevalence of the phenotype.

"Our discoveries and other neurologic and behavioral disorders like schizophrenia, anxiety, and depression demonstrate that our population approach has the power to pull out major genes even in the most complex disorders, the basic biology of which is little understood,” said Kari Stefansson, CEO of deCODE. "I am confident that we will succeed in autism as well, and we and our collaborators are very grateful to the Simons Foundation for their support for this project.”



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DeCODE genetics