Scientists at the Douglas Mental Health University Institute
report the discovery of a new genetic process that they say
might one day provide a novel target for the treatment of
neurodevelopmental disorders, such as intellectual disability
and autism. The research study, which appears in the December
issue of the American Journal of Human Genetics, was led by Carl
Ernst, Ph.D., a Douglas Institute researcher and an assistant
professor in McGill University’s department of psychiatry. He
and his colleagues found that genetic mutations that negatively
affect brain development can occur in a gene family of
previously unknown function in the human genome. According to
the World Health Organization, neurodevelopmental disorders
affect one in six children in industrialized countries.
Impairing the growth and development of the brain or central
nervous system, neurodevelopmental disorders encompass a broad
range of conditions, including developmental delay, autism
spectrum disorders, and cerebral palsy. People with