January 11, 2008

New study into cause of Autism

In a study by the Genetics Diagnostic Laboratory, at the Children’s Hospital in Boston, it has been found that there is a link between the deletion and even duplication of DNA letters on chromosome 16 is strongly linked to Autism spectrum disorder, which is a disorder that has a wide range of disabilities, such as language, social and behavioural problems.

Because of advances in technology, researchers are able study the millions of variations in the genetic samples from thousands of people.

Being able to screen samples in the manner through micro arrays this means that the researchers are able to complete studies using many different samples in a faster time and in turn getting a more accurate result, which can easily be duplicated.

Source [Technology Review]