Abstract
Autism is a heritable disorder, with over 250 associated genes identified to date, yet no single gene accounts for >1-2% of cases. The clinical presentation, behavioural symptoms, imaging and histopathology findings are strikingly heterogeneous. A more complete understanding of autism can be obtained by examining multiple genetic or behavioural mouse models of autism using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based neuroanatomical phenotyping. Twenty-six different mouse models were examined and the consistently found abnormal brain regions across models were parieto-temporal lobe, cerebellar cortex, frontal lobe, hypothalamus and striatum. These models separated into three distinct clusters, two of which can be linked to the under and over-connectivity found in autism. These clusters also identified previously unknown connections between Nrxn1α, En2 and Fmr1; Nlgn3, BTBR and Slc6A4; and also between X monosomy and Mecp2. With no single treatment for autism found, clustering autism using neuroanatomy and identifying these strong connections may prove to be a crucial step in predicting treatment response.
Original language | English (US) |
---|---|
Pages (from-to) | 118-125 |
Number of pages | 8 |
Journal | Molecular psychiatry |
Volume | 20 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Feb 5 2015 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Molecular Biology
- Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience
- Psychiatry and Mental health