scholarly journals A Bibliometric Insight of Genetic Factors in ASD: Emerging Trends and New Developments

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 33
Author(s):  
Kang Wang ◽  
Weicheng Duan ◽  
Yijie Duan ◽  
Yuxin Yu ◽  
Xiuyi Chen ◽  
...  

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) cases have increased rapidly in recent decades, which is associated with various genetic abnormalities. To provide a better understanding of the genetic factors in ASD, we assessed the global scientific output of the related studies. A total of 2944 studies published between 1997 and 2018 were included by systematic retrieval from the Web of Science (WoS) database, whose scientific landscapes were drawn and the tendencies and research frontiers were explored through bibliometric methods. The United States has been acting as a leading explorer of the field worldwide in recent years. The rapid development of high-throughput technologies and bioinformatics transferred the research method from the traditional classic method to a big data-based pipeline. As a consequence, the focused research area and tendency were also changed, as the contribution of de novo mutations in ASD has been a research hotspot in the past several years and probably will remain one into the near future, which is consistent with the current opinions of the major etiology of ASD. Therefore, more attention and financial support should be paid to the deciphering of the de novo mutations in ASD. Meanwhile, the effective cooperation of multi-research centers and scientists in different fields should be advocated in the next step of scientific research undertaken.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Danny Antaki ◽  
Adam Maihofer ◽  
Marieke Klein ◽  
James Guevara ◽  
Jakob Grove ◽  
...  

The genetic etiology of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is multifactorial with contributions from rare variants, polygenic risk, and sex. How combinations of factors determine risk for ASD is unclear. In 11,313 ASD families (N = 37,375 subjects), we investigated the effects rare and polygenic risk individually and in combination. We show that genetic liability for ASD differs by sex, with females having a greater polygenic load, and males having a lower liability threshold as evident by a negative correlation of rare and polygenic risk. Multiple genetic factors were associated with differing sets of behavioral traits with effects that differed by sex. Furthermore, the correlation of parental age with genetic risk for ASD was attributable to de novo mutations and sex-biased effects of inherited risk in parents. Our results demonstrate that a phenotypic spectrum of ASD is attributable to the relative loadings and gene-by-sex effects of rare and common variation.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Gregorio González-Alcaide ◽  
Mercedes Fernández-Ríos ◽  
Rosa Redolat ◽  
Emilia Serra

Background: The study of emotion recognition could be crucial for detecting alterations in certain cognitive areas or as an early sign of neurological disorders. Objective: The main objective of the study is to characterize research development on emotion recognition, identifying the intellectual structure that supports this area of knowledge, and the main lines of research attracting investigators’ interest. Methods: We identified publications on emotion recognition and dementia included in the Web of Science Core Collection, analyzing the scientific output and main disciplines involved in generating knowledge in the area. A co-citation analysis and an analysis of the bibliographic coupling between the retrieved documents elucidated the thematic orientations of the research and the reference works that constitute the foundation for development in the field. Results: A total of 345 documents, with 24,282 bibliographic references between them, were included. This is an emerging research area, attracting the interest of investigators in Neurosciences, Psychology, Clinical Neurology, and Psychiatry, among other disciplines. Four prominent topic areas were identified, linked to frontotemporal dementia, autism spectrum disorders, Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s and Huntington disease. Many recent papers focus on the detection of mild cognitive impairment. Conclusion: Impaired emotion recognition may be a key sign facilitating the diagnosis and early treatment of different neurodegenerative diseases as well as for triggering the necessary provision of social and family support, explaining the growing research interest in this area.


2015 ◽  
Vol 77 (9) ◽  
pp. 816-822 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra Pinggera ◽  
Andreas Lieb ◽  
Bruno Benedetti ◽  
Michaela Lampert ◽  
Stefania Monteleone ◽  
...  

2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Yunfei Tang ◽  
Yamei Liu ◽  
Lei Tong ◽  
Shini Feng ◽  
Dongshu Du ◽  
...  

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurological disease characterized by impaired social communication and interaction skills, rigid behavior, decreased interest, and repetitive activities. The disease has a high degree of genetic heterogeneity, and the genetic cause of ASD in many autistic individuals is currently unclear. In this study, we report a patient with ASD whose clinical features included social interaction disorder, communication disorder, and repetitive behavior. We examined the patient’s genetic variation using whole-exome sequencing technology and found new de novo mutations. After analysis and evaluation, ARRB2 was identified as a candidate gene. To study the potential contribution of the ARRB2 gene to the human brain development and function, we first evaluated the expression profile of this gene in different brain regions and developmental stages. Then, we used weighted gene coexpression network analysis to analyze the associations between ARRB2 and ASD risk genes. Additionally, the spatial conformation and stability of the ARRB2 wild type and mutant proteins were examined by simulations. Then, we further established a mouse model of ASD. The results showed abnormal ARRB2 expression in the mouse ASD model. Our study showed that ARRB2 may be a risk gene for ASD, but the contribution of de novo ARRB2 mutations to ASD is unclear. This information will provide references for the etiology of ASD and aid in the mechanism-based drug development and treatment.


Nature ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 485 (7397) ◽  
pp. 242-245 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin M. Neale ◽  
Yan Kou ◽  
Li Liu ◽  
Avi Ma’ayan ◽  
Kaitlin E. Samocha ◽  
...  

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Il Bin Kim ◽  
Taeyeop Lee ◽  
Junehawk Lee ◽  
Jonghun Kim ◽  
Hyunseong Lee ◽  
...  

Three-dimensional chromatin structures regulate gene expression across genome. The significance of de novo mutations (DNMs) affecting chromatin interactions in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) remains poorly understood. We generated 931 whole-genome sequences for Korean simplex families to detect DNMs and identified target genes dysregulated by noncoding DNMs via long-range chromatin interactions between regulatory elements. Notably, noncoding DNMs that affect chromatin interactions exhibited transcriptional dysregulation implicated in ASD risks. Correspondingly, target genes were significantly involved in histone modification, prenatal brain development, and pregnancy. Both noncoding and coding DNMs collectively contributed to low IQ in ASD. Indeed, noncoding DNMs resulted in alterations, via chromatin interactions, in target gene expression in primitive neural stem cells derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells from an ASD subject. The emerging neurodevelopmental genes, not previously implicated in ASD, include CTNNA2, GRB10, IKZF1, PDE3B, and BACE1. Our results were reproducible in 517 probands from MSSNG cohort. This work demonstrates that noncoding DNMs contribute to ASD via chromatin interactions.


2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
William M. Brandler ◽  
Danny Antaki ◽  
Madhusudan Gujral ◽  
Morgan L. Kleiber ◽  
Michelle S. Maile ◽  
...  

AbstractThe genetic architecture of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is known to consist of contributions from gene-disrupting de novo mutations and common variants of modest effect. We hypothesize that the unexplained heritability of ASD also includes rare inherited variants with intermediate effects. We investigated the genome-wide distribution and functional impact of structural variants (SVs) through whole genome analysis (≥30X coverage) of 3,169 subjects from 829 families affected by ASD. Genes that are intolerant to inactivating variants in the exome aggregation consortium (ExAC) were depleted for SVs in parents, specifically within fetal-brain promoters, UTRs and exons. Rare paternally-inherited SVs that disrupt promoters or UTRs were over-transmitted to probands (P = 0.0013) and not to their typically-developing siblings. Recurrent functional noncoding deletions implicate the gene LEO1 in ASD. Protein-coding SVs were also associated with ASD (P = 0.0025). Our results establish that rare inherited SVs predispose children to ASD, with differing contributions from each parent.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vijaya Verma ◽  
Amit Mandora ◽  
Abhijeet Botre ◽  
James Premdoss Clement

Abstract Background : Exome sequencing is a prominent tool to identify novel and deleterious mutations which could be nonsense, frameshift, and canonical splice-site mutations in a specific gene. De novo mutations in SYNGAP1 , which codes for synaptic RAS-GTPase activating the protein, causes Intellectual disability (ID) and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). SYNGAP1 related ASD/ID is one of the rare diseases that is detrimental to the normal neuronal developmental and disrupts the global development of a child. Results: We report a case of a child of 2-year old with global developmental delay, microcephaly subtle dysmorphism, absence seizures, disrupted sleep, delay in learning a language, and eating problems. Upon further validation, the child has a few traits of ASD. Here, based on focused exome sequencing, we report a de novo heterozygous mutation in SYNGAP1 exon 11 with c. 1861 C>T (p.arg612ter). Currently, the child is on atorvastatin and has shown considerable improvement in global behaviour and cognitive development. The long-term follow up of the child’s development would contribute to the already existing knowledge of the developmental trajectory in individuals with SYNGAP1 heterozygous mutation. Conclusion: In this report, we discuss the finding of a novel mutation in one of the genes, SYNGAP1 , implicated in ASD/ID. In addition, we discuss the current treatment prescribed to the patient and the progress of global developmental of the child.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cesar P. Canales ◽  
Samuel Frank ◽  
Jeffrey Bennett ◽  
Paris Beauregard ◽  
Pierre Lavenex ◽  
...  

AbstractDe novo mutations in the chromatin-remodeling factor CHD8 (Chromodomain-Helicase DNA-binding protein 8) have emerged as a key genetic risk factor for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and, more generally, neurodevelopmental disorders. Individuals with heterozygous mutations in CHD8 typically present hallmarks of ASD with comorbid cognitive disability and macrocephaly. Knockdown or haploinsufficiency of Chd8 in animal models has recapitulated phenotypes observed in patients, including increased head circumference and brain size. Here, we aimed to determine whether increased neuron numbers or soma size drives increased cortical volume. We performed design-based stereological analyses of cortical structure in adult male and female heterozygous Chd8 mice and wild-type littermate controls. Chd8 haploinsufficient male mice displayed a ~8-12% increase in cortical volume, no differences in cortical neuron number and comparable neuronal soma size. Our study reproduced previous reports of increased brain size associated with CHD8 mutation in humans and mice and are consistent with reported sex-specific impacts of Chd8 mutations in mice and increased burden of CHD8 mutations in human males with ASD. These findings suggest that the nature of the cortical enlargement due to Chd8 haploinsufficiency is complex and appears to be due to a factor other than an increased neuron number or soma size.Lay SummaryWe measured the size and neuron number in the neocortex in mice with heterozygous Chd8 mutation, a model relevant to Autism Spectrum Disorder. We found an increased cortical volume in male mutants, which was not accompanied by increased neuron number or soma size. Our results indicate that the enlarged brain in Chd8 mutant mice is complex, more evident here in males, and is due to factors other than increased neuron number.


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