Is dyslexia in our genes? It has become the subject of a large-scale study published in the scientific journal ‘Nature Genetics’. Researchers have managed to identify a range of genetic variants linked to the learning disability. “It has a biological origin but has social consequences.”
Lien LammensBron: The Guardian, Nature Genetics
The researchers managed to identify 170 genes and 42 genetic variants associated with dyslexia. Fifteen of those variants have already been linked to cognitive skills and education level in previous research, the other 27 were not.
“At this point, the study has no implications for people with dyslexia, although it helps them understand that the condition has very complex causes,” said lead researcher and doctor Michelle Luciano of the University of Edinburgh. To reach that conclusion, genomes were analyzed from 51,800 adults with dyslexia and 1,087,070 adults who did not claim to have dyslexia.
In other words, the results provide insight into the underlying biology of dyslexia. “We can monitor the specific genes to see what their function is and how they relate to the cognitive processes involved in reading and spelling.”
Professor Helen Ross of the British Dyslexia Association puts it this way: the research shows that dyslexia has biological roots, but it mainly has social and societal consequences. Any research that can help us identify people who may have dyslexia will be helpful as we can support them early in life in professional life and learn to avoid the associated problems.”