“The genetic component plays a major role in autism”

By Delphine Chayet

Posted
on 02/05/2023 at 21:47, Update on 02/06/2023 at 15:42

“We have shown, with my team, that a single lost gene could cause the child concerned to be unable to acquire language”, explique Thomas Bourgeron. Photographee.eu/Adobe Stock

INTERVIEW – The geneticist at the Institut Pasteur deciphers the state of research on the autism spectrum.

By identifying in the early 2000s the first genes associated with Asperger’s syndrome, a form of autism without intellectual disability, P^r Thomas Bourgeron has triggered a change of outlook on all autism spectrum disorders. This paved the way for improved diagnosis and support for patients, whose number is estimated at 700,000 people. He publishes Genes, synapses, autisms published by Odile Jacob.

LE FIGARO. – Since when do we know the genetic origin of autism?

Thomas BOURGERON. – As early as the 1970s, the first studies on monozygotic and dizygotic twins highlighted the genetic component of autism. They were later confirmed by research on thousands of pairs of twins. We also saw that, in the same family, the probability of having another autistic child was higher (we now know that it is one in five). Twenty years later, we started molecular analyses…

This article is for subscribers only. You have 86% left to discover.

Want to read more?

Unlock all items immediately. Without engagement.

Already subscribed? Login