Discovery of 3 genes that increase the probability of ADHD up to 15 times

According to RCO News Agency, Groundbreaking research has discovered a combination of just three genes that can increase the risk of developing attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) by up to 15 times.

According to New Atlas, an international group of scientists led by researchers from Aarhus University have shown that three rare variants in the genes MAP1A, ANO8 and ANK2 play a role in ADHD, a condition that is largely genetic and highly heritable.

Professor Anders Børglum (Anders Børglum), the senior author of the study from the Department of Biomedicine at Aarhus University, says: “We can now for the first time point to very specific genes in which rare variants create a high susceptibility to ADHD. The identified variants are likely to have a very disruptive effect on the genes and show us exactly which genes and fundamental biological mechanisms may be affected.

The team analyzed genetic data from nearly 9,000 Danes with ADHD and 54,000 people without the condition, and compared it with data on brain cell function and reports on the education and socioeconomic status of Danish residents. People with these gene mutations tend to have, on average, lower academic achievement and poorer socioeconomic status, which is often seen in people with ADHD.

Although rare, these mutations appear to disrupt communication between neurons by affecting the genes expressed in these very important nerve cells in the brain. This interference is one of the hallmarks of ADHD. These species especially affect the function of neurons that play a key role in regulating attention, impulse control and motivation.

Ditte Demontis, a professor at the Department of Biomedicine at Aarhus University and one of the co-authors of this article, said: Our findings confirm that disorders in the development and functioning of the brain play a fundamental role in the development of ADHD. We have also analyzed which proteins interact with the proteins encoded by these three identified genes and identified a larger protein network that is also involved in other neurodevelopmental disorders, including autism and schizophrenia. This provides insight into the biological correlates of several psychiatric diagnoses.

Importantly, these new findings enhance our understanding of the genetic makeup of ADHD; something that current assessment protocols do not take into account. Currently, the United States has no specific diagnostic tool, and doctors instead collect data through medical examinations, interviews, family and personal history, school records, and informal rating scales. Genetic markers that are present even before birth can help individuals, parents, and health care professionals with risk awareness, diagnosis, and treatment.

“This study provides a clear new direction for mapping the biological mechanisms involved in ADHD, as we now know the causative genes with the effector variants,” says Professor Borglum. They give us insight into some fundamental biological processes that can guide the design of deeper mechanistic studies, for example, to identify new therapeutic targets.

The researchers add that these findings are by no means complete, and that more genes have yet to be discovered that may play a small or, as with these rare mutations, a large role in neural divergence.

This is the latest research to provide clues to the genetic nature of ADHD.

This study was published in the journal Nature.

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