New map may lead to drug development for complex brain disorders, researcher says
The ARID1B gene is one of the most commonly mutated genes in patients with intellectual disability and autism spectrum disorders, but scientists have not yet discerned if and how defects in the ARID1B gene contribute to these clinical manifestations. To understand how reduced levels of the protein product of the gene might cause these disorders, a team of researchers led by Dr. Hao Zhu and including graduate student Cemre Celen genetically modified mice to carry a mutation in one of two copies of the ARID1B gene. This mutation replicates the genetics of Coffin-Siris syndrome, a disorder that some patients with defects in the ARID1B gene have that is characterized by speech and social development problems, intellectual disability, and delayed physical growth. The hope is that by understanding the molecular basis of Coffin-Siris syndrome, scientists will gain a deeper understanding of more common diseases involving intellectual and soc...