ADHD may be linked to gene defect
29 October 2010
European researchers claim to have found direct evidence for a genetic component to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), challenging the widely held view that the condition is a social construct - a concept created by society that does not necessarily exist objectively.
The researchers analysed the DNA from 410 UK children with ADHD and 1156 unrelated, ethnically matched controls (people without the condition). They found that the children with ADHD had significantly more DNA segments that were missing or duplicated, known as copy number variants (CNVs).
A similar result was found in a genetic study of 825 Icelandic patients with ADHD and 35,243 controls, the researchers reported in the journal, The Lancet (2010; 376: 1401-8).
The authors said there was already clear evidence that CNVs were an important source of genetic variation, and they were linked to other disorders of neurological development, such as schizophrenia, autism and intellectual disability.
Further investigation of CNVs should be a priority, and the findings posed serious social and clinical implications for affected children and their families, they added.
Last Reviewed: 29 October 2010
- 1. Williams NM, Zaharieva I, Martin A, et al. Rare chromosomal deletions and duplications in attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder: a genome-wide analysis. Lancet 2010; 376: 1401-8. Epub 2010 Sep 29. http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736%2810%2961109-9/abstract (accessed 29 Oct, 2010).
2. Burbach JP. Neuropsychiatric connections of ADHD genes. Lancet 2010; 376: 1367-8. Epub 2010 Sep 29. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(10)61192-0.
