Prospective Investigation of Autism and Genotype
Soorya et al. Molecular Autism 2013, 4:18 http://www.molecularautism.com/content/4/1/18 RESEARCH Open Access Prospective investigation of autism and genotype-phenotype correlations in 22q13 deletion syndrome and SHANK3 deficiency Latha Soorya1,2,13, Alexander Kolevzon1,2,3*, Jessica Zweifach1, Teresa Lim2, Yuriy Dobry2, Lily Schwartz1, Yitzchak Frank1,2,3,4, A Ting Wang1,2,5, Guiqing Cai1,2,6, Elena Parkhomenko1,2, Danielle Halpern1,2, David Grodberg1,2, Benjamin Angarita2, Judith P Willner3,6, Amy Yang3,6, Roberto Canitano1,14, William Chaplin8, Catalina Betancur9,10,11 and Joseph D Buxbaum1,2,5,6,7,12 Abstract Background: 22q13 deletion syndrome, also known as Phelan-McDermid syndrome, is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by intellectual disability, hypotonia, delayed or absent speech, and autistic features. SHANK3 has been identified as the critical gene in the neurological and behavioral aspects of this syndrome. The phenotype of SHANK3 deficiency has been described primarily from case studies, with limited evaluation of behavioral and cognitive deficits. The present study used a prospective design and inter-disciplinary clinical evaluations to assess patients with SHANK3 deficiency, with the goal of providing a comprehensive picture of the medical and behavioral profile of the syndrome. Methods: A serially ascertained sample of patients with SHANK3 deficiency (n = 32) was evaluated by a team of child psychiatrists, neurologists, clinical geneticists, molecular geneticists and psychologists. Patients were evaluated for autism spectrum disorder using the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised and the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule-G. Results: Thirty participants with 22q13.3 deletions ranging in size from 101 kb to 8.45 Mb and two participants with de novo SHANK3 mutations were included.
[Show full text]