Dyslexia gene region identified.Researchers have zoomed in on a section of human DNA DNA: see nucleic acid. DNA or deoxyribonucleic acid One of two types of nucleic acid (the other is RNA); a complex organic compound found in all living cells and many viruses. It is the chemical substance of genes. they believe contains a gene for dyslexia dyslexia (dĭslĕk`sēə), in psychology, a developmental disability in reading or spelling, generally becoming evident in early schooling. To a dyslexic, letters and words may appear reversed, e.g. . As many as 10 percent of U.S. school children suffer from the substantial reading difficulties caused by dyslexia. Previous work suggested the disorder runs in families. Now, Lon R. Cardon and his colleagues report finding evidence that a gene for dyslexia sits on chromosome 6, one of the 23 pairs of human chromosomes. In the Oct. 14 SCIENCE, Cardon, a statistical geneticist ge·net·i·cist n. A specialist in genetics. geneticist a specialist in genetics. geneticist at Sequana Therapeutics in La Jolla La Jolla (lə hoi`yə), on the Pacific Ocean, S Calif., an uninc. district within the confines of San Diego; founded 1869. The beautiful ocean beaches, in particular La Jolla shores and Black's Beach, and sea-washed caves attract visitors and , Calif., and his team describe their study of two groups of children. One group consisted of 114 pairs of siblings from families with a history of dyslexia. The other contained 50 fraternal-twin pairs; at least one of the twins in each pair had a history ofreading difficulties. The team's analysis revealed that children with this learning disability had a distinctive pattern of DNA on chromosome 6. The search is now on to identify the actual gene involved in the disorder, Cardon says. If scientists can sequence the gene, this may enable them to fashion a test that would identify dyslexic dys·lex·ic or dys·lec·tic adj. Of or relating to dyslexia. n. A person affected by dyslexia. youngsters. An early diagnosis would allow parents to arrange for extra help in reading right from the start, Cardon adds. |
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