How to unravel the mysteries ofautism ? To better understand how this pervasive developmental disorder works, neuroscientists at the Shanghai Institute of Biological Sciences in China genetically modified monkeys to overexpress a gene associated with autism. Their work is published in the journal Nature and pave the way for the use of a new animal model close to humans.
Behavior modification
Autism has very varied and very complex symptoms and nearly 100 genes could be involved in this disorder. The researchers here focused on a single gene, called MECP2. Indeed, people who have this gene in duplicate or who have mutations in this gene suffer from autistic disorders. They then manipulated macaque monkey embryos, multiplying the gene MECP2 to obtain one to seven copies depending on the individual. Molecular observations have shown that brain connections were altered by the number of copies of this gene. At the behavioral level also, the differences are notable: the monkeys which overexpress the gene MECP2 obsessively circle around, ignore their peers, and growl anxiously when they feel fixated.
An animal model close to man
Monkeys are a better animal model than the mice used so far because “they show autism-related behaviors more clearly“explains Alysson Muotri, autism specialist at the University of California (United States), interviewed by the journal Nature. Nevertheless, even if they approach it, the symptoms expressed in monkeys remain less pronounced than those observed in humans. It therefore remains to be seen whether this animal model can actually produce new results applicable to humans. Scientists hope, for example, to precisely identify the anomalies caused by the gene MECP2 in the brain using medical imaging techniques. Eventually, these monkeys could even help develop behavioral and therapeutic treatmentsfor human patients suffering from autistic disorders.
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