How Much of Autism is Genetic?

For a long time, autism wasn't understood well about where it comes from, and many people would argue. Nature vs. nurture: whether or not autism was a result of genetic makeup, or was a symptom of the environment (childhood experiences, vaccinations, etc). In a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, and reported by Time Magazine, genetics was stated to account for about 83% of the disorder. A number of different case study designs were utilized including the study of identical twins, non identical twins, siblings, and parent/child relationships. What the study concluded was that a substantial proportion of autism causation could be traced back to genetics and a child's DNA could eventually be used as a predictor for if and when autism presents itself. The research is still in it's infancy, as the study only reported on the correlation between certain gene features and the presence of autism. Even though this study provides valuable insight into the nature of autism, and could lead to earlier and better diagnosis, as well as better treatment and care for autistic people, it does open up new issues to be dealt with. Should babies get screened for autism? Could knowing you're having an autistic baby be a valid reason for abortion? The scientific value of this study is great, but what kinds of moral and ethical implications is it going to entail? I think that although this is great knowledge to have about the condition, it is going to be the beginning of new moral and ethical controversies, similar to those we've had in the past over Down Syndrome and the like.

A Case of Identical twins - not really identical?

According to the LA Times, a pair of identical twins fetuses were discovered to be not exactly identical. While they had the same exact DNA, for some reason, unknown to researchers, one of the twins had an extra chromosome (which would cause down syndrome) and the other one did not. Since identical twins are supposed to have the same exact 3 billion base pairs of DNA, it has become a mystery to scientist on how only one of the twins was affected. Due to this discovery being while the twins were still in the womb, the decision was made for them to be aborted. Although a tragic situation, this opens up the research field for scientists to try and understand how something like that could happen. 

While I can't even imagine what this family must have went through and what they had to consider, I am deeply saddened that they made the decision to abort the pregnancy. It is a lot of work to raise twins, let alone to raise twins with one of them having a mental illness. I can understand and respect the fact that for that couple they felt that it would be too much. As far as the scientific side of this situation, I am intrigued that something like this could even happen. I'm sure that scientists will be looking into this and try to figure out how this could even be possible. The field of genetics will keep expanding with new situations like these constantly being discovered.

Link to the article: http://www.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-twins-down-syndrome-genetics-20140416,0,6762726.story

Link to related article: http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition/down-syndrome