Michelle Dawson posts
Structured cited links
Robert J. Berry, Krista S. Crider, Marshalyn Yeargin-Allsopp (2013). Periconceptional Folic Acid and Risk of Autism Spectrum Disorders. JAMA, 309(6), 611. American Medical Association (AMA).
Abstract
Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are a group of neurodevelopmental disorders characterized by significant impairments in social interaction and communication and by repetitive, restrictive and stereotyped patterns of behavior. The most serious of the conditions comprising ASD is autistic disorder (AD), as it is likely to have co-occurring intellectual disability and a range of medical, behavioral and psychiatric conditions. ASD is highly heritable; 3 however, the clinical presentation can vary widely between family members and among affected individuals. Genetic factors (e.g. fragile X syndrome, 15q11-13 duplications, and other de novo and inherited genetic variants) are the best studied risk factors for ASD that have thus far been identified. Additionally some prenatal, obstetric and environmental exposures (e.g. parental age, prenatal drug exposure and infections) have been associated with increased risk for ASD. This heterogeneity is a major obstacle to researchers. Identified risk factors are implicated only in a minority of ASD cases, and the etiology of ASD remains largely unknown.
Study authors in this cited reference