Autism Genetics: Recent Advances in Candidate Gene Search

Autism is a developmental disorder characterized by impaired social interaction and communication as well as repetitive behaviors and restricted interests. The consequences of this disorder for everyday life adaptation are extremely variable. Family studies have shown that autism runs in families and twin studies indicate that the basis of that familial aggregation is genetic. Despite compelling evidence from twin and family studies indicating a strong genetic involvement in the etiology of autism, the unequivocal detection of autism susceptibility genes remains an elusive goal. This paper will review the literature to date summarizing the results of candidate gene studies with a focus on recent progress.