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World's largest DNA scan for autism uncovers new gene variant for disorder

Gene most active in brain regions critical to language, social behavior

UCLA scientists, in partnership with 30 research institutions across the country, have identified a new gene variant that is highly common in autistic children.

And when researchers scrutinized the activity of the gene, known as CDH10, in the fetal brain, they discovered that it is most active in key regions that support language, speech and interpreting social behavior.

Published April 28 in the advance online edition of the journal Nature, the two findings suggest that CDH10 plays a critical role in shaping the developing brain and may contribute to a prenatal risk of autism.