Is autism hereditary?

Answer

Best,

Indeed, recent research shows that autism has a strong genetic basis, even if there is no single gene responsible for the disorder, nor is it known how the disorder is genetically created. There are various hypotheses about this. However, there are already more than 20 different genes that may contribute to the disorder in one way or another. Autism is thus a “polygenic or multifactorial” disorder. However, this also means that the classical Mendelian principles of inheritance cannot simply be applied here. However, family research shows that within families in which at least one individual is autistic, the chance that other individuals in that family are also autistic is significantly greater than the chance that any individual from the entire population is autistic. Moreover, the risk of autism in boys is 4 times greater than in girls.

In short, autism has a strong genetic basis and the variation in the occurrence and “disease” of autism among the population is largely explained by genetic differences between people. However, the inheritance pattern of the disorder and the way genes cause the disorder are still unknown. Finally, I would recommend that you consult a medical genetics center for more informed risk advice specific to your family. For your information, I am adding to this post some very recent, specialized review articles on the genetics of autism (and related disorders).

Kind regards,