GRIN2B is the gene that causes autism

For a long time, human beings have been wondering why a neurological disorder such as automatism, that is, how it develops in some people and not in others, and above all, how can it be achieved not only that this type of disorder does not develop, but also that the affected people can heal. Thanks to new research that has just seen the light, it seems that we are a little closer to achieving perhaps not healing autistic people, but rather get it from developing in more cases.

Before launching the bells to the flight, as it usually happens with this type of project, the truth is that we are only facing an investigation that, although it has reaped undeniable success, still has a long way to go, especially if we take into account that, as indicated by those responsible, we are talking about a genetic mutation that alters the formation of neurons, thus causing the appearance of autism.

Thanks to this research we know that a mutation in the GRIN2B gene is one of the causes of autism

In this project, the researchers involved in it have been very interested in the behavior of a gene known to cause autism when it undergoes a mutation. We are specifically talking about the gene GRIN2B, which is very important for communication between mature neurons and is known to be part of one of the most important receptors present in the human brain.

To carry out this discovery, they have been working on the skin cells of a patient. Once extracted, these cells were reprogrammed by genetic engineering to transform into brain cells. Thanks to this impressive work, it was possible to determine how a brain cell carrying a specific genetic mutation of an autistic patient developed in an abnormal way.

Going into a little more detail, apparently the researchers, during their laboratory work, managed to identify that GRIN2B, in addition to having a specific relationship with mature neurons, was also a very important gene during the formation of neural stem cells, precisely the same ones from which neurons are formed.

Once we are clear on this part, it is much easier to understand that a mutation in the GRIN2B gene is responsible for the creation of a protein that, in the tests carried out in the laboratory, turned out to be the responsible for stem cells producing the same protein that is key in the early stages of autism development. Once this was discovered, the scientists were even able to correct, in the laboratory, this genetic mutation by causing the affected neural stem cells to become healthy and not cause autism.

The fact that a GRIN2B mutation can cause autism does not negate other possible causes

Undoubtedly, this project opens new doors to future research since, on the one hand and as the community announces, never has a team of scientists gone so far in the study of the reasons that originate autism, while on the other hand this The project gives genetics a relevant role in the origin of this disorder. It is true that does not nullify other possible causes, but it has allowed us to verify that a genetic mutation leads to the manifestation of autism in humans.

Another important point of this project is that, contrary to the previous experiments with the GRIN2B gene that had been developed mainly on rodents, human cells have been used for the first time, something that, as has been confirmed by the scientific community itself, sheds a whole new perspective on the genesis of this disorder.

As you may be imagining, there is still a long way to go until human beings can eradicate autism but, thanks to this project, those who are developing today and especially the jobs that are yet to come, we are one step closer to making it happen.