For the first time, no less than 42 genetic variants linked to dyslexia have been identified, and approximately a third of them had previously been related to cognitive ability and educational level. The research has been led by the University of Edinburgh and is the largest genetic study on dyslexia to date.
Dyslexia is an inherited disorder that makes it difficult for children to understand written texts and, therefore, to read or spell, among other problems. It is known that genetic factors are involved in its appearance, but, although studies had been carried out linking dyslexia with specific genes in a small number of families, the evidence was not clear.
In the new research, published in the journal Nature Genetics, a genome-wide association study was performed on 51,800 adults with a diagnosis of dyslexia and 1,087,070 individuals who acted as a control group, and after testing the association between million genetic variants with the state of dyslexia have been found 42 significant variants. Findings that, according to the researchers, “help our understanding of the biology behind why some children have difficulty reading or spelling.”
“Dyslexia is closely related genetically to performance on reading and spelling tests, reinforcing the importance of standardized tests to identify dyslexia”
Lead researcher Michelle Luciano, from the University of Edinburgh’s School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences, said the study sheds light on many unanswered questions about dyslexia: “Our findings show that common genetic differences have very similar in boys and girls, and that there is a genetic link between dyslexia and ambidexterity.” Ella y Ella adds: “Our results also suggest that dyslexia is closely related genetically to performance on reading and spelling tests, reinforcing the importance of standardized tests to identify dyslexia.”
Genes associated with language and thinking skills
Some of the identified genes are also associated with other neurodevelopmental conditions, such as language delay and with thinking skills and academic performance. Many others, however, are new and could represent genes that are more specifically related to processes essential to learning to read.
Additionally, many of the genes linked to dyslexia are also associated with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The researchers found much less overlap of genes associated with dyslexia for psychiatric, lifestyle, and health conditions.
Some of the associated genetic variants were also significant in a Chinese-speaking sample, suggesting that there are general cognitive processes in learning to read that do not depend on language type. The researchers explained that they were able to predict the ability to read and spell in children and adults in four other research studies using the genetic information from the study, but not with the accuracy needed for diagnostic use.
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