Trajectories Leading to Autism Spectrum

Article Summary

The article analyzed articulates that the diverse extensional researches which have been developed to evaluate and explain Autism; there has never been an established cause which brings about this disorder. ASD was exemplified to also feature other from of disorder such as; Asperger’s disorder, disintegrative disorder and pervasive development disorder (PDD-NOS) this usually corresponds to the impairment triad symptoms (Lundstrorm, Et al (2010). The research article has attempted to link this disorder to role of ageing in parent as the risk factor linking to numerous neurodevelopment disorders associated with Autism.

The target article clearly pin point the link between parental ageing roles as the number one autism risk factor. The rationale of the study indicates that the authors evaluated the role of parental age as the number one risk factor which fosters autism, evaluated in two separate nations Sweden and UK as the representative cohort’s nationality. The main question which the authors were attempting to analyze being how the parent age affects the chances of having a child with autism. This was exemplified from the fact that fast studies which deals with this disorder have indicated that older parents and this is mostly projected towards fathers, are mostly likely to father children with autism (Kolevzon, Et al, 2007). The research was evidently carried out with a vast number of twins; this was so that the author would help elucidate the association linking parental age and comparative environment versus the contribution of genetics to development of autism. Thus the authors evenly articulated that that genetics and environmental factors altogether plays parts in development of autism in children.

Further the authors also conclude that some etiological factors fostered by ASD are also linked to de novo mutations and chromosomal abnormalities. Thus this has been closely linked with advancement of parental age as to possess the high risk of de novo genetic mutations accosted by older father’s germ-lines. According to Lundstrorm, Et al (2010) indicated that as the parental age advances there is great dimension in the relation of pathogenetic ASD processes, however, the influential role of environment and genetic in ASD is usually affected by paternal age variation. To compute this statement the author induced the twin methodology so as to ascertain the ASD severity comparison with pair similarity. The similarity was between monozygotic (MZ) and dizygotic (DZ) twins with the variation of the paternal age advancement, the conclusion coined here revealed that the moderation of genetic as environmental effects is enhanced by paternal age.

The method which the authors injected to carry out the research which facilitated two nationality representative from Sweden and UK for the study, the twin study from Sweden outcome resulted at n = 11, 122 which was mostly assessed from the subjects aged 9-12 years, and the UK results outcome was n=13, 524 and the age group which was assessed was nine years to facilitate the analysis. Thus the research embarked on the continuous and categorical ASD measures, thorough evaluation and calculation of similar traits of autistic and autistic relationship over the categories of parental age.

The result of the analysis indicated in both cohorts a strong relation between ASD risk and paternal age. However, some new development was recorded, this evidently showed a great discernment in the U-shaped risk relation in the fact that the both the off spring of younger father and older father indicated signs of fostering high element of ASD risk. Both of these subjects showed high signs of having children with ASD. The risk factor recorded on young fathers between the ages of below 25 years was computed to be 100% of risk factor of having children with autism. Older fathers between the ages of above 50 years the risk factor was high up to 200% of having children with ASD disorder or related complications echoed by Crow (2000). Thus from this data the authors articulated that as paternal age advancement continue to elevate the risk of having children with ASD. In both the monozygotic and dizygotic twins there was great indication of autistic similarity which is mostly influenced by advancement of the paternal age. There were elements of autistic like traits in both cohorts documented on offspring’s of younger and older fathers.

The authors finding from the study indicated that the result replicated what was already advocated by the study of autism that advancing of paternal age is linked with high risk of ASD. Secondly that also younger paternal age is similarly associated with risk factor of ASD. Thirdly the study also concluded that the twin similarity in twin is also influenced by advancement of paternal age. Lastly the paternal age was also revealed to be associated with language functioning, stereotype and repetitive behavior and social functioning in overall population which are also main signs of ASD as exemplified by Lundstrorm, Et al (2010).        

Article Criticism and Recommendation

The article although provides some light to the autism disorder and the role which paternal age plays to influence ASD on the offspring, has little from what other experts have already exemplified concerning the topic. The article first statement is that there is little knowledge of documented fact on the cause of autism (Kolevzon, Et al, 2007). Then the author goes ahead and drums the concept butchering the concept of paternal age role in ASD. The factor which are detailed here are basically bias, this is because the question which is usually portrayed by behavioral geneticists is not whether autism is genetic or environmental influenced through arrays of factors which researchers offers without sufficient evidence.

However, proper research conducted with the merit of gaining glory of bias material have exemplified with much evident and fact that autism is not purely genetic and is not even environmental. The contentious issue here being that autism is greatly an over blown proportion of a very heterogeneous condition which is most probably harbored by multiple genetic and environmental factors.

When trying to evaluate the influencing factors which favor autism behavioral geneticists have exemplified the similarity of monozygotic (MZ) and dizygotic (DZ) twins. This is usually done to determine the contribution and specific conditions which facilitate ASD in relation to the contribution of both genetic and environmental factors. Thus this has brought about the debate crux to rest on when in regard to the correlation within MZ twins the disorder rate is higher than the DZ twin’s correlation. Through this conclusion one is open to assume the significant contribution of genetics, this is because from that fact the MZ twins are ideologically genetically identical while the DZ twins are not (Crow, 2000).

This is well explain in the fact that when a disorder has a huge genetic contribution then it is scientifically correct to expect that the identical twins are more prone to have the disorder than the twins which aren’t identical. Only in disorder which has little genetic contribution would there be likely chances that the DZ and MZ twins have the same chances of sharing the disorder. However, since the main emphasis usually rely on how identical the genetics are there will be less or no different. This shows that the research was actually beating around the bush on the already assumed facts on autism by the authors of the article as echoed by Constantino & Todd (2003).

Thus this show that for this kind of research to be without much flaws, there should be another analysis taken to facilitate the correct finding on the matters discussed in the paper as a follow up. This will generally be exclusive of multiple genetic and environmental factors which are the basis under which age plays the integration role in autism. The main emphasis of this process is to develop and determine the central contribution and specific conditions which fosters ASD disorders linking to the contribution of both genetic and environmental factors. The research should be repeated on the same venue as the first research so that due to environmental factors may not cloud the reasoning allocated from the findings.   

Conclusion

The phenomenon circulating paternal age in autism has some element of the trajectories which arises to autistic-like traits and ASD. However, the mechanisms which influence these trajectories are diverse concerning the paternal age. There is dire need for more complex molecular genetic research for further elucidation in the association of paternal age and ASD and the variation which are accorded on social language and repetitive behavior in the society.