A "new" chromosome marker common to the Rett syndrome and infantile autism? The frequency of fragile sites at X p22 in 81 children with infantile autism, childhood psychosis and the Rett syndrome.
Chromosomes from 46 autistic, 20 psychotic and 15 Rett syndrome children were cultured in a folic-acid-depleted medium. Nine percent of the autistic, 20% of the psychotic and 40% of the Rett syndrome cases showed a "new" chromosomal anomaly, viz a fragile site at the (X) (p22) location. It is suggested that in some cases of autism/psychosis and the Rett syndrome, there might be a common biological marker for the common type of psychiatric disturbance. However, as the population frequency of the chromosome marker is not yet known, conclusions must be drawn with great caution.
Adolescent↗