Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are complex, heritable and highly heterogeneous neurodevelopmental conditions. Clinical features often co-occur with other mental health outcomes and there is mounting evidence for considerable genetic and phenotypic heterogeneity across the spectrum. Our group investigates whether co-occurring autism symptoms vary in their common genetic architecture, modelling structures and relationships across genetic factors. We aim to gain a better insight into the underlying developmental mechanisms, understanding autism as a collection of similar conditions with varying symptom clusters, rather than as a single phenotype. The research has been funded by the Max Planck Society, the European Commission (R2D2 Mental Health) and the Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative (SFARI) .
Example publication
de Hoyos, L., Barendse, M. T., Schlag, F., van Donkelaar, M. M. J., Verhoef, E., Shapland, C. Y., Klassmann, A., Buitelaar, J., Verhulst, B., Fisher, S. E., Rai, D., & St Pourcain, B. (2024). Structural models of genome-wide covariance identify multiple common dimensions in autism. Nature Communications, 15: 1770. doi:10.1038/s41467-024-46128-8.
Verhoef E., Grove J., Shapland CY, Demontis D, Burgess S, Rai D, Børglum AD & St Pourcain B (2021). Discordant associations of educational attainment with ASD and ADHD implicate a polygenic form of pleiotropy. Nature Communications volume 12, Article number: 6534. doi:10.1038/s41467-021-26755-1.
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