What is the Cause of Fragile X Syndrome?
What is the biological cause of fragile X syndrome? There are several ways we can answer that question. 1. We could focus on the molecules that play a role in fragile X. The immediate cause is that a person with fragile X syndrome does not make a specific protein, FMRP (fragile X mental retardation protein). This absence sets in motion the various characteristics of fragile X syndrome. 2. We could focus on the brain, where many of the impacts of fragile X occur, . Research on the anatomy of the brain may help us understand the changes that occur when there is reduced FMRP production. Grandma and child kissing3. We could focus on the inheritance of fragile X syndrome by looking at how the gene that causes fragile X (FMR1) was transmitted by the grandparents and parents. 4. We could also go back farther in history to try to understand why fragile X syndrome develops in certain families or populations but is less likely to appear in others. 5. We could look at studies done in the knockout
