Scientists close to find cure of Down syndrome

September 6, 2013

US scientists have identified a compound that seems to reverse the learning deficits associated with Down syndrome in lab mice. In their experiment, they injected the compound in mice which had a condition similar to Down syndrome and they found that single injection enabled the cerebellum of the rodents’ brains to grow to a normal size. It is to be noted that most people with Down Syndrome have a cerebellum that’s about 60% of the normal size as it does not develop properly. The compound needs to go through further tests before it is available for human use.

What is Down Syndrome?

Down Syndrome is one of the most common chromosomal abnormalities in children, and a leading cause of intellectual disability. It occurs due to trisomy of chromosome 21 i.e. when people have 3 instead of the two usual copies of the chromosome 21. This trisomy adds extra copies of more than 300 genes, leading to intellectual disabilities, distinctive facial features and sometimes heart problems and other health effects.

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