The results of a recently completed study say that certain autism cases are caused by gene defects which can be activated or deactivated by mental activity; this may very well be a starting point in finding a way to treat the terrible condition.

The conclusions have been reached following the gene scan analysis of about one hundred families in the Middle East, in which the condition presents an unusually high level of occurance.

The study, presented on Friday in the journal Science, comes to support the previously found data, according to which, autism may be the result of certain brain cell networks’ evolution during the first years after birth.

Out of the six genes identified by the new report, three are controlled by neuronal activity, implicitly, by what the person feels, does, thinks and so on; this fact indicates the possibility of changing the evolution of the disease by modifying the experiences of autistic children.

Christopher A. Walsh, head of the research team and neurologist and chief of genetics at the Children's Hospital in Boston, said the genes identified by the study interact with the environment and play a certain role in the way the brain processes what it receives from it. He went on to say that once it becomes possible to activate these particular genes by the use of other mechanisms, there is a good chance of helping the children.

According to a study of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention conducted last year, 1 out of every 150 children in the US has an "autism spectrum disorder." Baring this in mind, it becomes even clearer just how important such studies are.