Biological basis of dyslexia: A maturing perspective

Dyslexia is a common childhood learning disability. The occurrence of dyslexia ranges from 3 to 17.5%. Etiology remains largely unknown, but substantial evidence from multidisciplinary research suggests that dyslexia is a disorder of genetic origin with a basis in the brain. Many genetic studies indicated that different loci are involved in genetic predisposition of dyslexia. The loci on 6p21.3, 15q15–21 and 18p11.2 have been identified as promising candidate gene regions. Since it is a complex disorder, identification of the specific genetic variants may bring a comprehensive explanation for the etiology of dyslexia. This review provides recent understanding in the field of neurobiology of dyslexia.