It has not escaped our attention that despite all the mutations identified in ATRX syndrome patients and, more recently, in distinct cancer types (Jiao et al. 2011; Schwartzentruber et al. 2012; Cheung et al. 2012; Clynes et al. 2013), few ATRX over-expression experiments mimicking such mutations have been published. Here, ATRX is linked to alpha thalassemia-X-linked intellectual disability syndrome.