Language Protein May Help Build Brain Circuits

摘要

A protein in the brain called Foxp2 that has been linked to the development of human language may push developing neurons to reach out and touch other brain cells.Scientists identified Foxp2 in 2001 and have since linked it to a number of speech disorders in humans and other animals. Zebra finches with low levels of Foxp2, for example, can't learn the songs that other birds sing. To tease out this talkative protein's role in brain development, researchers screened thousands of genes in embryonic mice brains, looking for those switched on or off by Foxp2. In brain tissue bathed in high concentrations of Foxp2, the protein kicked about 160 genes into gear, the team reported online 7 July in PLoS Genetics.