The erosion of phenotypic specificity in psychiatric genetics: emerging lessons from CNTNAP2.

摘要

In this issue, Stein etal. (1) present evidence for an association of a common genetic polymorphism at the neuronal adhesion molecule Contactin-Associated Protein-like 2 (CNTNAP2) with selective mutism (SM) and social anxiety traits. This is a methodologically rigorous, two-stage candidate gene association study, the first genomic analysis of SM, and one that focuses on a gene of considerable interest. As a class, cell adhesion molecules have become an important area of investigation for neurobiologists interested in synaptic specification and function and Contactin and Contactin-Associated proteins have figured prominently in recent findings in the psychiatric genetics literature. Moreover, the results presented in Stein et al., as well as the study design, point to some of the most interesting developments and areas of controversy in contemporary psychiatric genetics.