1
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Ahmed NI, Khandelwal N, Anderson AG, Oh E, Vollmer RM, Kulkarni A, Gibson JR, Konopka G. Compensation between FOXP transcription factors maintains proper striatal function. Cell Rep 2024; 43:114257. [PMID: 38761373 PMCID: PMC11234887 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2024.114257] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2023] [Revised: 02/05/2024] [Accepted: 05/05/2024] [Indexed: 05/20/2024] Open
Abstract
Spiny projection neurons (SPNs) of the striatum are critical in integrating neurochemical information to coordinate motor and reward-based behavior. Mutations in the regulatory transcription factors expressed in SPNs can result in neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs). Paralogous transcription factors Foxp1 and Foxp2, which are both expressed in the dopamine receptor 1 (D1) expressing SPNs, are known to have variants implicated in NDDs. Utilizing mice with a D1-SPN-specific loss of Foxp1, Foxp2, or both and a combination of behavior, electrophysiology, and cell-type-specific genomic analysis, loss of both genes results in impaired motor and social behavior as well as increased firing of the D1-SPNs. Differential gene expression analysis implicates genes involved in autism risk, electrophysiological properties, and neuronal development and function. Viral-mediated re-expression of Foxp1 into the double knockouts is sufficient to restore electrophysiological and behavioral deficits. These data indicate complementary roles between Foxp1 and Foxp2 in the D1-SPNs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Newaz I Ahmed
- Department of Neuroscience, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA; Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA
| | - Nitin Khandelwal
- Department of Neuroscience, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA; Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA
| | - Ashley G Anderson
- Department of Neuroscience, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA; Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Emily Oh
- Department of Neuroscience, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA; Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA
| | - Rachael M Vollmer
- Department of Neuroscience, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA; Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA
| | - Ashwinikumar Kulkarni
- Department of Neuroscience, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA; Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA
| | - Jay R Gibson
- Department of Neuroscience, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA; Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA
| | - Genevieve Konopka
- Department of Neuroscience, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA; Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA.
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2
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Prakash N, Matos HY, Sebaoui S, Tsai L, Tran T, Aromolaran A, Atrachji I, Campbell N, Goodrich M, Hernandez-Pineda D, Jesus Herrero M, Hirata T, Lischinsky J, Martinez W, Torii S, Yamashita S, Hosseini H, Sokolowski K, Esumi S, Kawasawa YI, Hashimoto-Torii K, Jones KS, Corbin JG. Connectivity and molecular profiles of Foxp2- and Dbx1-lineage neurons in the accessory olfactory bulb and medial amygdala. J Comp Neurol 2024; 532:e25545. [PMID: 37849047 PMCID: PMC10922300 DOI: 10.1002/cne.25545] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2022] [Revised: 09/05/2023] [Accepted: 09/19/2023] [Indexed: 10/19/2023]
Abstract
In terrestrial vertebrates, the olfactory system is divided into main (MOS) and accessory (AOS) components that process both volatile and nonvolatile cues to generate appropriate behavioral responses. While much is known regarding the molecular diversity of neurons that comprise the MOS, less is known about the AOS. Here, focusing on the vomeronasal organ (VNO), the accessory olfactory bulb (AOB), and the medial amygdala (MeA), we reveal that populations of neurons in the AOS can be molecularly subdivided based on their ongoing or prior expression of the transcription factors Foxp2 or Dbx1, which delineate separate populations of GABAergic output neurons in the MeA. We show that a majority of AOB neurons that project directly to the MeA are of the Foxp2 lineage. Using single-neuron patch-clamp electrophysiology, we further reveal that in addition to sex-specific differences across lineage, the frequency of excitatory input to MeA Dbx1- and Foxp2-lineage neurons differs between sexes. Together, this work uncovers a novel molecular diversity of AOS neurons, and lineage and sex differences in patterns of connectivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nandkishore Prakash
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children’s
Research Institute, Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC, USA
| | - Heidi Y Matos
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children’s
Research Institute, Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC, USA
| | - Sonia Sebaoui
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children’s
Research Institute, Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC, USA
| | - Luke Tsai
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children’s
Research Institute, Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC, USA
| | - Tuyen Tran
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children’s
Research Institute, Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC, USA
| | - Adejimi Aromolaran
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children’s
Research Institute, Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC, USA
| | - Isabella Atrachji
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children’s
Research Institute, Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC, USA
| | - Nya Campbell
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children’s
Research Institute, Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC, USA
| | - Meredith Goodrich
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children’s
Research Institute, Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC, USA
| | - David Hernandez-Pineda
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children’s
Research Institute, Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC, USA
| | - Maria Jesus Herrero
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children’s
Research Institute, Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC, USA
| | - Tsutomu Hirata
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children’s
Research Institute, Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC, USA
| | - Julieta Lischinsky
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children’s
Research Institute, Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC, USA
| | - Wendolin Martinez
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children’s
Research Institute, Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC, USA
| | - Shisui Torii
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children’s
Research Institute, Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC, USA
| | - Satoshi Yamashita
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children’s
Research Institute, Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC, USA
| | - Hassan Hosseini
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Michigan Medical
School, Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Michigan
Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Katie Sokolowski
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children’s
Research Institute, Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC, USA
| | - Shigeyuki Esumi
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children’s
Research Institute, Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC, USA
| | - Yuka Imamura Kawasawa
- Department of Pharmacology, Pennsylvania State University
College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA
| | - Kazue Hashimoto-Torii
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children’s
Research Institute, Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC, USA
| | - Kevin S Jones
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Michigan Medical
School, Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Michigan
Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Joshua G Corbin
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children’s
Research Institute, Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC, USA
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3
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Ahmed NI, Khandelwal N, Anderson AG, Kulkarni A, Gibson J, Konopka G. Compensation between FOXP transcription factors maintains proper striatal function. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.06.26.546567. [PMID: 37425820 PMCID: PMC10327074 DOI: 10.1101/2023.06.26.546567] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/11/2023]
Abstract
Spiny projection neurons (SPNs) of the striatum are critical in integrating neurochemical information to coordinate motor and reward-based behavior. Mutations in the regulatory transcription factors expressed in SPNs can result in neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs). Paralogous transcription factors Foxp1 and Foxp2, which are both expressed in the dopamine receptor 1 (D1) expressing SPNs, are known to have variants implicated in NDDs. Utilizing mice with a D1-SPN specific loss of Foxp1, Foxp2, or both and a combination of behavior, electrophysiology, and cell-type specific genomic analysis, loss of both genes results in impaired motor and social behavior as well as increased firing of the D1-SPNs. Differential gene expression analysis implicates genes involved in autism risk, electrophysiological properties, and neuronal development and function. Viral mediated re-expression of Foxp1 into the double knockouts was sufficient to restore electrophysiological and behavioral deficits. These data indicate complementary roles between Foxp1 and Foxp2 in the D1-SPNs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Newaz I. Ahmed
- Department of Neuroscience, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA
- Peter O’Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA
| | - Nitin Khandelwal
- Department of Neuroscience, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA
- Peter O’Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA
| | - Ashley G. Anderson
- Department of Neuroscience, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Ashwinikumar Kulkarni
- Department of Neuroscience, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA
- Peter O’Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA
| | - Jay Gibson
- Department of Neuroscience, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA
- Peter O’Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA
| | - Genevieve Konopka
- Department of Neuroscience, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA
- Peter O’Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9111, USA
- Lead Contact
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4
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Bornschein U, Zeberg H, Enard W, Hevers W, Pääbo S. Functional dissection of two amino acid substitutions unique to the human FOXP2 protein. Sci Rep 2023; 13:3747. [PMID: 36879029 PMCID: PMC9988825 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-30663-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2022] [Accepted: 02/27/2023] [Indexed: 03/08/2023] Open
Abstract
The transcription factor forkhead box P2 (FOXP2) is involved in the development of language and speech in humans. Two amino acid substitutions (T303N, N325S) occurred in the human FOXP2 after the divergence from the chimpanzee lineage. It has previously been shown that when they are introduced into the FOXP2 protein of mice they alter striatal synaptic plasticity by increasing long-term depression in medium spiny neurons. Here we introduce each of these amino acid substitutions individually into mice and analyze their effects in the striatum. We find that long-term depression in medium spiny neurons is increased in mice carrying only the T303N substitution to the same extent as in mice carrying both amino acid substitutions. In contrast, the N325S substitution has no discernable effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ulrich Bornschein
- Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Hugo Zeberg
- Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103, Leipzig, Germany.,Department of Pharmacology and Physiology, Karolinska Institutet, 17177, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Wolfgang Enard
- Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103, Leipzig, Germany.,Faculty of Biology, Ludwig Maximilian University, 82152, Martinsried, Germany
| | - Wulf Hevers
- Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103, Leipzig, Germany.
| | - Svante Pääbo
- Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103, Leipzig, Germany.,Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, Onna-Son, Japan
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5
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Meyer GP, da Silva BS, Bandeira CE, Tavares MEA, Cupertino RB, Oliveira EP, Müller D, Kappel DB, Teche SP, Vitola ES, Rohde LA, Rovaris DL, Grevet EH, Bau CHD. Dissecting the cross-trait effects of the FOXP2 GWAS hit on clinical and brain phenotypes in adults with ADHD. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci 2023; 273:15-24. [PMID: 35279744 DOI: 10.1007/s00406-022-01388-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2021] [Accepted: 02/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
The Forkhead box P2 (FOXP2) encodes for a transcription factor with a broad role in embryonic development. It is especially represented among GWAS hits for neurodevelopmental disorders and related traits, including attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder, neuroticism, and risk-taking behaviors. While several functional studies are underway to understand the consequences of FOXP2 variation, this study aims to expand previous findings to clinically and genetically related phenotypes and neuroanatomical features among subjects with ADHD. The sample included 407 adults with ADHD and 463 controls. Genotyping was performed on the Infinium PsychArray-24 BeadChip, and the FOXP2 gene region was extracted. A gene-wide approach was adopted to evaluate the combined effects of FOXP2 variants (n = 311) on ADHD status, severity, comorbidities, and personality traits. Independent risk variants presenting potential functional effects were further tested for association with cortical surface areas in a subsample of cases (n = 87). The gene-wide analyses within the ADHD sample showed a significant association of the FOXP2 gene with harm avoidance (P = 0.001; PFDR = 0.015) and nominal associations with hyperactivity symptoms (P = 0.026; PFDR = 0.130) and antisocial personality disorder (P = 0.026; PFDR = 0.130). An insertion/deletion variant (rs79622555) located downstream of FOXP2 was associated with the three outcomes and nominally with the surface area of superior parietal and anterior cingulate cortices. Our results extend and refine previous GWAS findings pointing to a role of FOXP2 in several neurodevelopment-related phenotypes, mainly those involving underlying symptomatic domains of self-regulation and inhibitory control. Taken together, the available evidence may constitute promising insights into the puzzle of the FOXP2-related pathophysiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabriela Pessin Meyer
- Graduate Program in Genetics and Molecular Biology, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Bruna Santos da Silva
- Graduate Program in Genetics and Molecular Biology, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil.,ADHD Outpatient Program, Clinical Research Center, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, Brazil.,Developmental Psychiatry Program, Experimental Research Center, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, Brazil.,Department of Genetics, Institute of Biosciences, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Cibele Edom Bandeira
- Graduate Program in Genetics and Molecular Biology, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil.,ADHD Outpatient Program, Clinical Research Center, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, Brazil.,Developmental Psychiatry Program, Experimental Research Center, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, Brazil.,Department of Genetics, Institute of Biosciences, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Maria Eduarda Araujo Tavares
- Graduate Program in Genetics and Molecular Biology, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil.,ADHD Outpatient Program, Clinical Research Center, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, Brazil.,Developmental Psychiatry Program, Experimental Research Center, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, Brazil.,Department of Genetics, Institute of Biosciences, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | | | - Eduarda Pereira Oliveira
- Graduate Program in Genetics and Molecular Biology, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Diana Müller
- ADHD Outpatient Program, Clinical Research Center, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, Brazil.,Developmental Psychiatry Program, Experimental Research Center, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Djenifer B Kappel
- Division of Psychological Medicine and Clinical Neurosciences, School of Medicine, MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, Wales
| | - Stefania Pigatto Teche
- ADHD Outpatient Program, Clinical Research Center, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, Brazil.,Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Eduardo Schneider Vitola
- ADHD Outpatient Program, Clinical Research Center, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, Brazil.,Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Luis Augusto Rohde
- ADHD Outpatient Program, Clinical Research Center, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, Brazil.,Developmental Psychiatry Program, Experimental Research Center, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Diego Luiz Rovaris
- Departamento de Fisiologia e Biofisica, Universidade de Sao Paulo Instituto de Ciencias Biomedicas, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Eugenio Horacio Grevet
- ADHD Outpatient Program, Clinical Research Center, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, Brazil.,Developmental Psychiatry Program, Experimental Research Center, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, Brazil.,Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Claiton Henrique Dotto Bau
- Graduate Program in Genetics and Molecular Biology, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil. .,ADHD Outpatient Program, Clinical Research Center, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, Brazil. .,Developmental Psychiatry Program, Experimental Research Center, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, Brazil. .,Department of Genetics, Institute of Biosciences, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil.
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6
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Kalashnikova TP, Satyukova MO, Anisimov GV, Karakulova YV. [Genetic background of dyslexia and dysgraphy in children]. Zh Nevrol Psikhiatr Im S S Korsakova 2023; 123:48-52. [PMID: 37315241 DOI: 10.17116/jnevro202312305148] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
The review is devoted to one of the current problems of pediatric neurology - reading and writing disorders in children as part of a partial developmental disorder. With the development of neuroscience, the paradigm of «brain damage» in the understanding of a number of pathological conditions was replaced by the concept of «evolutionary neurology». The dominance of the ontogenetic approach caused the appearance of a new section in ICD-11 - «Neurodevelopmental disorders». Twenty-one genes associated with the acquisition of reading and writing skills have been identified. Modern studies demonstrate the connection of neuropsychological prerequisites for reading and writing, and clinical phenotypes of dyslexia with changes in specific loci. It is assumed that there are different molecular genetic bases for dyslexia and dysgraphia depending on ethnicity, orthographic features of language, including logographic features. Pleiotropy of genes is a cause of comorbidity of reading and writing disorders with attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder, specific speech articulation disorders, and dyscalculia. A key function of many of the identified genes is their involvement in the processes of neurogenesis. Their dysfunctions cause atypical neuronal migration, ectopic formation, inadequate axonal growth, and dendrite branching at the early stage of brain development. Morphological changes can distort the correct distribution and/or integration of linguistic stimuli in critical brain areas, leading to abnormalities in phonology, semantics, spelling, and general reading comprehension. The knowledge gained can form the basis for the development of risk models for dysgraphia and dyslexia formation and be used as a diagnostic and/or screening tool, which is important for evidence-based correction, optimization of academic performance, and mitigation of psychosocial consequences.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - G V Anisimov
- First Medico-Pedagogical Center «Lingua Bona», Perm, Russia
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7
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Nordli SA, Todd PM. Embodied and embedded ecological rationality: A common vertebrate mechanism for action selection underlies cognition and heuristic decision-making in humans. Front Psychol 2022; 13:841972. [DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.841972] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2021] [Accepted: 10/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The last common ancestor shared by humans and other vertebrates lived over half a billion years ago. In the time since that ancestral line diverged, evolution by natural selection has produced an impressive diversity—from fish to birds to elephants—of vertebrate morphology; yet despite the great species-level differences that otherwise exist across the brains of many animals, the neural circuitry that underlies motor control features a functional architecture that is virtually unchanged in every living species of vertebrate. In this article, we review how that circuitry facilitates motor control, trial-and-error-based procedural learning, and habit formation; we then develop a model that describes how this circuitry (embodied in an agent) works to build and refine sequences of goal-directed actions that are molded to fit the structure of the environment (in which the agent is embedded). We subsequently review evidence suggesting that this same functional circuitry became further adapted to regulate cognitive control in humans as well as motor control; then, using examples of heuristic decision-making from the ecological rationality tradition, we show how the model can be used to understand how that circuitry operates analogously in both cognitive and motor domains. We conclude with a discussion of how the model encourages a shift in perspective regarding ecological rationality’s “adaptive toolbox”—namely, to one that views heuristic processes and other forms of goal-directed cognition as likely being implemented by the same neural circuitry (and in the same fashion) as goal-directed action in the motor domain—and how this change of perspective can be useful.
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8
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Ekström AG. Motor constellation theory: A model of infants' phonological development. Front Psychol 2022; 13:996894. [PMID: 36405212 PMCID: PMC9669916 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.996894] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2022] [Accepted: 10/17/2022] [Indexed: 04/24/2024] Open
Abstract
Every normally developing human infant solves the difficult problem of mapping their native-language phonology, but the neural mechanisms underpinning this behavior remain poorly understood. Here, motor constellation theory, an integrative neurophonological model, is presented, with the goal of explicating this issue. It is assumed that infants' motor-auditory phonological mapping takes place through infants' orosensory "reaching" for phonological elements observed in the language-specific ambient phonology, via reference to kinesthetic feedback from motor systems (e.g., articulators), and auditory feedback from resulting speech and speech-like sounds. Attempts are regulated by basal ganglion-cerebellar speech neural circuitry, and successful attempts at reproduction are enforced through dopaminergic signaling. Early in life, the pace of anatomical development constrains mapping such that complete language-specific phonological mapping is prohibited by infants' undeveloped supralaryngeal vocal tract and undescended larynx; constraints gradually dissolve with age, enabling adult phonology. Where appropriate, reference is made to findings from animal and clinical models. Some implications for future modeling and simulation efforts, as well as clinical settings, are also discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Axel G. Ekström
- Speech, Music and Hearing, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden
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9
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Alm PA. The Dopamine System and Automatization of Movement Sequences: A Review With Relevance for Speech and Stuttering. Front Hum Neurosci 2021; 15:661880. [PMID: 34924974 PMCID: PMC8675130 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2021.661880] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2021] [Accepted: 10/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
The last decades of research have gradually elucidated the complex functions of the dopamine system in the vertebrate brain. The multiple roles of dopamine in motor function, learning, attention, motivation, and the emotions have been difficult to reconcile. A broad and detailed understanding of the physiology of cerebral dopamine is of importance in understanding a range of human disorders. One of the core functions of dopamine involves the basal ganglia and the learning and execution of automatized sequences of movements. Speech is one of the most complex and highly automatized sequential motor behaviors, though the exact roles that the basal ganglia and dopamine play in speech have been difficult to determine. Stuttering is a speech disorder that has been hypothesized to be related to the functions of the basal ganglia and dopamine. The aim of this review was to provide an overview of the current understanding of the cerebral dopamine system, in particular the mechanisms related to motor learning and the execution of movement sequences. The primary aim was not to review research on speech and stuttering, but to provide a platform of neurophysiological mechanisms, which may be utilized for further research and theoretical development on speech, speech disorders, and other behavioral disorders. Stuttering and speech are discussed here only briefly. The review indicates that a primary mechanism for the automatization of movement sequences is the merging of isolated movements into chunks that can be executed as units. In turn, chunks can be utilized hierarchically, as building blocks of longer chunks. It is likely that these mechanisms apply also to speech, so that frequent syllables and words are produced as motor chunks. It is further indicated that the main learning principle for sequence learning is reinforcement learning, with the phasic release of dopamine as the primary teaching signal indicating successful sequences. It is proposed that the dynamics of the dopamine system constitute the main neural basis underlying the situational variability of stuttering.
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Affiliation(s)
- Per A Alm
- Department of Neuroscience, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
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10
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von Merten S, Pfeifle C, Künzel S, Hoier S, Tautz D. A humanized version of Foxp2 affects ultrasonic vocalization in adult female and male mice. GENES BRAIN AND BEHAVIOR 2021; 20:e12764. [PMID: 34342113 DOI: 10.1111/gbb.12764] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2021] [Revised: 07/02/2021] [Accepted: 07/31/2021] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
The transcription factor FoxP2 is involved in setting up the neuronal circuitry for vocal learning in mammals and birds and is thought to have played a special role in the evolution of human speech and language. It has been shown that an allele with a humanized version of the murine Foxp2 gene changes the ultrasonic vocalization of mouse pups compared to pups of the wild-type inbred strain. Here we tested if this humanized allele would also affect the ultrasonic vocalization of adult female and male mice. In a previous study, in which only male vocalization was considered and the mice were recorded under a restricted spatial and temporal regime, no difference in adult vocalization between genotypes was found. Here, we use a different test paradigm in which both female and male vocalizations are recorded in extended social contact. We found differences in temporal, spectral and syntactical parameters between the genotypes in both sexes, and between sexes. Mice carrying the humanized Foxp2 allele were using higher frequencies and more complex syllable types than mice of the corresponding wildtype inbred strain. Our results support the notion that the humanized Foxp2 allele has a differential effect on mouse ultrasonic vocalization. As mice carrying the humanized version of the Foxp2 gene show effects opposite to those of mice carrying disrupted or mutated alleles of this gene, we conclude that this mouse line represents an important model for the study of human speech and language evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sophie von Merten
- CESAM - Centro de Estudos do Ambiente e do Mar, Departamento de Biologia Animal, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal.,Department for Evolutionary Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany
| | - Christine Pfeifle
- Department for Evolutionary Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany
| | - Sven Künzel
- Department for Evolutionary Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany
| | - Svenja Hoier
- Department for Evolutionary Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany
| | - Diethard Tautz
- Department for Evolutionary Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany
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11
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Sanjuán J, Castro-Martínez XH, García-Martí G, González-Fernández J, Sanz-Requena R, Haro JM, Meana JJ, Martí-Bonmatí L, Nacher J, Sebastiá-Ortega N, Gilabert-Juan J, Moltó MD. FOXP2 expression and gray matter density in the male brains of patients with schizophrenia. Brain Imaging Behav 2021; 15:1403-1411. [PMID: 32734433 PMCID: PMC8286223 DOI: 10.1007/s11682-020-00339-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
Common genetic variants of FOXP2 may contribute to schizophrenia vulnerability, but controversial results have been reported for this proposal. Here we evaluated the potential impact of the common FOXP2 rs2396753 polymorphism in schizophrenia. It was previously reported to be part of a risk haplotype for this disease and to have significant effects on gray matter concentration in the patients. We undertook the first examination into whether rs2396753 affects the brain expression of FOXP2 and a replication study of earlier neuroimaging findings of the influence of this genetic variant on brain structure. FOXP2 expression levels were measured in postmortem prefrontal cortex samples of 84 male subjects (48 patients and 36 controls) from the CIBERSAM Brain and the Stanley Foundation Array Collections. High-resolution anatomical magnetic resonance imaging was performed on 79 male subjects (61 patients, 18 controls) using optimized voxel-based morphometry. We found differences in FOXP2 expression and brain morphometry depending on the rs2396753, relating low FOXP2 mRNA levels with reduction of gray matter density. We detected an interaction between rs2396753 and the clinical groups, showing that heterozygous patients for this polymorphism have gray matter density decrease and low FOXP2 expression comparing with the heterozygous controls. This study shows the importance of independent replication of neuroimaging genetic studies of FOXP2 as a candidate gene in schizophrenia. Furthermore, our results suggest that the FOXP2 rs2396753 affects mRNA levels, thus providing new knowledge about its significance as a potential susceptibility polymorphism in schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julio Sanjuán
- Spanish National Network for Research in Mental Health CIBERSAM, Valencia, Spain.,Unit of Psychiatry, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain.,INCLIVA Biomedical Research Institute, Fundación Investigación Hospital Clínico de Valencia, Valencia, Spain
| | - Xochitl Helga Castro-Martínez
- Department of Genetics, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain.,Laboratorio de Genómica de Enfermedades Psiquiátricas y Neurodegenerativas, INMEGEN, Ciudad de México, México
| | - Gracián García-Martí
- Spanish National Network for Research in Mental Health CIBERSAM, Valencia, Spain.,Biomedical Engineering Unit / Radiology Department, Quirónsalud Hospital, Valencia, Spain
| | | | - Roberto Sanz-Requena
- Biomedical Engineering Unit / Radiology Department, Quirónsalud Hospital, Valencia, Spain
| | - Josep María Haro
- Spanish National Network for Research in Mental Health CIBERSAM, Valencia, Spain.,Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu, Fundació Sant Joan de Deu, Barcelona, Spain
| | - J Javier Meana
- Spanish National Network for Research in Mental Health CIBERSAM, Valencia, Spain.,Department of Pharmacology, Universidad del País Vasco/Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea UPV/EHU, Leioa, Spain
| | - Luis Martí-Bonmatí
- Biomedical Engineering Unit / Radiology Department, Quirónsalud Hospital, Valencia, Spain
| | - Juan Nacher
- Spanish National Network for Research in Mental Health CIBERSAM, Valencia, Spain.,INCLIVA Biomedical Research Institute, Fundación Investigación Hospital Clínico de Valencia, Valencia, Spain.,Neurobiology Unit, Cell Biology Department, Interdisciplinary Research Structure for Biotechnology and Biomedicine (BIOTECMED), Universitat de València, Valencia, Spain
| | - Noelia Sebastiá-Ortega
- Spanish National Network for Research in Mental Health CIBERSAM, Valencia, Spain.,Department of Genetics, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain
| | - Javier Gilabert-Juan
- Spanish National Network for Research in Mental Health CIBERSAM, Valencia, Spain. .,INCLIVA Biomedical Research Institute, Fundación Investigación Hospital Clínico de Valencia, Valencia, Spain. .,Department of Genetics, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain. .,Neurobiology Unit, Cell Biology Department, Interdisciplinary Research Structure for Biotechnology and Biomedicine (BIOTECMED), Universitat de València, Valencia, Spain. .,Department of Genetics, Universitat de València, Dr. Moliner 50, 46100, Burjassot, Valencia, Spain.
| | - María Dolores Moltó
- Spanish National Network for Research in Mental Health CIBERSAM, Valencia, Spain. .,INCLIVA Biomedical Research Institute, Fundación Investigación Hospital Clínico de Valencia, Valencia, Spain. .,Department of Genetics, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain. .,Department of Genetics, Universitat de València, Dr. Moliner 50, 46100, Burjassot, Valencia, Spain.
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12
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An Etiological Foxp2 Mutation Impairs Neuronal Gain in Layer VI Cortico-Thalamic Cells through Increased GABA B/GIRK Signaling. J Neurosci 2020; 40:8543-8555. [PMID: 33020214 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.2615-19.2020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2019] [Revised: 09/15/2020] [Accepted: 09/18/2020] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
A rare mutation affecting the Forkhead-box protein P2 (FOXP2) transcription factor causes a severe monogenic speech and language disorder. Mice carrying an identical point mutation to that observed in affected patients (Foxp2+/R552H mice) display motor deficits and impaired synaptic plasticity in the striatum. However, the consequences of the mutation on neuronal function, in particular in the cerebral cortex, remain little studied. Foxp2 is expressed in a subset of Layer VI cortical neurons. Here, we used Ntsr1-EGFP mice to identify Foxp2+ neurons in the mouse auditory cortex ex vivo. We studied the functional impact of the R552H mutation on the morphologic and functional properties of Layer VI cortical neurons from Ntsr1-EGFP; Foxp2+/R552H male and female mice. The complexity of apical, but not basal dendrites was significantly lower in Foxp2+/R552H cortico-thalamic neurons than in control Foxp2+/+ neurons. Excitatory synaptic inputs, but not inhibitory synaptic inputs, were decreased in Foxp2+/R552H mice. In response, homeostatic mechanisms would be expected to increase neuronal gain, i.e., the conversion of a synaptic input into a firing output. However, the intrinsic excitability of Foxp2+ cortical neurons was lower in Foxp2+/R552H neurons. A-type and delayed-rectifier (DR) potassium currents, two putative transcriptional targets of Foxp2, were not affected by the mutation. In contrast, GABAB/GIRK signaling, another presumed target of Foxp2, was increased in mutant neurons. Blocking GIRK channels strongly attenuated the difference in intrinsic excitability between wild-type (WT) and Foxp2+/R552H neurons. Our results reveal a novel role for Foxp2 in the control of neuronal input/output homeostasis.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Mutations of the Forkhead-box protein 2 (FOXP2) gene in humans are the first known monogenic cause of a speech and language disorder. The Foxp2 mutation may directly affect neuronal development and function in neocortex, where Foxp2 is expressed. Brain imaging studies in patients with a heterozygous mutation in FOXP2 showed abnormalities in cortical language-related regions relative to the unaffected members of the same family. However, the role of Foxp2 in neocortical neurons is poorly understood. Using mice with a Foxp2 mutation equivalent to that found in patients, we studied functional modifications in auditory cortex neurons ex vivo We found that mutant neurons exhibit alterations of synaptic input and GABAB/GIRK signaling, reflecting a loss of neuronal homeostasis.
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13
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Heyes C, Chater N, Dwyer DM. Sinking In: The Peripheral Baldwinisation of Human Cognition. Trends Cogn Sci 2020; 24:884-899. [PMID: 32981845 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2020.08.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2020] [Revised: 08/13/2020] [Accepted: 08/27/2020] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
The Baldwin effect is a hypothetical process in which a learned response to environmental change evolves a genetic basis. Modelling has shown that the Baldwin effect offers a plausible and elegant explanation for the emergence of complex behavioural traits, but there is little direct empirical evidence for its occurrence. We highlight experimental evidence of the Baldwin effect and argue that it acts preferentially on peripheral rather than on central cognitive processes. Careful scrutiny of research on taste-aversion and fear learning, language, and imitation indicates that their efficiency depends on adaptively specialised input and output processes: analogues of scanner and printer interfaces that feed information to core inference processes and structure their behavioural expression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cecilia Heyes
- All Souls College and Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 4AL, UK.
| | - Nick Chater
- Warwick Business School, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL, UK
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14
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Kosubek-Langer J, Scharff C. Dynamic FoxP2 levels in male zebra finches are linked to morphology of adult-born Area X medium spiny neurons. Sci Rep 2020; 10:4787. [PMID: 32179863 PMCID: PMC7075913 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-61740-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2019] [Accepted: 02/29/2020] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
The transcription factor FOXP2 is crucial for the formation and function of cortico-striatal circuits. FOXP2 mutations are associated with specific speech and language impairments. In songbirds, experimentally altered FoxP2 expression levels in the striatal song nucleus Area X impair vocal learning and song production. Overall FoxP2 protein levels in Area X are low in adult zebra finches and decrease further with singing. However, some Area X medium spiny neurons (MSNs) express FoxP2 at high levels (FoxP2high MSNs) and singing does not change this. Because Area X receives many new neurons throughout adulthood, we hypothesized that the FoxP2high MSNs are newly recruited neurons, not yet integrated into the local Area X circuitry and thus not active during singing. Contrary to our expectation, FoxP2 protein levels did not predict whether new MSNs were active during singing, assayed via immediate early gene expression. However, new FoxP2high MSNs had more complex dendrites, higher spine density and more mushroom spines than new FoxP2low MSNs. In addition, FoxP2 expression levels correlated positively with nucleus size of new MSNs. Together, our data suggest that dynamic FoxP2 levels in new MSNs shape their morphology during maturation and their incorporation into a neural circuit that enables the maintenance and social modulation of adult birdsong.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer Kosubek-Langer
- Department of Animal Behavior, Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
| | - Constance Scharff
- Department of Animal Behavior, Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
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15
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Glutamate receptors in domestication and modern human evolution. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2020; 108:341-357. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2019.10.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2019] [Revised: 09/28/2019] [Accepted: 10/07/2019] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
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16
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Differential Song Deficits after Lentivirus-Mediated Knockdown of FoxP1, FoxP2, or FoxP4 in Area X of Juvenile Zebra Finches. J Neurosci 2019; 39:9782-9796. [PMID: 31641053 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1250-19.2019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2019] [Revised: 09/30/2019] [Accepted: 10/01/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Mutations in the transcription factors FOXP1 and FOXP2 are associated with speech impairments. FOXP1 is additionally linked to cognitive deficits, as is FOXP4. These FoxP proteins are highly conserved in vertebrates and expressed in comparable brain regions, including the striatum. In male zebra finches, experimental manipulation of FoxP2 in Area X, a striatal song nucleus essential for vocal production learning, affects song development, adult song production, dendritic spine density, and dopamine-regulated synaptic transmission of striatal neurons. We previously showed that, in the majority of Area X neurons FoxP1, FoxP2, and FoxP4 are coexpressed, can dimerize and multimerize with each other and differentially regulate the expression of target genes. These findings raise the possibility that FoxP1, FoxP2, and FoxP4 (FoxP1/2/4) affect neural function differently and in turn vocal learning. To address this directly, we downregulated FoxP1 or FoxP4 in Area X of juvenile zebra finches and compared the resulting song phenotypes with the previously described inaccurate and incomplete song learning after FoxP2 knockdown. We found that experimental downregulation of FoxP1 and FoxP4 led to impaired song learning with partly similar features as those reported for FoxP2 knockdowns. However, there were also specific differences between the groups, leading us to suggest that specific features of the song are differentially impacted by developmental manipulations of FoxP1/2/4 expression in Area X.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT We compared the effects of experimentally reduced expression of the transcription factors FoxP1, FoxP2, and FoxP4 in a striatal song nucleus, Area X, on vocal production learning in juvenile male zebra finches. We show, for the first time, that these temporally and spatially precise manipulations of the three FoxPs affect spectral and temporal song features differentially. This is important because it raises the possibility that the different FoxPs control different aspects of vocal learning through combinatorial gene expression or by acting in different microcircuits within Area X. These results are consistent with the deleterious effects of human FOXP1 and FOXP2 mutations on speech and language and add FOXP4 as a possible candidate gene for vocal disorders.
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17
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Schreiweis C, Irinopoulou T, Vieth B, Laddada L, Oury F, Burguière E, Enard W, Groszer M. Mice carrying a humanized Foxp2 knock-in allele show region-specific shifts of striatal Foxp2 expression levels. Cortex 2019; 118:212-222. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2019.01.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2018] [Revised: 11/07/2018] [Accepted: 01/08/2019] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
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18
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Lieberman P. The antiquity and evolution of the neural bases of rhythmic activity. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2019; 1453:114-124. [PMID: 31368158 DOI: 10.1111/nyas.14199] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2019] [Revised: 06/10/2019] [Accepted: 07/02/2019] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The evolution of the anatomy and neural circuits that regulate the rhythm of speech can be traced back to the Devonian age, 400 million years ago. Epigenetic processes 100 million years later modified these circuits. Natural selection on similar genetic processes occurred during the evolution of archaic hominins and humans. The lungs and larynx-anatomy that produces the rhythmic fundamental frequency patterns of speech-have a deep evolutionary history. Neural circuits linking the cortex, basal ganglia, and other subcortical structures plan, sequence, and execute motor as well as cognitive acts. These neural circuits generate the rhythm of speech, singing, and chanting. The human form of the transcription factor FOXP2 increased synaptic connectivity and plasticity in basal ganglia circuits, enhancing motor control and cognitive and linguistic capabilities in humans as well as Neanderthals. The archeological record also suggests that Neanderthals passed spoken language. Homologous circuits existed in amphibians. In songbirds, the avian form of FOXP2 acted on similar neural circuits allowing birds to learn and produce new songs. Current studies point to natural selection on genetic events enhancing these and other neural circuits to yield fully human rhythmic speech, and motor, cognitive, and linguistic capabilities, rather than the saltation proposed by Noam Chomsky.
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Affiliation(s)
- Philip Lieberman
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island
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19
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Suzuki IK. Molecular drivers of human cerebral cortical evolution. Neurosci Res 2019; 151:1-14. [PMID: 31175883 DOI: 10.1016/j.neures.2019.05.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2019] [Revised: 05/30/2019] [Accepted: 05/31/2019] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
One of the most important questions in human evolutionary biology is how our ancestor has acquired an expanded volume of the cerebral cortex, which may have significantly impacted on improving our cognitive abilities. Recent comparative approaches have identified developmental features unique to the human or hominid cerebral cortex, not shared with other animals including conventional experimental models. In addition, genomic, transcriptomic, and epigenomic signatures associated with human- or hominid-specific processes of the cortical development are becoming identified by virtue of technical progress in the deep nucleotide sequencing. This review discusses ontogenic and phylogenetic processes of the human cerebral cortex, followed by the introduction of recent comprehensive approaches identifying molecular mechanisms potentially driving the evolutionary changes in the cortical development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ikuo K Suzuki
- Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033 Japan; VIB-KU Leuven Center for Brain & Disease Research, 3000 Leuven, Belgium; Department of Neurosciences, Leuven Brain Institute, KULeuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium; Université Libre de Bruxelles (U.L.B.), Institut de Recherches en Biologie Humaine et Moléculaire (IRIBHM), ULB Neuroscience Institute (UNI), 1070 Brussels, Belgium.
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20
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Kuo HY, Liu FC. Synaptic Wiring of Corticostriatal Circuits in Basal Ganglia: Insights into the Pathogenesis of Neuropsychiatric Disorders. eNeuro 2019; 6:ENEURO.0076-19.2019. [PMID: 31097624 PMCID: PMC6553570 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0076-19.2019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2019] [Revised: 04/26/2019] [Accepted: 05/07/2019] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The striatum is a key hub in the basal ganglia for processing neural information from the sensory, motor, and limbic cortices. The massive and diverse cortical inputs entering the striatum allow the basal ganglia to perform a repertoire of neurological functions ranging from basic level of motor control to high level of cognition. The heterogeneity of the corticostriatal circuits, however, also renders the system susceptible to a repertoire of neurological diseases. Clinical and animal model studies have indicated that defective development of the corticostriatal circuits is linked to various neuropsychiatric disorders, including attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), Tourette syndrome, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and schizophrenia. Importantly, many neuropsychiatric disease-risk genes have been found to form the molecular building blocks of the circuit wiring at the synaptic level. It is therefore imperative to understand how corticostriatal connectivity is established during development. Here, we review the construction during development of these corticostriatal circuits at the synaptic level, which should provide important insights into the pathogenesis of neuropsychiatric disorders related to the basal ganglia and help the development of appropriate therapies for these diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hsiao-Ying Kuo
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei 11221, Taiwan
| | - Fu-Chin Liu
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei 11221, Taiwan
- Brain Research Center, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei 11221, Taiwan
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21
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Hickey SL, Berto S, Konopka G. Chromatin Decondensation by FOXP2 Promotes Human Neuron Maturation and Expression of Neurodevelopmental Disease Genes. Cell Rep 2019; 27:1699-1711.e9. [PMID: 31067457 PMCID: PMC6794152 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2019.04.044] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2018] [Revised: 03/08/2019] [Accepted: 04/08/2019] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Forkhead box P2 (FOXP2) is a transcription factor expressed in the human brain that peaks during fetal development, and disruption in its ability to regulate downstream target genes leads to vulnerability to neurodevelopmental disorders. However, the mechanisms by which FOXP2 exerts regulatory control over targets during neuronal maturation have not been fully elucidated. Here, we use genome-wide chromatin accessibility assays and transcriptome-wide expression analyses in differentiating human neurons to show that FOXP2 represses proliferation-promoting genes in a DNA-binding-dependent manner. In contrast, FOXP2 and its cofactors, NFIA and NFIB, activate neuronal maturation genes in a manner that does not require FOXP2 to interact with DNA directly. Moreover, comparisons with expression data from the developing human brain suggest that FOXP2 and NFIA- or NFIB-dependent chromatin alterations drive maturation of excitatory cortical neurons. Thus, FOXP2 and its NFI cofactors may be specifically important for the development of cortical circuits underlying neurodevelopmental disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie L Hickey
- Department of Neuroscience, The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
| | - Stefano Berto
- Department of Neuroscience, The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
| | - Genevieve Konopka
- Department of Neuroscience, The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA.
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22
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Häußermann K, Young G, Kukura P, Dietz H. Dissecting FOXP2 Oligomerization and DNA Binding. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2019; 58:7662-7667. [PMID: 30887622 PMCID: PMC6986896 DOI: 10.1002/anie.201901734] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2019] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
Abstract
Protein–protein and protein–substrate interactions are critical to function and often depend on factors that are difficult to disentangle. Herein, a combined biochemical and biophysical approach, based on electrically switchable DNA biochips and single‐molecule mass analysis, was used to characterize the DNA binding and protein oligomerization of the transcription factor, forkhead box protein P2 (FOXP2). FOXP2 contains domains commonly involved in nucleic‐acid binding and protein oligomerization, such as a C2H2‐zinc finger (ZF), and a leucine zipper (LZ), whose roles in FOXP2 remain largely unknown. We found that the LZ mediates FOXP2 dimerization via coiled‐coil formation but also contributes to DNA binding. The ZF contributes to protein dimerization when the LZ coiled‐coil is intact, but it is not involved in DNA binding. The forkhead domain (FHD) is the key driver of DNA binding. Our data contributes to understanding the mechanisms behind the transcriptional activity of FOXP2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharina Häußermann
- Physik Department & Munich School of Bioengineering, Technische Universität München, Am Coulombwall 4a, 85784, Garching, Germany
| | - Gavin Young
- Department of Chemistry, Physical and Theoretical Chemistry Laboratory, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3QZ, UK
| | - Philipp Kukura
- Department of Chemistry, Physical and Theoretical Chemistry Laboratory, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3QZ, UK
| | - Hendrik Dietz
- Physik Department & Munich School of Bioengineering, Technische Universität München, Am Coulombwall 4a, 85784, Garching, Germany
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23
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Häußermann K, Young G, Kukura P, Dietz H. Dissecting FOXP2 Oligomerization and DNA Binding. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2019. [DOI: 10.1002/ange.201901734] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Katharina Häußermann
- Physik Department & Munich School of BioengineeringTechnische Universität München Am Coulombwall 4a 85784 Garching Germany
| | - Gavin Young
- Department of ChemistryPhysical and Theoretical Chemistry LaboratoryUniversity of Oxford South Parks Road Oxford OX1 3QZ UK
| | - Philipp Kukura
- Department of ChemistryPhysical and Theoretical Chemistry LaboratoryUniversity of Oxford South Parks Road Oxford OX1 3QZ UK
| | - Hendrik Dietz
- Physik Department & Munich School of BioengineeringTechnische Universität München Am Coulombwall 4a 85784 Garching Germany
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24
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Medvedeva VP, Rieger MA, Vieth B, Mombereau C, Ziegenhain C, Ghosh T, Cressant A, Enard W, Granon S, Dougherty JD, Groszer M. Altered social behavior in mice carrying a cortical Foxp2 deletion. Hum Mol Genet 2019; 28:701-717. [PMID: 30357341 PMCID: PMC6381386 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddy372] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2018] [Revised: 09/30/2018] [Accepted: 10/16/2018] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Genetic disruptions of the forkhead box transcription factor FOXP2 in humans cause an autosomal-dominant speech and language disorder. While FOXP2 expression pattern are highly conserved, its role in specific brain areas for mammalian social behaviors remains largely unknown. Here we studied mice carrying a homozygous cortical Foxp2 deletion. The postnatal development and gross morphological architecture of mutant mice was indistinguishable from wildtype (WT) littermates. Unbiased behavioral profiling of adult mice revealed abnormalities in approach behavior towards conspecifics as well as in the reciprocal responses of WT interaction partners. Furthermore mutant mice showed alterations in acoustical parameters of ultrasonic vocalizations, which also differed in function of the social context. Cell type-specific gene expression profiling of cortical pyramidal neurons revealed aberrant regulation of genes involved in social behavior. In particular Foxp2 mutants showed the downregulation of Mint2 (Apba2), a gene involved in approach behavior in mice and autism spectrum disorder in humans. Taken together these data demonstrate that cortical Foxp2 is required for normal social behaviors in mice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vera P Medvedeva
- Inserm, Institut du Fer à Moulin, Sorbonne Université, Paris, France
| | - Michael A Rieger
- Department of Genetics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Beate Vieth
- Anthropology & Human Genomics, Department of Biology II, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Cédric Mombereau
- Inserm, Institut du Fer à Moulin, Sorbonne Université, Paris, France
| | - Christoph Ziegenhain
- Anthropology & Human Genomics, Department of Biology II, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Tanay Ghosh
- Inserm, Institut du Fer à Moulin, Sorbonne Université, Paris, France
| | - Arnaud Cressant
- Institut des Neurosciences Paris-Saclay, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique UMR, Orsay, France
| | - Wolfgang Enard
- Anthropology & Human Genomics, Department of Biology II, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Sylvie Granon
- Institut des Neurosciences Paris-Saclay, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique UMR, Orsay, France
| | - Joseph D Dougherty
- Department of Genetics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Matthias Groszer
- Inserm, Institut du Fer à Moulin, Sorbonne Université, Paris, France
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25
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Foxp2 loss of function increases striatal direct pathway inhibition via increased GABA release. Brain Struct Funct 2018; 223:4211-4226. [PMID: 30187194 PMCID: PMC6267273 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-018-1746-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2018] [Accepted: 08/31/2018] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Heterozygous mutations of the Forkhead-box protein 2 (FOXP2) gene in humans cause childhood apraxia of speech. Loss of Foxp2 in mice is known to affect striatal development and impair motor skills. However, it is unknown if striatal excitatory/inhibitory balance is affected during development and if the imbalance persists into adulthood. We investigated the effect of reduced Foxp2 expression, via a loss-of-function mutation, on striatal medium spiny neurons (MSNs). Our data show that heterozygous loss of Foxp2 decreases excitatory (AMPA receptor-mediated) and increases inhibitory (GABA receptor-mediated) currents in D1 dopamine receptor positive MSNs of juvenile and adult mice. Furthermore, reduced Foxp2 expression increases GAD67 expression, leading to both increased presynaptic content and release of GABA. Finally, pharmacological blockade of inhibitory activity in vivo partially rescues motor skill learning deficits in heterozygous Foxp2 mice. Our results suggest a novel role for Foxp2 in the regulation of striatal direct pathway activity through managing inhibitory drive.
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Atkinson EG, Audesse AJ, Palacios JA, Bobo DM, Webb AE, Ramachandran S, Henn BM. No Evidence for Recent Selection at FOXP2 among Diverse Human Populations. Cell 2018; 174:1424-1435.e15. [PMID: 30078708 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2018.06.048] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2018] [Revised: 06/15/2018] [Accepted: 06/26/2018] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
FOXP2, initially identified for its role in human speech, contains two nonsynonymous substitutions derived in the human lineage. Evidence for a recent selective sweep in Homo sapiens, however, is at odds with the presence of these substitutions in archaic hominins. Here, we comprehensively reanalyze FOXP2 in hundreds of globally distributed genomes to test for recent selection. We do not find evidence of recent positive or balancing selection at FOXP2. Instead, the original signal appears to have been due to sample composition. Our tests do identify an intronic region that is enriched for highly conserved sites that are polymorphic among humans, compatible with a loss of function in humans. This region is lowly expressed in relevant tissue types that were tested via RNA-seq in human prefrontal cortex and RT-PCR in immortalized human brain cells. Our results represent a substantial revision to the adaptive history of FOXP2, a gene regarded as vital to human evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Amanda Jane Audesse
- Department of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and Biochemistry, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, USA; Neuroscience Graduate Program, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, USA
| | - Julia Adela Palacios
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Center for Computational Molecular Biology, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, USA; Department of Statistics and Department of Biomedical Data Science, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Dean Michael Bobo
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA
| | - Ashley Elizabeth Webb
- Department of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and Biochemistry, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, USA; Carney Institute for Brain Science, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, USA
| | - Sohini Ramachandran
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Center for Computational Molecular Biology, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, USA
| | - Brenna Mariah Henn
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA; Department of Anthropology and the Genome Center, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA.
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Moreno A, Limousin F, Dehaene S, Pallier C. Brain correlates of constituent structure in sign language comprehension. Neuroimage 2018; 167:151-161. [PMID: 29175202 PMCID: PMC6044420 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2017.11.040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2017] [Revised: 10/27/2017] [Accepted: 11/19/2017] [Indexed: 01/16/2023] Open
Abstract
During sentence processing, areas of the left superior temporal sulcus, inferior frontal gyrus and left basal ganglia exhibit a systematic increase in brain activity as a function of constituent size, suggesting their involvement in the computation of syntactic and semantic structures. Here, we asked whether these areas play a universal role in language and therefore contribute to the processing of non-spoken sign language. Congenitally deaf adults who acquired French sign language as a first language and written French as a second language were scanned while watching sequences of signs in which the size of syntactic constituents was manipulated. An effect of constituent size was found in the basal ganglia, including the head of the caudate and the putamen. A smaller effect was also detected in temporal and frontal regions previously shown to be sensitive to constituent size in written language in hearing French subjects (Pallier et al., 2011). When the deaf participants read sentences versus word lists, the same network of language areas was observed. While reading and sign language processing yielded identical effects of linguistic structure in the basal ganglia, the effect of structure was stronger in all cortical language areas for written language relative to sign language. Furthermore, cortical activity was partially modulated by age of acquisition and reading proficiency. Our results stress the important role of the basal ganglia, within the language network, in the representation of the constituent structure of language, regardless of the input modality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonio Moreno
- Cognitive Neuroimaging Unit, CEA, INSERM, Université Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, NeuroSpin Center, 91191 Gif/Yvette, France.
| | - Fanny Limousin
- Cognitive Neuroimaging Unit, CEA, INSERM, Université Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, NeuroSpin Center, 91191 Gif/Yvette, France
| | - Stanislas Dehaene
- Cognitive Neuroimaging Unit, CEA, INSERM, Université Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, NeuroSpin Center, 91191 Gif/Yvette, France; Collège de France, 11 Place Marcelin Berthelot, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Christophe Pallier
- Cognitive Neuroimaging Unit, CEA, INSERM, Université Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, NeuroSpin Center, 91191 Gif/Yvette, France.
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Raghanti MA, Edler MK, Stephenson AR, Munger EL, Jacobs B, Hof PR, Sherwood CC, Holloway RL, Lovejoy CO. A neurochemical hypothesis for the origin of hominids. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2018; 115:E1108-E1116. [PMID: 29358369 PMCID: PMC5819450 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1719666115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
It has always been difficult to account for the evolution of certain human characters such as language, empathy, and altruism via individual reproductive success. However, the striatum, a subcortical region originally thought to be exclusively motor, is now known to contribute to social behaviors and "personality styles" that may link such complexities with natural selection. We here report that the human striatum exhibits a unique neurochemical profile that differs dramatically from those of other primates. The human signature of elevated striatal dopamine, serotonin, and neuropeptide Y, coupled with lowered acetylcholine, systematically favors externally driven behavior and greatly amplifies sensitivity to social cues that promote social conformity, empathy, and altruism. We propose that selection induced an initial form of this profile in early hominids, which increased their affiliative behavior, and that this shift either preceded or accompanied the adoption of bipedality and elimination of the sectorial canine. We further hypothesize that these changes were critical for increased individual fitness and promoted the adoption of social monogamy, which progressively increased cooperation as well as a dependence on tradition-based cultural transmission. These eventually facilitated the acquisition of language by elevating the reproductive advantage afforded those most sensitive to social cues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mary Ann Raghanti
- Department of Anthropology, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242;
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242
| | - Melissa K Edler
- Department of Anthropology, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Northeast Ohio Medical University, Rootstown, OH 44272
| | - Alexa R Stephenson
- Department of Anthropology, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242
| | - Emily L Munger
- Department of Anthropology, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242
| | - Bob Jacobs
- Laboratory of Quantitative Neuromorphology, Department of Psychology, Colorado College, Colorado Springs, CO 80903
| | - Patrick R Hof
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY 10024
| | - Chet C Sherwood
- Department of Anthropology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052
- Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052
| | - Ralph L Holloway
- Department of Anthropology, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027
| | - C Owen Lovejoy
- Department of Anthropology, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242;
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242
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Herrero MJ, Gitton Y. The untold stories of the speech gene, the FOXP2 cancer gene. Genes Cancer 2018; 9:11-38. [PMID: 29725501 PMCID: PMC5931254 DOI: 10.18632/genesandcancer.169] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2018] [Accepted: 04/02/2018] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
FOXP2 encodes a transcription factor involved in speech and language acquisition. Growing evidence now suggests that dysregulated FOXP2 activity may also be instrumental in human oncogenesis, along the lines of other cardinal developmental transcription factors such as DLX5 and DLX6 [1-4]. Several FOXP familymembers are directly involved during cancer initiation, maintenance and progression in the adult [5-8]. This may comprise either a pro-oncogenic activity or a deficient tumor-suppressor role, depending upon cell types and associated signaling pathways. While FOXP2 is expressed in numerous cell types, its expression has been found to be down-regulated in breast cancer [9], hepatocellular carcinoma [8] and gastric cancer biopsies [10]. Conversely, overexpressed FOXP2 has been reported in multiple myelomas, MGUS (Monoclonal Gammopathy of Undetermined Significance), several subtypes of lymphomas [5,11], as well as in neuroblastomas [12] and ERG fusion-negative prostate cancers [13]. According to functional evidences reported in breast cancer [9] and survey of recent transcriptomic and proteomic analyses of different tumor biopsies, we postulate that FOXP2 dysregulation may play a main role throughout cancer initiation and progression. In some cancer conditions, FOXP2 levels are now considered as a critical diagnostic marker of neoplastic cells, and in many situations, they even bear strong prognostic value [5]. Whether FOXP2 may further become a therapeutic target is an actively explored lead. Knowledge reviewed here may help improve our understanding of FOXP2 roles during oncogenesis and provide cues for diagnostic, prognostic and therapeutic analyses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Jesus Herrero
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children's National Medical Center, NW, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Yorick Gitton
- Sorbonne University, INSERM, CNRS, Vision Institute Research Center, Paris, France
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Abstract
Humans are a remarkable species, especially because of the remarkable properties of their brain. Since the split from the chimpanzee lineage, the human brain has increased three-fold in size and has acquired abilities for vocal learning, language and intense cooperation. To better understand the molecular basis of these changes is of great biological and biomedical interest. However, all the about 16 million fixed genetic changes that occurred during human evolution are fully correlated with all molecular, cellular, anatomical and behavioral changes that occurred during this time. Hence, as humans and chimpanzees cannot be crossed or genetically manipulated, no direct evidence for linking particular genetic and molecular changes to human brain evolution can be obtained. Here, I sketch a framework how indirect evidence can be obtained and review findings related to the molecular basis of human cognition, vocal learning and brain size. In particular, I discuss how a comprehensive comparative approach, leveraging cellular systems and genomic technologies, could inform the evolution of our brain in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wolfgang Enard
- Department of Biology II, Ludwig Maximilian University Munich, Grosshaderner Str. 2, D-82152 Martinsried, Germany.
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Crespi B, Read S, Hurd P. Segregating polymorphisms of FOXP2 are associated with measures of inner speech, speech fluency and strength of handedness in a healthy population. BRAIN AND LANGUAGE 2017; 173:33-40. [PMID: 28609679 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandl.2017.06.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2017] [Revised: 05/16/2017] [Accepted: 06/03/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
We genotyped a healthy population for three haplotype-tagging FOXP2 SNPs, and tested for associations of these SNPs with strength of handedness and questionnaire-based metrics of inner speech characteristics (ISP) and speech fluency (FLU), as derived from the Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire-BR. Levels of mixed-handedness were positively correlated with ISP and FLU, supporting prior work on these two domains. Genotype for rs7799109, a SNP previously linked with lateralization of left frontal regions underlying language, was associated with degree of mixed handedness and with scores for ISP and FLU phenotypes. Genotype of rs1456031, which has previously been linked with auditory hallucinations, was also associated with ISP phenotypes. These results provide evidence that FOXP2 SNPs influence aspects of human inner speech and fluency that are related to lateralized phenotypes, and suggest that the evolution of human language, as mediated by the adaptive evolution of FOXP2, involved features of inner speech.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bernard Crespi
- Department of Biological Sciences, 8888 University Drive, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia V5A 1S6, Canada.
| | - Silven Read
- Department of Biological Sciences, 8888 University Drive, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia V5A 1S6, Canada
| | - Peter Hurd
- Department of Psychology and Centre for Neuroscience, University of Alberta, Edmonton T6G 2R3, Canada
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Oswald F, Klöble P, Ruland A, Rosenkranz D, Hinz B, Butter F, Ramljak S, Zechner U, Herlyn H. The FOXP2-Driven Network in Developmental Disorders and Neurodegeneration. Front Cell Neurosci 2017; 11:212. [PMID: 28798667 PMCID: PMC5526973 DOI: 10.3389/fncel.2017.00212] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2017] [Accepted: 07/04/2017] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The transcription repressor FOXP2 is a crucial player in nervous system evolution and development of humans and songbirds. In order to provide an additional insight into its functional role we compared target gene expression levels between human neuroblastoma cells (SH-SY5Y) stably overexpressing FOXP2 cDNA of either humans or the common chimpanzee, Rhesus monkey, and marmoset, respectively. RNA-seq led to identification of 27 genes with differential regulation under the control of human FOXP2, which were previously reported to have FOXP2-driven and/or songbird song-related expression regulation. RT-qPCR and Western blotting indicated differential regulation of additional 13 new target genes in response to overexpression of human FOXP2. These genes may be directly regulated by FOXP2 considering numerous matches of established FOXP2-binding motifs as well as publicly available FOXP2-ChIP-seq reads within their putative promoters. Ontology analysis of the new and reproduced targets, along with their interactors in a network, revealed an enrichment of terms relating to cellular signaling and communication, metabolism and catabolism, cellular migration and differentiation, and expression regulation. Notably, terms including the words "neuron" or "axonogenesis" were also enriched. Complementary literature screening uncovered many connections to human developmental (autism spectrum disease, schizophrenia, Down syndrome, agenesis of corpus callosum, trismus-pseudocamptodactyly, ankyloglossia, facial dysmorphology) and neurodegenerative diseases and disorders (Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and Huntington's diseases, Lewy body dementia, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). Links to deafness and dyslexia were detected, too. Such relations existed for single proteins (e.g., DCDC2, NURR1, PHOX2B, MYH8, and MYH13) and groups of proteins which conjointly function in mRNA processing, ribosomal recruitment, cell-cell adhesion (e.g., CDH4), cytoskeleton organization, neuro-inflammation, and processing of amyloid precursor protein. Conspicuously, many links pointed to an involvement of the FOXP2-driven network in JAK/STAT signaling and the regulation of the ezrin-radixin-moesin complex. Altogether, the applied phylogenetic perspective substantiated FOXP2's importance for nervous system development, maintenance, and functioning. However, the study also disclosed new regulatory pathways that might prove to be useful for understanding the molecular background of the aforementioned developmental disorders and neurodegenerative diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Franz Oswald
- Center for Internal Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine I, University Medical Center UlmUlm, Germany
| | - Patricia Klöble
- Center for Internal Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine I, University Medical Center UlmUlm, Germany
| | - André Ruland
- Center for Internal Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine I, University Medical Center UlmUlm, Germany
| | - David Rosenkranz
- Institut für Organismische und Molekulare Evolutionsbiologie, Johannes Gutenberg-University MainzMainz, Germany
| | - Bastian Hinz
- Institut für Organismische und Molekulare Evolutionsbiologie, Johannes Gutenberg-University MainzMainz, Germany
- Institute of Human Genetics, University Medical Center MainzMainz, Germany
| | - Falk Butter
- Institute of Molecular BiologyMainz, Germany
| | | | - Ulrich Zechner
- Institute of Human Genetics, University Medical Center MainzMainz, Germany
- Dr. Senckenbergisches Zentrum für HumangenetikFrankfurt, Germany
| | - Holger Herlyn
- Institut für Organismische und Molekulare Evolutionsbiologie, Johannes Gutenberg-University MainzMainz, Germany
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Ebisu H, Iwai-Takekoshi L, Fujita-Jimbo E, Momoi T, Kawasaki H. Foxp2 Regulates Identities and Projection Patterns of Thalamic Nuclei During Development. Cereb Cortex 2017; 27:3648-3659. [PMID: 27384060 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhw187] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The molecular mechanisms underlying the formation of the thalamus during development have been investigated intensively. Although transcription factors distinguishing the thalamic primordium from adjacent brain structures have been uncovered, those involved in patterning inside the thalamus are largely unclear. Here, we show that Foxp2, a member of the forkhead transcription factor family, regulates thalamic patterning during development. We found a graded expression pattern of Foxp2 in the thalamic primordium of the mouse embryo. The expression levels of Foxp2 were high in the posterior region and low in the anterior region of the thalamic primordium. In Foxp2 (R552H) knockin mice, which have a missense loss-of-function mutation in the forkhead domain of Foxp2, thalamic nuclei of the posterior region of the thalamus were shrunken, while those of the intermediate region were expanded. Consistently, Foxp2 (R552H) knockin mice showed changes in thalamocortical projection patterns. Our results uncovered important roles of Foxp2 in thalamic patterning and thalamocortical projections during development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haruka Ebisu
- Department of Medical Neuroscience, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kanazawa University, Ishikawa 920-8640, Japan
- Brain/Liver Interface Medicine Research Center, Kanazawa University, Ishikawa 920-8640, Japan
- Department of Neurology, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
- Department of Molecular and Systems Neurobiology, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Lena Iwai-Takekoshi
- Department of Molecular and Systems Neurobiology, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Eriko Fujita-Jimbo
- Department of Pediatrics, Jichi Medical University, Tochigi 329-0498, Japan
| | - Takashi Momoi
- Department of Pathophysiology, Tokyo Medical University, Tokyo 160-8402, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Kawasaki
- Department of Medical Neuroscience, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kanazawa University, Ishikawa 920-8640, Japan
- Brain/Liver Interface Medicine Research Center, Kanazawa University, Ishikawa 920-8640, Japan
- Department of Molecular and Systems Neurobiology, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
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Usui N, Co M, Harper M, Rieger MA, Dougherty JD, Konopka G. Sumoylation of FOXP2 Regulates Motor Function and Vocal Communication Through Purkinje Cell Development. Biol Psychiatry 2017; 81:220-230. [PMID: 27009683 PMCID: PMC4983264 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2016.02.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2015] [Revised: 01/29/2016] [Accepted: 02/01/2016] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Mutations in the gene encoding the transcription factor forkhead box P2 (FOXP2) result in brain developmental abnormalities, including reduced gray matter in both human patients and rodent models and speech and language deficits. However, neither the region-specific function of FOXP2 in the brain, in particular the cerebellum, nor the effects of any posttranslational modifications of FOXP2 in the brain and disorders have been explored. METHODS We characterized sumoylation of FOXP2 biochemically and analyzed the region-specific function and sumoylation of FOXP2 in the developing mouse cerebellum. Using in utero electroporation to manipulate the sumoylation state of FOXP2 as well as Foxp2 expression levels in Purkinje cells of the cerebellum in vivo, we reduced Foxp2 expression approximately 40% in the mouse cerebellum. Such a reduction approximates the haploinsufficiency observed in human patients who demonstrate speech and language impairments. RESULTS We identified sumoylation of FOXP2 at K674 (K673 in mice) in the cerebellum of neonates. In vitro co-immunoprecipitation and in vivo colocalization experiments suggest that PIAS3 acts as the small ubiquitin-like modifier E3 ligase for FOXP2 sumoylation. This sumoylation modifies transcriptional regulation by FOXP2. We demonstrated that FOXP2 sumoylation is required for regulation of cerebellar motor function and vocal communication, likely through dendritic outgrowth and arborization of Purkinje cells in the mouse cerebellum. CONCLUSIONS Sumoylation of FOXP2 in neonatal mouse cerebellum regulates Purkinje cell development and motor functions and vocal communication, demonstrating evidence for sumoylation in regulating mammalian behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noriyoshi Usui
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-911, USA
| | - Marissa Co
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-911, USA
| | - Matthew Harper
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-911, USA
| | - Michael A. Rieger
- Department of Genetics and Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Joseph D. Dougherty
- Department of Genetics and Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Genevieve Konopka
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas.
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Estruch SB, Graham SA, Chinnappa SM, Deriziotis P, Fisher SE. Functional characterization of rare FOXP2 variants in neurodevelopmental disorder. J Neurodev Disord 2016; 8:44. [PMID: 27933109 PMCID: PMC5126810 DOI: 10.1186/s11689-016-9177-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2016] [Accepted: 11/08/2016] [Indexed: 01/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Heterozygous disruption of FOXP2 causes a rare form of speech and language impairment. Screens of the FOXP2 sequence in individuals with speech/language-related disorders have identified several rare protein-altering variants, but their phenotypic relevance is often unclear. FOXP2 encodes a transcription factor with a forkhead box DNA-binding domain, but little is known about the functions of protein regions outside this domain. Methods We performed detailed functional analyses of seven rare FOXP2 variants found in affected cases, including three which have not been previously characterized, testing intracellular localization, transcriptional regulation, dimerization, and interaction with other proteins. To shed further light on molecular functions of FOXP2, we characterized the interaction between this transcription factor and co-repressor proteins of the C-terminal binding protein (CTBP) family. Finally, we analysed the functional significance of the polyglutamine tracts in FOXP2, since tract length variations have been reported in cases of neurodevelopmental disorder. Results We confirmed etiological roles of multiple FOXP2 variants. Of three variants that have been suggested to cause speech/language disorder, but never before been characterized, only one showed functional effects. For the other two, we found no effects on protein function in any assays, suggesting that they are incidental to the phenotype. We identified a CTBP-binding region within the N-terminal portion of FOXP2. This region includes two amino acid substitutions that occurred on the human lineage following the split from chimpanzees. However, we did not observe any effects of these amino acid changes on CTBP binding or other core aspects of FOXP2 function. Finally, we found that FOXP2 variants with reduced polyglutamine tracts did not exhibit altered behaviour in cellular assays, indicating that such tracts are non-essential for core aspects of FOXP2 function, and that tract variation is unlikely to be a highly penetrant cause of speech/language disorder. Conclusions Our findings highlight the importance of functional characterization of novel rare variants in FOXP2 in assessing the contribution of such variants to speech/language disorder and provide further insights into the molecular function of the FOXP2 protein. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s11689-016-9177-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara B Estruch
- Language and Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Wundtlaan 1, 6525 XD Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Sarah A Graham
- Language and Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Wundtlaan 1, 6525 XD Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Swathi M Chinnappa
- Language and Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Wundtlaan 1, 6525 XD Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Pelagia Deriziotis
- Language and Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Wundtlaan 1, 6525 XD Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Simon E Fisher
- Language and Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Wundtlaan 1, 6525 XD Nijmegen, the Netherlands.,Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, 6525 EN Nijmegen, the Netherlands
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Meredith LJ, Wang CM, Nascimento L, Liu R, Wang L, Yang WH. The Key Regulator for Language and Speech Development, FOXP2, is a Novel Substrate for SUMOylation. J Cell Biochem 2016. [PMID: 26212494 DOI: 10.1002/jcb.25288] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Transcription factor forkhead box protein P2 (FOXP2) plays an essential role in the development of language and speech. However, the transcriptional activity of FOXP2 regulated by the post-translational modifications remains unknown. Here, we demonstrated that FOXP2 is clearly defined as a SUMO target protein at the cellular levels as FOXP2 is covalently modified by both SUMO1 and SUMO3. Furthermore, SUMOylation of FOXP2 was significantly decreased by SENP2 (a specific SUMOylation protease). We further showed that FOXP2 is selectively SUMOylated in vivo on a phylogenetically conserved lysine 674 but the SUMOylation does not alter subcellular localization and stability of FOXP2. Interestingly, we observed that human etiological FOXP2 R553H mutation robustly reduces its SUMOylation potential as compared to wild-type FOXP2. In addition, the acidic residues downstream the core SUMO motif on FOXP2 are required for its full SUMOylation capacity. Finally, our functional analysis using reporter gene assays showed that SUMOylation may modulate transcriptional activity of FOXP2 in regulating downstream target genes (DISC1, SRPX2, and MiR200c). Altogether, we provide the first evidence that FOXP2 is a substrate for SUMOylation and SUMOylation of FOXP2 plays a functional role in regulating its transcriptional activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leslie J Meredith
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Mercer University School of Medicine, Savannah, Georgia 30404
| | - Chiung-Min Wang
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Mercer University School of Medicine, Savannah, Georgia 30404
| | - Leticia Nascimento
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Mercer University School of Medicine, Savannah, Georgia 30404
| | - Runhua Liu
- Department of Genetics and Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama 35294
| | - Lizhong Wang
- Department of Genetics and Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama 35294
| | - Wei-Hsiung Yang
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Mercer University School of Medicine, Savannah, Georgia 30404
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Kita T, Shigematsu N, Kita H. Intralaminar and tectal projections to the subthalamus in the rat. Eur J Neurosci 2016; 44:2899-2908. [PMID: 27717088 PMCID: PMC5157720 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.13413] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2016] [Revised: 09/19/2016] [Accepted: 09/21/2016] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Projections from the posterior intralaminar thalamic nuclei and the superior colliculus (SC) to the subthalamic nucleus (STN) and the zona incerta (ZI) have been described in the primate and rodent. The aims of this study was to investigate several questions on these projections, using modern neurotracing techniques in rats, to advance our understanding of the role of STN and ZI. We examined whether projection patterns to the subthlamus can be used to identify homologues of the primate centromedian (CM) and the parafascicular nucleus (Pf) in the rodent, the topography of the projection including what percent of intralaminar neurons participate in the projections, and electron microscopic examination of intralaminar synaptic boutons in STN. The aim on the SC‐subthalamic projection was to examine whether STN is the main target of the projection. This study revealed: (i) the areas similar to primate CM and Pf could be recognized in the rat; (ii) the Pf‐like area sends a very heavy topographically organized projection to STN but very sparse projection to ZI, which suggested that Pf might control basal ganglia function through STN; (iii) the projection from the CM‐like area to the subthalamus was very sparse; (iv) Pf boutons and randomly sampled asymmetrical synapses had similar distributions on the dendrites of STN neurons; and (v) the lateral part of the deep layers of SC sends a very heavy projection to ZI and moderate to sparse projection to limited parts of STN, suggesting that SC is involved in a limited control of basal ganglia function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Takako Kita
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, College of Medicine, The University of Tennessee Health Science Center, 855 Monroe Avenue, Memphis, TN, 38163, USA
| | - Naoki Shigematsu
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Graduate School of Life Sciences, Kumamoto University, Kumamoto, Japan
| | - Hitoshi Kita
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, College of Medicine, The University of Tennessee Health Science Center, 855 Monroe Avenue, Memphis, TN, 38163, USA
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Raghanti MA, Edler MK, Stephenson AR, Wilson LJ, Hopkins WD, Ely JJ, Erwin JM, Jacobs B, Hof PR, Sherwood CC. Human-specific increase of dopaminergic innervation in a striatal region associated with speech and language: A comparative analysis of the primate basal ganglia. J Comp Neurol 2016; 524:2117-29. [PMID: 26715195 PMCID: PMC4860035 DOI: 10.1002/cne.23937] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2015] [Accepted: 11/22/2015] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
The dopaminergic innervation of the striatum has been implicated in learning processes and in the development of human speech and language. Several lines of evidence suggest that evolutionary changes in dopaminergic afferents of the striatum may be associated with uniquely human cognitive and behavioral abilities, including the association of the human-specific sequence of the FOXP2 gene with decreased dopamine in the dorsomedial striatum of mice. To examine this possibility, we quantified the density of tyrosine hydroxylase-immunoreactive axons as a measure of dopaminergic innervation within five basal ganglia regions in humans, great apes, and New and Old World monkeys. Our results indicate that humans differ from nonhuman primate species in having a significant increase in dopaminergic innervation selectively localized to the medial caudate nucleus. This region of the striatum is highly interconnected, receiving afferents from multiple neocortical regions, and supports behavioral and cognitive flexibility. The medial caudate nucleus also shows hyperactivity in humans lacking a functional FOXP2 allele and exhibits altered dopamine concentrations in humanized Foxp2 mice. Additionally, striatal dopaminergic input was not altered in chimpanzees that used socially learned attention-getting sounds versus those that did not. This evidence indicates that the increase in dopamine innervation of the medial caudate nucleus in humans is a species-typical characteristic not associated with experience-dependent plasticity. The specificity of this increase may be related to the degree of convergence from cortical areas within this region of the striatum and may also be involved in human speech and language. J. Comp. Neurol. 524:2117-2129, 2016. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mary Ann Raghanti
- Department of Anthropology, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242, USA
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242, USA
| | - Melissa K. Edler
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242, USA
| | | | - Lakaléa J. Wilson
- Department of Anthropology, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242, USA
| | - William D. Hopkins
- Division of Developmental and Cognitive Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | | | - Joseph M. Erwin
- Department of Anthropology and Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052 USA
- California National Primate Research Center, University of California, Davis
| | - Bob Jacobs
- Laboratory of Quantitative Neuromorphology, Psychology, Colorado College, Colorado Springs, CO 80903, USA
| | - Patrick R. Hof
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY 10024, USA
| | - Chet C. Sherwood
- Department of Anthropology and Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052 USA
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40
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Galazo MJ, Emsley JG, Macklis JD. Corticothalamic Projection Neuron Development beyond Subtype Specification: Fog2 and Intersectional Controls Regulate Intraclass Neuronal Diversity. Neuron 2016; 91:90-106. [PMID: 27321927 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2016.05.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2014] [Revised: 03/16/2016] [Accepted: 05/16/2016] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Corticothalamic projection neurons (CThPN) are a diverse set of neurons, critical for function of the neocortex. CThPN development and diversity need to be precisely regulated, but little is known about molecular controls over their differentiation and functional specialization, critically limiting understanding of cortical development and complexity. We report the identification of a set of genes that both define CThPN and likely control their differentiation, diversity, and function. We selected the CThPN-specific transcriptional coregulator Fog2 for functional analysis. We identify that Fog2 controls CThPN molecular differentiation, axonal targeting, and diversity, in part by regulating the expression level of Ctip2 by CThPN, via combinatorial interactions with other molecular controls. Loss of Fog2 specifically disrupts differentiation of subsets of CThPN specialized in motor function, indicating that Fog2 coordinates subtype and functional-area differentiation. These results confirm that we identified key controls over CThPN development and identify Fog2 as a critical control over CThPN diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria J Galazo
- Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, Center for Brain Science, and Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Jason G Emsley
- Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, Center for Brain Science, and Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Jeffrey D Macklis
- Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, Center for Brain Science, and Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA.
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41
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Zimmerman E, Maron JL. FOXP2 gene deletion and infant feeding difficulties: a case report. Cold Spring Harb Mol Case Stud 2016; 2:a000547. [PMID: 27148578 PMCID: PMC4849845 DOI: 10.1101/mcs.a000547] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Forkhead box protein P2 (FOXP2) is a well-studied gene known to play an essential role in normal speech development. Deletions in the gene have been shown to result in developmental speech disorders and regulatory disruption of downstream gene targets associated with common forms of language impairments. Despite similarities in motor planning and execution between speech development and oral feeding competence, there have been no reports to date linking deletions within the FOXP2 gene to oral feeding impairments in the newborn. The patient was a nondysmorphic, appropriately and symmetrically grown male infant born at 35-wk gestational age. He had a prolonged neonatal intensive care unit stay because of persistent oral feeding incoordination requiring gastrostomy tube placement. Cardiac and neurological imagings were within normal limits. A microarray analysis found an ∼9-kb loss within chromosome band 7q3.1 that contains exon 2 of FOXP2, demonstrating a single copy of this region instead of the normal two copies per diploid gene. This case study expands our current understanding of the role FOXP2 exerts on motor planning and coordination necessary for both oral feeding success and speech–language development. This case report has important consequences for future diagnosis and treatment for infants with FOXP2 deletions, mutations, and varying levels of gene expression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily Zimmerman
- Northeastern University, Department of Communication Sciences & Disorders, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA
| | - Jill L Maron
- Mother Infant Research Institute, Tufts Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts 02111, USA
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Zimmerman E, Maki M, Maron J. Salivary FOXP2 expression and oral feeding success in premature infants. Cold Spring Harb Mol Case Stud 2016; 2:a000554. [PMID: 27148579 PMCID: PMC4849846 DOI: 10.1101/mcs.a000554] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
The objective of the study is to determine whether salivary FOXP2 gene expression levels at the initiation of oral feeding attempts are predictive of oral feeding success in the premature newborn. In this prospective study, saliva samples from 21 premature infants (13 males; birth gestational age [GA]: 30–34 wk) were collected around the initiation of oral feeding trials. Total RNA was extracted and underwent reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction amplification for FOXP2. Oral feeding success was denoted by the days required to attain full oral feeds. A linear regression model, controlling for sex, birth GA, and weight at salivary collection, revealed that FOXP2 expression was significantly associated with oral feeding success (P = 0.002). The higher the expression level of FOXP2, the shorter the duration to feed. Salivary FOXP2 expression levels are significantly associated with oral feeding success in the preterm infant. FOXP2 may serve as a novel and informative biomarker to noninvasively assess infant feeding skills to reduce morbidities and length of stay.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily Zimmerman
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA
| | - Monika Maki
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA
| | - Jill Maron
- Mother Infant Research Institute, Tufts Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts 02111, USA
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de Freitas GB, Gonçalves RA, Gralle M. Functional test of PCDHB11, the most human-specific neuronal surface protein. BMC Evol Biol 2016; 16:75. [PMID: 27068704 PMCID: PMC4828864 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-016-0652-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2016] [Accepted: 04/06/2016] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Brain-expressed proteins that have undergone functional change during human evolution may contribute to human cognitive capacities, and may also leave us vulnerable to specifically human diseases, such as schizophrenia, autism or Alzheimer’s disease. In order to search systematically for those proteins that have changed the most during human evolution and that might contribute to brain function and pathology, all proteins with orthologs in chimpanzee, orangutan and rhesus macaque and annotated as being expressed on the surface of cells in the human central nervous system were ordered by the number of human-specific amino acid differences that are fixed in modern populations. Results PCDHB11, a beta-protocadherin homologous to murine cell adhesion proteins, stood out with 12 substitutions and maintained its lead after normalizing for protein size and applying weights for amino acid exchange probabilities. Human PCDHB11 was found to cause homophilic cell adhesion, but at lower levels than shown for other clustered protocadherins. Homophilic adhesion caused by a PCDHB11 with reversion of human-specific changes was as low as for modern human PCDHB11; while neither human nor reverted PCDHB11 adhered to controls, they did adhere to each other. A loss of function in PCDHB11 is unlikely because intra-human variability did not increase relative to the other human beta-protocadherins. Conclusions The brain-expressed protein with the highest number of human-specific substitutions is PCDHB11. In spite of its fast evolution and low intra-human variability, cell-based tests on the only proposed function for PCDHB11 did not indicate a functional change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guilherme Braga de Freitas
- Instituto de Bioquímica Médica Leopoldo de Meis, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Rafaella Araújo Gonçalves
- Instituto de Bioquímica Médica Leopoldo de Meis, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Matthias Gralle
- Instituto de Bioquímica Médica Leopoldo de Meis, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
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Mueller KL, Murray JC, Michaelson JJ, Christiansen MH, Reilly S, Tomblin JB. Common Genetic Variants in FOXP2 Are Not Associated with Individual Differences in Language Development. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0152576. [PMID: 27064276 PMCID: PMC4827837 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0152576] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2015] [Accepted: 03/16/2016] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Much of our current knowledge regarding the association of FOXP2 with speech and language development comes from singleton and small family studies where a small number of rare variants have been identified. However, neither genome-wide nor gene-specific studies have provided evidence that common polymorphisms in the gene contribute to individual differences in language development in the general population. One explanation for this inconsistency is that previous studies have been limited to relatively small samples of individuals with low language abilities, using low density gene coverage. The current study examined the association between common variants in FOXP2 and a quantitative measure of language ability in a population-based cohort of European decent (n = 812). No significant associations were found for a panel of 13 SNPs that covered the coding region of FOXP2 and extended into the promoter region. Power analyses indicated we should have been able to detect a QTL variance of 0.02 for an associated allele with MAF of 0.2 or greater with 80% power. This suggests that, if a common variant associated with language ability in this gene does exist, it is likely of small effect. Our findings lead us to conclude that while genetic variants in FOXP2 may be significant for rare forms of language impairment, they do not contribute appreciably to individual variation in the normal range as found in the general population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathryn L. Mueller
- Hearing, Language and Literacy, Murdoch Childrens Institute, Melbourne, Australia
- Dept. of Communication Sciences and Disorders, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, United States of America
| | - Jeffrey C. Murray
- Dept. of Pediatrics, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, United States of America
| | - Jacob J. Michaelson
- Dept. of Psychiatry, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, United States of America
| | | | | | - J. Bruce Tomblin
- Dept. of Communication Sciences and Disorders, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, United States of America
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45
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van Rhijn JR, Vernes SC. Retinoic Acid Signaling: A New Piece in the Spoken Language Puzzle. Front Psychol 2015; 6:1816. [PMID: 26635706 PMCID: PMC4660430 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01816] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2015] [Accepted: 11/10/2015] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
Speech requires precise motor control and rapid sequencing of highly complex vocal musculature. Despite its complexity, most people produce spoken language effortlessly. This is due to activity in distributed neuronal circuitry including cortico-striato-thalamic loops that control speech–motor output. Understanding the neuro-genetic mechanisms involved in the correct development and function of these pathways will shed light on how humans can effortlessly and innately use spoken language and help to elucidate what goes wrong in speech-language disorders. FOXP2 was the first single gene identified to cause speech and language disorder. Individuals with FOXP2 mutations display a severe speech deficit that includes receptive and expressive language impairments. The neuro-molecular mechanisms controlled by FOXP2 will give insight into our capacity for speech–motor control, but are only beginning to be unraveled. Recently FOXP2 was found to regulate genes involved in retinoic acid (RA) signaling and to modify the cellular response to RA, a key regulator of brain development. Here we explore evidence that FOXP2 and RA function in overlapping pathways. We summate evidence at molecular, cellular, and behavioral levels that suggest an interplay between FOXP2 and RA that may be important for fine motor control and speech–motor output. We propose RA signaling is an exciting new angle from which to investigate how neuro-genetic mechanisms can contribute to the (spoken) language ready brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jon-Ruben van Rhijn
- Department of Language and Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics Nijmegen, Netherlands ; Molecular Neurophysiology Group, Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboud University Medical Center Nijmegen, Netherlands
| | - Sonja C Vernes
- Department of Language and Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics Nijmegen, Netherlands ; Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Nijmegen, Netherlands
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46
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Christiansen MH, Chater N. The language faculty that wasn't: a usage-based account of natural language recursion. Front Psychol 2015; 6:1182. [PMID: 26379567 PMCID: PMC4550780 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01182] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2015] [Accepted: 07/27/2015] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
In the generative tradition, the language faculty has been shrinking—perhaps to include only the mechanism of recursion. This paper argues that even this view of the language faculty is too expansive. We first argue that a language faculty is difficult to reconcile with evolutionary considerations. We then focus on recursion as a detailed case study, arguing that our ability to process recursive structure does not rely on recursion as a property of the grammar, but instead emerges gradually by piggybacking on domain-general sequence learning abilities. Evidence from genetics, comparative work on non-human primates, and cognitive neuroscience suggests that humans have evolved complex sequence learning skills, which were subsequently pressed into service to accommodate language. Constraints on sequence learning therefore have played an important role in shaping the cultural evolution of linguistic structure, including our limited abilities for processing recursive structure. Finally, we re-evaluate some of the key considerations that have often been taken to require the postulation of a language faculty.
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Affiliation(s)
- Morten H Christiansen
- Department of Psychology, Cornell University Ithaca, NY, USA ; Department of Language and Communication, University of Southern Denmark Odense, Denmark ; Haskins Laboratories New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Nick Chater
- Behavioural Science Group, Warwick Business School, University of Warwick Coventry, UK
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47
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Christiansen MH, Chater N. The language faculty that wasn't: a usage-based account of natural language recursion. Front Psychol 2015; 6:1182. [PMID: 26379567 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg2015.01182] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2015] [Accepted: 07/27/2015] [Indexed: 05/28/2023] Open
Abstract
In the generative tradition, the language faculty has been shrinking-perhaps to include only the mechanism of recursion. This paper argues that even this view of the language faculty is too expansive. We first argue that a language faculty is difficult to reconcile with evolutionary considerations. We then focus on recursion as a detailed case study, arguing that our ability to process recursive structure does not rely on recursion as a property of the grammar, but instead emerges gradually by piggybacking on domain-general sequence learning abilities. Evidence from genetics, comparative work on non-human primates, and cognitive neuroscience suggests that humans have evolved complex sequence learning skills, which were subsequently pressed into service to accommodate language. Constraints on sequence learning therefore have played an important role in shaping the cultural evolution of linguistic structure, including our limited abilities for processing recursive structure. Finally, we re-evaluate some of the key considerations that have often been taken to require the postulation of a language faculty.
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Affiliation(s)
- Morten H Christiansen
- Department of Psychology, Cornell University Ithaca, NY, USA ; Department of Language and Communication, University of Southern Denmark Odense, Denmark ; Haskins Laboratories New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Nick Chater
- Behavioural Science Group, Warwick Business School, University of Warwick Coventry, UK
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48
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Hammerschmidt K, Schreiweis C, Minge C, Pääbo S, Fischer J, Enard W. A humanized version of Foxp2 does not affect ultrasonic vocalization in adult mice. GENES BRAIN AND BEHAVIOR 2015; 14:583-90. [PMID: 26250064 DOI: 10.1111/gbb.12237] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2015] [Revised: 07/29/2015] [Accepted: 07/29/2015] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
The transcription factor FOXP2 has been linked to severe speech and language impairments in humans. An analysis of the evolution of the FOXP2 gene has identified two amino acid substitutions that became fixed after the split of the human and chimpanzee lineages. Studying the functional consequences of these two substitutions in the endogenous Foxp2 gene of mice showed alterations in dopamine levels, striatal synaptic plasticity, neuronal morphology and cortico-striatal-dependent learning. In addition, ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) of pups had a significantly lower average pitch than control littermates. To which degree adult USVs would be affected in mice carrying the 'humanized' Foxp2 variant remained unclear. In this study, we analyzed USVs of 68 adult male mice uttered during repeated courtship encounters with different females. Mice carrying the Foxp2(hum/hum) allele did not differ significantly in the number of call elements, their element structure or in their element composition from control littermates. We conclude that neither the structure nor the usage of USVs in adult mice is affected by the two amino acid substitutions that occurred in FOXP2 during human evolution. The reported effect for pup vocalization thus appears to be transient. These results are in line with accumulating evidence that mouse USVs are hardly influenced by vocal learning. Hence, the function and evolution of genes that are necessary, but not sufficient for vocal learning in humans, must be either studied at a different phenotypic level in mice or in other organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- K Hammerschmidt
- Cognitive Ethology Laboratory, German Primate Center, Göttingen, Germany
| | - C Schreiweis
- Institut Necker-Enfants Malades (INEM), Centre de Médecine Moléculaire, CS Paris, France
| | - C Minge
- Cognitive Ethology Laboratory, German Primate Center, Göttingen, Germany
| | - S Pääbo
- Department of Evolutionary Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - J Fischer
- Cognitive Ethology Laboratory, German Primate Center, Göttingen, Germany
| | - W Enard
- Department of Biology II, Ludwig Maximilian University Munich, Martinsried, Germany
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Abstract
Studies in dopamine-depleted rats indicate that the external globus pallidus (GPe) contains two main types of GABAergic projection cell; so-called "prototypic" and "arkypallidal" neurons. Here, we used correlative anatomical and electrophysiological approaches in rats to determine whether and how this dichotomous organization applies to the dopamine-intact GPe. Prototypic neurons coexpressed the transcription factors Nkx2-1 and Lhx6, comprised approximately two-thirds of all GPe neurons, and were the major GPe cell type innervating the subthalamic nucleus (STN). In contrast, arkypallidal neurons expressed the transcription factor FoxP2, constituted just over one-fourth of GPe neurons, and innervated the striatum but not STN. In anesthetized dopamine-intact rats, molecularly identified prototypic neurons fired at relatively high rates and with high regularity, regardless of brain state (slow-wave activity or spontaneous activation). On average, arkypallidal neurons fired at lower rates and regularities than prototypic neurons, and the two cell types could be further distinguished by the temporal coupling of their firing to ongoing cortical oscillations. Complementing the activity differences observed in vivo, the autonomous firing of identified arkypallidal neurons in vitro was slower and more variable than that of prototypic neurons, which tallied with arkypallidal neurons displaying lower amplitudes of a "persistent" sodium current important for such pacemaking. Arkypallidal neurons also exhibited weaker driven and rebound firing compared with prototypic neurons. In conclusion, our data support the concept that a dichotomous functional organization, as actioned by arkypallidal and prototypic neurons with specialized molecular, structural, and physiological properties, is fundamental to the operations of the dopamine-intact GPe.
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50
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Balari S, Lorenzo G. It is an organ, it is new, but it is not a new organ. Conceptualizing language from a homological perspective. Front Ecol Evol 2015. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2015.00058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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