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Schijven D, Soheili-Nezhad S, Fisher SE, Francks C. Exome-wide analysis implicates rare protein-altering variants in human handedness. Nat Commun 2024; 15:2632. [PMID: 38565598 PMCID: PMC10987538 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-46277-w] [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: 07/21/2023] [Accepted: 02/20/2024] [Indexed: 04/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Handedness is a manifestation of brain hemispheric specialization. Left-handedness occurs at increased rates in neurodevelopmental disorders. Genome-wide association studies have identified common genetic effects on handedness or brain asymmetry, which mostly involve variants outside protein-coding regions and may affect gene expression. Implicated genes include several that encode tubulins (microtubule components) or microtubule-associated proteins. Here we examine whether left-handedness is also influenced by rare coding variants (frequencies ≤ 1%), using exome data from 38,043 left-handed and 313,271 right-handed individuals from the UK Biobank. The beta-tubulin gene TUBB4B shows exome-wide significant association, with a rate of rare coding variants 2.7 times higher in left-handers than right-handers. The TUBB4B variants are mostly heterozygous missense changes, but include two frameshifts found only in left-handers. Other TUBB4B variants have been linked to sensorineural and/or ciliopathic disorders, but not the variants found here. Among genes previously implicated in autism or schizophrenia by exome screening, DSCAM and FOXP1 show evidence for rare coding variant association with left-handedness. The exome-wide heritability of left-handedness due to rare coding variants was 0.91%. This study reveals a role for rare, protein-altering variants in left-handedness, providing further evidence for the involvement of microtubules and disorder-relevant genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dick Schijven
- Language & Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Sourena Soheili-Nezhad
- Language & Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Simon E Fisher
- Language & Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Clyde Francks
- Language & Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
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2
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Gerrits R, Vingerhoets G. Brain functional segregation, handedness and cognition in situs inversus totalis: A replication study. Neuropsychologia 2023; 191:108731. [PMID: 37949213 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2023.108731] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2023] [Revised: 10/04/2023] [Accepted: 11/06/2023] [Indexed: 11/12/2023]
Abstract
Situs inversus totalis (SIT) is a rare congenital anomaly in which the arrangement of the visceral organs is completely left-right mirrored. A previous study by our lab suggests that SIT (N = 15) correlated with more heterogeneous asymmetrical brain organization and increased left-handedness. In addition, visceral reversal correlated with poorer cognitive performance, especially when hemisphere organization was atypical. The current study sought to replicate these findings in a larger sample. We scanned 23 volunteers with SIT as well as an equal number of controls with usual organ arrangement, and used fMRI to determine their hemisphere dominance for two left hemisphere functions (language and manual praxis) and two right hemisphere functions (spatial attention and face recognition). Effects of SIT etiology were explored by pooling data from the original cohort with the replication sample. Our results reveal that each of those four cognitive functions demonstrated the expected population dominance in SIT, albeit they were less pronounced - but not significantly so - compared to controls. Unusual patterns of hemispheric crowding and mirror-reversal of functional brain organization was observed more often in SIT (48%) than in the controls (30%), but this difference also did not reach statistical significance. However, left-handedness was found to be significantly more common in SIT (26%) than in the overall population (10.6%). Finally, cognitive ability, as assessed by a neuropsychological test battery, was not associated with organ situs or hemisphere organization. Taken together, our data adds to the growing evidence that the determinants of visceral and neural asymmetries are largely independent from one another and that complete situs inversus does not co-occur with an obligatory transposition of the brain's functional architecture. There nevertheless might be instances in which (genetic) mechanisms could simultaneously cause complete visceral reversal and atypical brain laterality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robin Gerrits
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Guy Vingerhoets
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
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3
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Roe JM, Vidal-Pineiro D, Amlien IK, Pan M, Sneve MH, Thiebaut de Schotten M, Friedrich P, Sha Z, Francks C, Eilertsen EM, Wang Y, Walhovd KB, Fjell AM, Westerhausen R. Tracing the development and lifespan change of population-level structural asymmetry in the cerebral cortex. eLife 2023; 12:e84685. [PMID: 37335613 PMCID: PMC10368427 DOI: 10.7554/elife.84685] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2022] [Accepted: 06/16/2023] [Indexed: 06/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Cortical asymmetry is a ubiquitous feature of brain organization that is subtly altered in some neurodevelopmental disorders, yet we lack knowledge of how its development proceeds across life in health. Achieving consensus on the precise cortical asymmetries in humans is necessary to uncover the developmental timing of asymmetry and the extent to which it arises through genetic and later influences in childhood. Here, we delineate population-level asymmetry in cortical thickness and surface area vertex-wise in seven datasets and chart asymmetry trajectories longitudinally across life (4-89 years; observations = 3937; 70% longitudinal). We find replicable asymmetry interrelationships, heritability maps, and test asymmetry associations in large-scale data. Cortical asymmetry was robust across datasets. Whereas areal asymmetry is predominantly stable across life, thickness asymmetry grows in childhood and peaks in early adulthood. Areal asymmetry is low-moderately heritable (max h2SNP ~19%) and correlates phenotypically and genetically in specific regions, indicating coordinated development of asymmetries partly through genes. In contrast, thickness asymmetry is globally interrelated across the cortex in a pattern suggesting highly left-lateralized individuals tend towards left-lateralization also in population-level right-asymmetric regions (and vice versa), and exhibits low or absent heritability. We find less areal asymmetry in the most consistently lateralized region in humans associates with subtly lower cognitive ability, and confirm small handedness and sex effects. Results suggest areal asymmetry is developmentally stable and arises early in life through genetic but mainly subject-specific stochastic effects, whereas childhood developmental growth shapes thickness asymmetry and may lead to directional variability of global thickness lateralization in the population.
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Affiliation(s)
- James M Roe
- Center for Lifespan Changes in Brain and Cognition (LCBC), Department of Psychology, University of OsloOsloNorway
| | - Didac Vidal-Pineiro
- Center for Lifespan Changes in Brain and Cognition (LCBC), Department of Psychology, University of OsloOsloNorway
| | - Inge K Amlien
- Center for Lifespan Changes in Brain and Cognition (LCBC), Department of Psychology, University of OsloOsloNorway
| | - Mengyu Pan
- Center for Lifespan Changes in Brain and Cognition (LCBC), Department of Psychology, University of OsloOsloNorway
| | - Markus H Sneve
- Center for Lifespan Changes in Brain and Cognition (LCBC), Department of Psychology, University of OsloOsloNorway
| | - Michel Thiebaut de Schotten
- Groupe d'Imagerie Neurofonctionnelle, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives-UMR 5293, CNRS, CEA, University of BordeauxBordeauxFrance
- Brian Connectivity and Behaviour Laboratory, Sorbonne UniversityParisFrance
| | - Patrick Friedrich
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine, Research Centre JülichJülichGermany
| | - Zhiqiang Sha
- Language and Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for PsycholinguisticsNijmegenNetherlands
| | - Clyde Francks
- Language and Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for PsycholinguisticsNijmegenNetherlands
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud UniversityNijmegenNetherlands
- Department of Human Genetics, Radboud University Medical CenterNijmegenNetherlands
| | - Espen M Eilertsen
- PROMENTA Research Center, Department of Psychology, University of OsloOsloNorway
| | - Yunpeng Wang
- Center for Lifespan Changes in Brain and Cognition (LCBC), Department of Psychology, University of OsloOsloNorway
| | - Kristine B Walhovd
- Center for Lifespan Changes in Brain and Cognition (LCBC), Department of Psychology, University of OsloOsloNorway
- Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Oslo University HospitalOsloNorway
| | - Anders M Fjell
- Center for Lifespan Changes in Brain and Cognition (LCBC), Department of Psychology, University of OsloOsloNorway
- Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Oslo University HospitalOsloNorway
| | - René Westerhausen
- Section for Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, University of OsloOsloNorway
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4
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Richards G, Tan DW, Whitehouse AJO, Chris McManus I, Beaton AA, Hickey M, Maybery MT, Licari MK, Lawson L. A longitudinal examination of perinatal testosterone, estradiol and vitamin D as predictors of handedness outcomes in childhood and adolescence. Laterality 2022; 27:547-580. [PMID: 35938410 DOI: 10.1080/1357650x.2022.2109656] [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: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
The developmental origins of handedness remain elusive, though very early emergence suggests individual differences manifesting in utero could play an important role. Prenatal testosterone and Vitamin D exposure are considered, yet findings and interpretations remain equivocal. We examined n = 767 offspring from a population-based pregnancy cohort (The Raine Study) for whom early biological data and childhood/adolescent handedness data were available. We tested whether 18-week maternal circulatory Vitamin D (25[OH]D), and testosterone and estradiol from umbilical cord blood sampled at birth predicted variance in direction of hand preference (right/left), along with right- and left-hand speed, and the strength and direction of relative hand skill as measured by a finger-tapping task completed at 10 (Y10) and/or 16 (Y16) years. Although higher concentrations of Vitamin D predicted more leftward and less lateralized (regardless of direction) relative hand skill profiles, taken as a whole, statistically significant findings typically did not replicate across time-point (Y10/Y16) or sex (male/female) and were rarely detected across different (bivariate/multivariate) levels of analysis. Considering the number of statistical tests and generally inconsistent findings, our results suggest that perinatal testosterone and estradiol contribute minimally, if at all, to subsequent variance in handedness. Vitamin D, however, may be of interest in future studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gareth Richards
- School of Psychology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
| | - Diana Weiting Tan
- School of Psychological Science, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia.,Telethon Kids Institute, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia.,School of Education, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia
| | | | - I Chris McManus
- Research Department of Clinical, Education and Health Psychology, Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, Faculty of Brain Sciences, School of Life and Medical Sciences, University College London, London, UK.,Research Department for Medical Education, University College London Medical School, School of Life and Medical Sciences, University College London, London, UK
| | - Alan A Beaton
- Department of Psychology, School of Human & Health Sciences, Swansea University, Swansea, UK.,Department of Psychology, Aberystwyth University, Aberystwyth, UK
| | - Martha Hickey
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Melbourne and the Royal Women's Hospital, Victoria, Australia
| | - Murray T Maybery
- School of Psychological Science, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia
| | - Melissa K Licari
- Telethon Kids Institute, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia
| | - Lauren Lawson
- Olga Tennison Autism Research Centre, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia.,Cooperative Research Centre for Living with Autism (Autism CRC), Long Pocket, Brisbane, Australia
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5
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Pfeifer LS, Schmitz J, Papadatou-Pastou M, Peterburs J, Paracchini S, Ocklenburg S. Handedness in twins: meta-analyses. BMC Psychol 2022; 10:11. [PMID: 35033205 PMCID: PMC8760823 DOI: 10.1186/s40359-021-00695-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2021] [Accepted: 11/24/2021] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND In the general population, 10.6% of people favor their left hand over the right for motor tasks. Previous research suggests higher prevalence of atypical (left-, mixed-, or non-right-) handedness in (i) twins compared to singletons, and in (ii) monozygotic compared to dizygotic twins. Moreover, (iii) studies have shown a higher rate of handedness concordance in monozygotic compared to dizygotic twins, in line with genetic factors playing a role for handedness. METHODS By means of a systematic review, we identified 59 studies from previous literature and performed three sets of random effects meta-analyses on (i) twin-to-singleton Odds Ratios (21 studies, n = 189,422 individuals) and (ii) monozygotic-to-dizygotic twin Odds Ratios (48 studies, n = 63,295 individuals), both times for prevalence of left-, mixed-, and non-right-handedness. For monozygotic and dizygotic twin pairs we compared (iii) handedness concordance Odds Ratios (44 studies, n = 36,217 twin pairs). We also tested for potential effects of moderating variables, such as sex, age, the method used to assess handedness, and the twins' zygosity. RESULTS We found (i) evidence for higher prevalence of left- (Odds Ratio = 1.40, 95% Confidence Interval = [1.26, 1.57]) and non-right- (Odds Ratio = 1.36, 95% Confidence Interval = [1.22, 1.52]), but not mixed-handedness (Odds Ratio = 1.08, 95% Confidence Interval = [0.52, 2.27]) among twins compared to singletons. We further showed a decrease in Odds Ratios in more recent studies (post-1975: Odds Ratio = 1.30, 95% Confidence Interval = [1.17, 1.45]) compared to earlier studies (pre-1975: Odds Ratio = 1.90, 95% Confidence Interval = [1.59-2.27]). While there was (ii) no difference between monozygotic and dizygotic twins regarding prevalence of left- (Odds Ratio = 0.98, 95% Confidence Interval = [0.89, 1.07]), mixed- (Odds Ratio = 0.96, 95% Confidence Interval = [0.46, 1.99]), or non-right-handedness (Odds Ratio = 1.01, 95% Confidence Interval = [0.91, 1.12]), we found that (iii) handedness concordance was elevated among monozygotic compared to dizygotic twin pairs (Odds Ratio = 1.11, 95% Confidence Interval = [1.06, 1.18]). By means of moderator analyses, we did not find evidence for effects of potentially confounding variables. CONCLUSION We provide the largest and most comprehensive meta-analysis on handedness in twins. Although a raw, unadjusted analysis found a higher prevalence of left- and non-right-, but not mixed-handedness among twins compared to singletons, left-handedness was substantially more prevalent in earlier than in more recent studies. The single large, recent study which included birth weight, Apgar score and gestational age as covariates found no twin-singleton difference in handedness rate, but these covariates could not be included in the present meta-analysis. Together, the secular shift and the influence of covariates probably make it unsafe to conclude that twinning has a genuine relationship to handedness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lena Sophie Pfeifer
- Cognitive Psychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Universitätsstraße 150, 44780, Bochum, Germany.
| | - Judith Schmitz
- School of Medicine, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Scotland
| | - Marietta Papadatou-Pastou
- School of Education, Department of Primary Education, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece
- Biomedical Research Foundation of the Academy of Athens, Athens, Greece
| | - Jutta Peterburs
- Institute of Systems Medicine and Department of Human Medicine, MSH Medical School Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
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6
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Richards G, Beking T, Kreukels BPC, Geuze RH, Beaton AA, Groothuis T. An examination of the influence of prenatal sex hormones on handedness: Literature review and amniotic fluid data. Horm Behav 2021; 129:104929. [PMID: 33454315 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2021.104929] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2020] [Revised: 12/30/2020] [Accepted: 12/31/2020] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
Competing theories have posited roles for foetal androgen exposure in the development of human handedness. However, due to practical and ethical considerations, few studies have used hormonal measures to examine this possibility. The current paper reviews this literature and reveals a generally inconsistent pattern of results. We also present data from a longitudinal study of prenatal sex hormone exposure and subsequent handedness. More specifically, we examine correlations between testosterone and estradiol measured from second trimester amniotic fluid and hand preference (Dutch language version of the Edinburgh Handedness Inventory) and hand skill asymmetry (pegboard task) measured at 15 years of age. Prenatal sex hormone exposure was not associated with the direction of hand preference in either males or females. However, in females, high levels of prenatal testosterone were associated with weaker lateralisation of hand skill, and high levels of prenatal estradiol were associated with weaker hand preference. In addition, high levels of prenatal testosterone were associated with increased task duration (i.e., slow hand speed) for the right and left hands of males. The pattern of results observed here is not entirely consistent with any of the main theories linking sex hormones with handedness, suggesting that an association between these variables may be more complex than initially thought.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gareth Richards
- Newcastle University, School of Psychology, Ridley Building 1, Queen Victoria Road, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, UK; University of Cambridge, Autism Research Centre, Department of Psychiatry, Douglas House, 18b Trumpington Road, Cambridge CB2 8AH, UK.
| | - Tess Beking
- University of Groningen, Faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences, Department Clinical & Developmental Neuropsychology, Grote Kruisstraat 2/1, 9712 TS Groningen, the Netherlands; Amsterdam University Medical Center, location VUmc, Department of Medical Psychology, Center of Expertise on Gender Dysphoria, PO Box 7057, 1007 MB Amsterdam, the Netherlands; University of Groningen, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, Nijenborgh 7, 9747 AG Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Baudewijntje P C Kreukels
- Amsterdam University Medical Center, location VUmc, Department of Medical Psychology, Center of Expertise on Gender Dysphoria, PO Box 7057, 1007 MB Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Reint H Geuze
- University of Groningen, Faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences, Department Clinical & Developmental Neuropsychology, Grote Kruisstraat 2/1, 9712 TS Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Alan A Beaton
- Swansea University, Department of Psychology, School of Human & Health Sciences, Swansea SA2 8PP, UK; Aberystwyth University, Department of Psychology, Aberystwyth SY23 3UX, UK
| | - Ton Groothuis
- University of Groningen, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, Nijenborgh 7, 9747 AG Groningen, the Netherlands
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7
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Cuellar-Partida G, Tung JY, Eriksson N, Albrecht E, Aliev F, Andreassen OA, Barroso I, Beckmann JS, Boks MP, Boomsma DI, Boyd HA, Breteler MMB, Campbell H, Chasman DI, Cherkas LF, Davies G, de Geus EJC, Deary IJ, Deloukas P, Dick DM, Duffy DL, Eriksson JG, Esko T, Feenstra B, Geller F, Gieger C, Giegling I, Gordon SD, Han J, Hansen TF, Hartmann AM, Hayward C, Heikkilä K, Hicks AA, Hirschhorn JN, Hottenga JJ, Huffman JE, Hwang LD, Ikram MA, Kaprio J, Kemp JP, Khaw KT, Klopp N, Konte B, Kutalik Z, Lahti J, Li X, Loos RJF, Luciano M, Magnusson SH, Mangino M, Marques-Vidal P, Martin NG, McArdle WL, McCarthy MI, Medina-Gomez C, Melbye M, Melville SA, Metspalu A, Milani L, Mooser V, Nelis M, Nyholt DR, O'Connell KS, Ophoff RA, Palmer C, Palotie A, Palviainen T, Pare G, Paternoster L, Peltonen L, Penninx BWJH, Polasek O, Pramstaller PP, Prokopenko I, Raikkonen K, Ripatti S, Rivadeneira F, Rudan I, Rujescu D, Smit JH, Smith GD, Smoller JW, Soranzo N, Spector TD, Pourcain BS, Starr JM, Stefánsson H, Steinberg S, Teder-Laving M, Thorleifsson G, Stefánsson K, Timpson NJ, Uitterlinden AG, van Duijn CM, van Rooij FJA, Vink JM, Vollenweider P, Vuoksimaa E, Waeber G, Wareham NJ, Warrington N, Waterworth D, Werge T, Wichmann HE, Widen E, Willemsen G, Wright AF, Wright MJ, Xu M, Zhao JH, Kraft P, Hinds DA, Lindgren CM, Mägi R, Neale BM, Evans DM, Medland SE. Genome-wide association study identifies 48 common genetic variants associated with handedness. Nat Hum Behav 2021; 5:59-70. [PMID: 32989287 PMCID: PMC7116623 DOI: 10.1038/s41562-020-00956-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2020] [Accepted: 08/18/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Handedness has been extensively studied because of its relationship with language and the over-representation of left-handers in some neurodevelopmental disorders. Using data from the UK Biobank, 23andMe and the International Handedness Consortium, we conducted a genome-wide association meta-analysis of handedness (N = 1,766,671). We found 41 loci associated (P < 5 × 10-8) with left-handedness and 7 associated with ambidexterity. Tissue-enrichment analysis implicated the CNS in the aetiology of handedness. Pathways including regulation of microtubules and brain morphology were also highlighted. We found suggestive positive genetic correlations between left-handedness and neuropsychiatric traits, including schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Furthermore, the genetic correlation between left-handedness and ambidexterity is low (rG = 0.26), which implies that these traits are largely influenced by different genetic mechanisms. Our findings suggest that handedness is highly polygenic and that the genetic variants that predispose to left-handedness may underlie part of the association with some psychiatric disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabriel Cuellar-Partida
- The University of Queensland Diamantina Institute, The University of Queensland, Woolloongabba, Queensland, Australia
- 23andMe, Inc., Sunnyvale, CA, USA
| | | | | | - Eva Albrecht
- Institute of Genetic Epidemiology, Helmholtz Zentrum München-German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Fazil Aliev
- Department of Psychology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA
- Karabuk University, Faculty of Business, Karabük, Turkey
| | - Ole A Andreassen
- NORMENT, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
- Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
| | - Inês Barroso
- Human Genetics, Wellcome Sanger Institute, Hinxton, UK
- MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
- Wellcome-MRC Institute of Metabolic Science, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Jacques S Beckmann
- Service of Medical Genetics, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Marco P Boks
- Department of Psychiatry, UMC Utrecht Brain Center, University Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Dorret I Boomsma
- Department of Biological Psychology, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Amsterdam Public Health research institute, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Heather A Boyd
- Department of Epidemiology Research, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Monique M B Breteler
- Population Health Sciences, German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Bonn, Germany
| | - Harry Campbell
- Usher Institute of Population Health Sciences and Informatics, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Daniel I Chasman
- Division of Preventive Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Lynn F Cherkas
- Department of Twin Research and Genetic Epidemiology, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Gail Davies
- Department of Psychology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
- Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Eco J C de Geus
- Department of Biological Psychology, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Amsterdam Public Health research institute, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Ian J Deary
- Department of Psychology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
- Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Panos Deloukas
- William Harvey Research Institute, Barts and the London Medical School, and the Centre for Genomic Health, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
| | - Danielle M Dick
- Department of Psychology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA
- Department of Human and Molecular Genetics, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA
| | - David L Duffy
- Genetic Epidemiology, QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Johan G Eriksson
- Department of General Practice and Primary Health Care, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
- Folkhälsan Research Center, Helsinki, Finland
- Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences, Agency for Science Technology and Research, Singapore, Singapore
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Tõnu Esko
- Estonian Genome Centre, Institute of Genomics, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Bjarke Feenstra
- Department of Epidemiology Research, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Frank Geller
- Department of Epidemiology Research, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Christian Gieger
- Research Unit of Molecular Epidemiology, Institute of Epidemiology, Helmholtz Zentrum München-German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany
- German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD), München-Neuherberg, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Ina Giegling
- University Clinic and Outpatient Clinic for Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany
| | - Scott D Gordon
- Genetic Epidemiology, QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Jiali Han
- Department of Epidemiology, Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health, Indiana University, Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Melvin and Bren Simon Cancer Center, Indiana University, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Thomas F Hansen
- Institute of Biological Psychiatry, Mental Health Services of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Danish Headache Center, Copenhagen University Hospital, Glostrup, Denmark
| | - Annette M Hartmann
- University Clinic and Outpatient Clinic for Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany
| | - Caroline Hayward
- MRC Human Genetics Unit, Institute of Genetics and Molecular Medicine, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Kauko Heikkilä
- Institute for Molecular Medicine FIMM, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Andrew A Hicks
- Institute for Biomedicine, Eurac Research, Bolzano, Italy
| | - Joel N Hirschhorn
- Division of Endocrinology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Jouke-Jan Hottenga
- Department of Biological Psychology, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Amsterdam Public Health research institute, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Jennifer E Huffman
- MRC Human Genetics Unit, Institute of Genetics and Molecular Medicine, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Liang-Dar Hwang
- The University of Queensland Diamantina Institute, The University of Queensland, Woolloongabba, Queensland, Australia
| | - M Arfan Ikram
- Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Jaakko Kaprio
- Institute for Molecular Medicine FIMM, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
- Department of Public Health, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - John P Kemp
- The University of Queensland Diamantina Institute, The University of Queensland, Woolloongabba, Queensland, Australia
- Medical Research Council Integrative Epidemiology Unit, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Kay-Tee Khaw
- Public Health and Primary Care, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Norman Klopp
- Hannover Unified Biobank, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
| | - Bettina Konte
- University Clinic and Outpatient Clinic for Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany
| | - Zoltan Kutalik
- Center for Primary Care and Public Health, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
- Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Jari Lahti
- Department of Psychology and Logopedics, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
- Turku Institute for Advanced Studies, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
- Department of Psychology and Logopedics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Xin Li
- Department of Epidemiology, Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health, Indiana University, Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Melvin and Bren Simon Cancer Center, Indiana University, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Ruth J F Loos
- MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
- The Charles Bronfman Institute for Personalized Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- The Mindich Child Health and Development Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Michelle Luciano
- Department of Psychology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
- Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | | | - Massimo Mangino
- Department of Twin Research and Genetic Epidemiology, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Pedro Marques-Vidal
- Department of Medicine, Internal Medicine, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Nicholas G Martin
- Genetic Epidemiology, QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | | | - Mark I McCarthy
- Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics, Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Oxford Centre for Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Oxford NIHR Biomedical Research Centre, Oxford University Hospitals Trust, Oxford, UK
- Human Genetics, Genentech, South San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Carolina Medina-Gomez
- Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Internal Medicine, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Mads Melbye
- Department of Epidemiology Research, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Department of Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | | | - Andres Metspalu
- Estonian Genome Centre, Institute of Genomics, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia
| | - Lili Milani
- Estonian Genome Centre, Institute of Genomics, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia
| | - Vincent Mooser
- Service of Clinical Chemistry, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Mari Nelis
- Estonian Genome Centre, Institute of Genomics, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia
| | - Dale R Nyholt
- Genetic Epidemiology, QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Kevin S O'Connell
- NORMENT, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Roel A Ophoff
- Department of Human Genetics, University California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, University California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Cameron Palmer
- Department of Computer Science, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Aarno Palotie
- Institute for Molecular Medicine FIMM, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Teemu Palviainen
- Institute for Molecular Medicine FIMM, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Guillaume Pare
- Pathology and Molecular Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
| | | | - Leena Peltonen
- Drug Research Program, Division of Pharmaceutical Chemistry and Technology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Brenda W J H Penninx
- Amsterdam Public Health research institute, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Psychiatry, Amsterdam UMC, VU University, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Ozren Polasek
- Department of Public Health, University of Split School of Medicine, Split, Croatia
- Research Unit, Psychiatric Hospital Sveti Ivan, Zagreb, Croatia
| | | | - Inga Prokopenko
- Section of Statistical Multi-Omics, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Surrey, Guildford, UK
- Section of Genomics of Common Disease, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Katri Raikkonen
- Department of Psychology and Logopedics, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Samuli Ripatti
- Institute for Molecular Medicine FIMM, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Fernando Rivadeneira
- Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Internal Medicine, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Igor Rudan
- Centre for Global Health Research, The Usher Institute, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Dan Rujescu
- University Clinic and Outpatient Clinic for Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany
| | - Johannes H Smit
- Amsterdam Public Health research institute, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Psychiatry, Amsterdam UMC, VU University, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | | | - Jordan W Smoller
- Department of Psychiatry and Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | | | - Tim D Spector
- Department of Twin Research and Genetic Epidemiology, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Beate St Pourcain
- MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
- Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Wundtlaan, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - John M Starr
- Alzheimer Scotland Dementia Research Centre, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
- Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemilogy, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | | | | | - Maris Teder-Laving
- Estonian Genome Centre, Institute of Genomics, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia
| | | | | | | | - André G Uitterlinden
- Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Internal Medicine, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Cornelia M van Duijn
- Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Internal Medicine, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Frank J A van Rooij
- Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Jaqueline M Vink
- Department of Biological Psychology, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Behavioural Science Institute, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Peter Vollenweider
- Department of Medicine, Internal Medicine, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Eero Vuoksimaa
- Institute for Molecular Medicine FIMM, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Gérard Waeber
- Department of Medicine, Internal Medicine, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | | | - Nicole Warrington
- The University of Queensland Diamantina Institute, The University of Queensland, Woolloongabba, Queensland, Australia
| | | | - Thomas Werge
- Institute of Biological Psychiatry, Mental Health Services of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- The Lundbeck Foundation's IPSYCH Initiative, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | | | - Elisabeth Widen
- Institute for Molecular Medicine FIMM, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Gonneke Willemsen
- Department of Biological Psychology, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Alan F Wright
- MRC Human Genetics Unit, Institute of Genetics and Molecular Medicine, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Margaret J Wright
- Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
- Centre for Advanced Imaging, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Mousheng Xu
- Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Jing Hua Zhao
- Department of Public Health and Primary Care, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Peter Kraft
- Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | - Cecilia M Lindgren
- Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics, Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Big Data Institute at the Li Ka Shing Centre for Health Information and Discovery, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Reedik Mägi
- Estonian Genome Centre, Institute of Genomics, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia
| | - Benjamin M Neale
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Analytic and Translational Genetics Unit, Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - David M Evans
- The University of Queensland Diamantina Institute, The University of Queensland, Woolloongabba, Queensland, Australia.
- MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK.
| | - Sarah E Medland
- The University of Queensland Diamantina Institute, The University of Queensland, Woolloongabba, Queensland, Australia.
- Psychiatric Genetics, QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
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Bishop DV, Bates TC. Heritability of language laterality assessed by functional transcranial Doppler ultrasound: a twin study. Wellcome Open Res 2020; 4:161. [PMID: 32399495 PMCID: PMC7194484 DOI: 10.12688/wellcomeopenres.15524.3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 09/02/2020] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: Prior studies have estimated heritability of around 0.25 for the trait of handedness, with studies of structural brain asymmetry giving estimates in a similar or lower range. Little is known about heritability of functional language lateralization. This report describes heritability estimates using functional language laterality and handedness phenotypes in a twin sample previously reported by Wilson and Bishop (2018). Methods: The total sample consisted of 194 twin pairs (49% monozygotic) aged from 6 to 11 years. A language laterality index was obtained for 141 twin pairs, who completed a protocol where relative blood flow through left and right middle cerebral arteries was measured using functional transcranial Doppler ultrasound (fTCD) while the child described animation sequences. Handedness data was available from the Edinburgh Handedness Inventory (EHI) and Quantification of Hand Preference (QHP) for all 194 pairs. Heritability was assessed using conventional structural equation modeling, assuming no effect of shared environment (AE model). Results: For the two handedness measures, heritability estimates (95% CI) were consistent with prior research: .25 (.03 - .34) and .18 (0 - .31) respectively for the EHI and QHP. For the language laterality index, however, the twin-cotwin correlations were close to zero for both MZ and DZ twins, and the heritability estimate was zero (0 - .15). Conclusions: A single study cannot rule out a genetic effect on language lateralisation. It is possible that the low twin-cotwin correlations were affected by noisy data: although the split-half reliability of the fTCD-based laterality index was high (0.85), we did not have information on test-retest reliability in children, which is likely to be lower. We cannot reject the hypothesis that there is low but nonzero heritability for this trait, but our data suggest that individual variation in language lateralisation is predominantly due to stochastic variation in neurodevelopment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dorothy V.M. Bishop
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, Oxon, OX2 6GG, UK
| | - Timothy C. Bates
- Psychology Department, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH8 9JZ, UK
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9
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Bishop DV, Bates TC. Heritability of language laterality assessed by functional transcranial Doppler ultrasound: a twin study. Wellcome Open Res 2020; 4:161. [PMID: 32399495 PMCID: PMC7194484 DOI: 10.12688/wellcomeopenres.15524.2] [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] [Accepted: 02/26/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: Prior studies have estimated heritability of around 0.25 for the trait of handedness, with studies of structural brain asymmetry giving estimates in a similar or lower range. Little is known about heritability of functional language lateralization. This report describes heritability estimates using functional language laterality and handedness phenotypes in a twin sample previously reported by Wilson and Bishop (2018). Methods: The total sample consisted of 194 twin pairs (49% monozygotic) aged from 6 to 11 years. A language laterality index was obtained for 141 twin pairs, who completed a protocol where relative blood flow through left and right middle cerebral arteries was measured using functional transcranial Doppler ultrasound (fTCD) while the child described animation sequences. Handedness data was available from the Edinburgh Handedness Inventory (EHI) and Quantification of Hand Preference (QHP) for all 194 pairs. Heritability was assessed using conventional structural equation modeling, assuming no effect of shared environment (AE model). Results: For the two handedness measures, heritability estimates were consistent with prior research: 0.23 and 0.22 respectively for the EHI and QHP. For the language laterality index, however, the twin-cotwin correlations were close to zero for both MZ and DZ twins, and the heritability estimate was zero. Conclusions: A single study cannot rule out a genetic effect on language lateralisation. It is possible that the low twin-cotwin correlations were affected by noisy data: although the split-half reliability of the fTCD-based laterality index was high (0.85), we did not have information on test-retest reliability in children, which is likely to be lower. We cannot reject the hypothesis that there is low but nonzero heritability for this trait, but our data suggest that individual variation in language lateralisation is predominantly due to stochastic variation in neurodevelopment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dorothy V.M. Bishop
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, Oxon, OX2 6GG, UK
| | - Timothy C. Bates
- Psychology Department, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH8 9JZ, UK
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10
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Horstick EJ, Bayleyen Y, Burgess HA. Molecular and cellular determinants of motor asymmetry in zebrafish. Nat Commun 2020; 11:1170. [PMID: 32127541 PMCID: PMC7054361 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-14965-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2019] [Accepted: 02/04/2020] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Asymmetries in motor behavior, such as human hand preference, are observed throughout bilateria. However, neural substrates and developmental signaling pathways that impose underlying functional lateralization on a broadly symmetric nervous system are unknown. Here we report that in the absence of over-riding visual information, zebrafish larvae show intrinsic lateralized motor behavior that is mediated by a cluster of 60 posterior tuberculum (PT) neurons in the forebrain. PT neurons impose motor bias via a projection through the habenular commissure. Acquisition of left/right identity is disrupted by heterozygous mutations in mosaic eyes and mindbomb, genes that regulate Notch signaling. These results define the neuronal substrate for motor asymmetry in a vertebrate and support the idea that haploinsufficiency for genes in a core developmental pathway destabilizes left/right identity. Many animals show individual left/right biases in motor behaviour, but underlying neural substrates have proven elusive. Here the authors describe neurons that maintain individual, context-dependent lateralisation of swimming behaviour in zebrafish.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric J Horstick
- Division of Developmental Biology, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA. .,Department of Biology, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV, USA.
| | - Yared Bayleyen
- Division of Developmental Biology, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA
| | - Harold A Burgess
- Division of Developmental Biology, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA.
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11
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Vallortigara G, Rogers LJ. A function for the bicameral mind. Cortex 2019; 124:274-285. [PMID: 32058074 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2019.11.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2019] [Revised: 11/28/2019] [Accepted: 11/28/2019] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Why do the left and right sides of the brain have different functions? Having a lateralized brain, in which each hemisphere processes sensory inputs differently and carries out different functions, is common in vertebrates, and it has now been reported for invertebrates too. Experiments with several animal species have shown that having a lateralized brain can enhance the capacity to perform two tasks at the same time. Thus, the different specializations of the left and right sides of the brain seem to increase brain efficiency. Other advantages may involve control of action that, in Bilateria, may be confounded by separate and independent sensory processing and motor outputs on the left and right sides. Also, the opportunity for increased perceptual training associated with preferential use of only one sensory or motoric organ may result in a time advantage for the dominant side. Although brain efficiency of individuals can be achieved without the need for alignment of lateralization in the population, lateral biases (such as preferences in the use of a laterally-placed eye) usually occur at the population level, with most individuals showing a similar direction of bias. Why is this the case? Not only humans, but also most non-human animals, show a similar pattern of population bias (i.e., directional asymmetry). For instance, in several vertebrate species (from fish to mammals) most individuals react faster when a predator approaches from their left side, although some individuals (a minority usually ranging from 10 to 35%) escape faster from predators arriving from their right side. Invoking individual efficiency (lateralization may increase fitness), evolutionary chance or simply genetic inheritance cannot explain this widespread pattern. Using mathematical theory of games, it has been argued that the population structure of lateralization (with either antisymmetry or directional asymmetry) may result from the type of interactions asymmetric organisms face with each other.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Lesley J Rogers
- School of Science and Technology, University of New England, Armidale, NSW, Australia
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12
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Bishop DV, Bates TC. Negligible heritability of language laterality assessed by functional transcranial Doppler ultrasound: a twin study. Wellcome Open Res 2019; 4:161. [PMID: 32399495 PMCID: PMC7194484 DOI: 10.12688/wellcomeopenres.15524.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 10/22/2019] [Indexed: 01/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Background: It is widely assumed that individual differences in language lateralisation have a strong genetic basis, yet prior studies show low heritability (around 0.25) for the related trait of handedness, and two twin studies of structural brain asymmetry obtained similarly low estimates. This report describes heritability estimates from a twin study of language laterality and handedness phenotypes. Methods: The total sample consisted of 194 twin pairs (49% monozygotic) aged from 6 to 11 years. A language laterality index was obtained for 141 twin pairs, who completed a protocol where relative blood flow through left and right middle cerebral arteries was measured using functional transcranial Doppler ultrasound (fTCD) while the child described animation sequences. Handedness data was available from the Edinburgh Handedness Inventory (EHI) and Quantification of Hand Preference (QHP) for all 194 pairs. Heritability was assessed using conventional structural equation modeling, assuming no effect of shared environment (AE model). Results: For the two handedness measures, heritability estimates were consistent with prior research: 0.23 and 0.22 respectively for the EHI and QHP. For the language laterality index, however, the twin-cotwin correlations were very close to zero for both MZ and DZ twins, and the heritability estimate was zero. Conclusions: A single study showing negligible heritability for language laterality cannot rule out a genetic effect on language lateralisation. It is possible that the low twin-cotwin correlations were affected by noisy data: although the split-half reliability of the fTCD-based laterality index was high (0.85), we did not have information on test-retest reliability in children, which is likely to be lower. We cannot rule out the possibility that true heritability of differences in language lateralization is non-zero, but results indicate that the heritability of this trait is low at best. Stochastic variation in neurodevelopment appears to play a major role in determining cerebral lateralisation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dorothy V.M. Bishop
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, Oxon, OX2 6GG, UK
| | - Timothy C. Bates
- Psychology Department, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH8 9JZ, UK
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13
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Vingerhoets G. Phenotypes in hemispheric functional segregation? Perspectives and challenges. Phys Life Rev 2019; 30:1-18. [DOI: 10.1016/j.plrev.2019.06.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2019] [Revised: 05/29/2019] [Accepted: 06/11/2019] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
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14
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Carrion‐Castillo A, Van der Haegen L, Tzourio‐Mazoyer N, Kavaklioglu T, Badillo S, Chavent M, Saracco J, Brysbaert M, Fisher SE, Mazoyer B, Francks C. Genome sequencing for rightward hemispheric language dominance. GENES, BRAIN, AND BEHAVIOR 2019; 18:e12572. [PMID: 30950222 PMCID: PMC6850193 DOI: 10.1111/gbb.12572] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2019] [Revised: 03/18/2019] [Accepted: 04/02/2019] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Most people have left-hemisphere dominance for various aspects of language processing, but only roughly 1% of the adult population has atypically reversed, rightward hemispheric language dominance (RHLD). The genetic-developmental program that underlies leftward language laterality is unknown, as are the causes of atypical variation. We performed an exploratory whole-genome-sequencing study, with the hypothesis that strongly penetrant, rare genetic mutations might sometimes be involved in RHLD. This was by analogy with situs inversus of the visceral organs (left-right mirror reversal of the heart, lungs and so on), which is sometimes due to monogenic mutations. The genomes of 33 subjects with RHLD were sequenced and analyzed with reference to large population-genetic data sets, as well as 34 subjects (14 left-handed) with typical language laterality. The sample was powered to detect rare, highly penetrant, monogenic effects if they would be present in at least 10 of the 33 RHLD cases and no controls, but no individual genes had mutations in more than five RHLD cases while being un-mutated in controls. A hypothesis derived from invertebrate mechanisms of left-right axis formation led to the detection of an increased mutation load, in RHLD subjects, within genes involved with the actin cytoskeleton. The latter finding offers a first, tentative insight into molecular genetic influences on hemispheric language dominance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amaia Carrion‐Castillo
- Language and Genetics DepartmentMax Planck Institute for PsycholinguisticsNijmegenThe Netherlands
| | - Lise Van der Haegen
- Department of Experimental PsychologyGhent Institute for Functional and Metabolic Imaging, Ghent UniversityGhentBelgium
| | - Nathalie Tzourio‐Mazoyer
- Groupe d'Imagerie Neurofonctionnelle, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Commissariat à l'Energie Atomiqueet Université de BordeauxBordeauxFrance
| | - Tulya Kavaklioglu
- Language and Genetics DepartmentMax Planck Institute for PsycholinguisticsNijmegenThe Netherlands
| | - Solveig Badillo
- Groupe d'Imagerie Neurofonctionnelle, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Commissariat à l'Energie Atomiqueet Université de BordeauxBordeauxFrance
- Institut de Mathématiques de Bordeaux, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Institut National de la Recherche en Informatique et Automatiqueet Université de BordeauxBordeauxFrance
| | - Marie Chavent
- Institut de Mathématiques de Bordeaux, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Institut National de la Recherche en Informatique et Automatiqueet Université de BordeauxBordeauxFrance
| | - Jérôme Saracco
- Institut de Mathématiques de Bordeaux, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Institut National de la Recherche en Informatique et Automatiqueet Université de BordeauxBordeauxFrance
| | - Marc Brysbaert
- Department of Experimental PsychologyGhent Institute for Functional and Metabolic Imaging, Ghent UniversityGhentBelgium
| | - Simon E. Fisher
- Language and Genetics DepartmentMax Planck Institute for PsycholinguisticsNijmegenThe Netherlands
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and BehaviourRadboud UniversityNijmegenThe Netherlands
| | - Bernard Mazoyer
- Groupe d'Imagerie Neurofonctionnelle, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Commissariat à l'Energie Atomiqueet Université de BordeauxBordeauxFrance
| | - Clyde Francks
- Language and Genetics DepartmentMax Planck Institute for PsycholinguisticsNijmegenThe Netherlands
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and BehaviourRadboud UniversityNijmegenThe Netherlands
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15
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Mohammadi H, Papadatou-Pastou M. Cerebral laterality as assessed by hand preference measures and developmental stuttering. Laterality 2019; 25:127-149. [PMID: 31144576 DOI: 10.1080/1357650x.2019.1621329] [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] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
The causes of developmental stuttering, a neurodevelopmental communicative disorder, have not been elucidated to date. Neuroimaging studies suggest that atypical cerebral laterality could be one of such causal factors. Moreover, handedness, a behavioural index for cerebral laterality, has been linked to stuttering and recovery from it. However, findings are conflicting, possibly due to sample selection procedures, which typically rely on self-reported stuttering, and to the fact that handedness is typically assessed with regards to its direction rather than degree. We investigated the possible relationship between handedness and stuttering. This is the first study where children who stutter (CWS) were selected using clinical criteria as well as speech samples and where a non-Western population was studied. Findings from 83 CWS aged 3-9 years (mean = 6.43, SD = 1.84) and 90 age- and sex-matched children who do not stutter (mean = 6.45, SD = 1.71) revealed no differences in their hand preference scores as evaluated by parent-completed Edinburgh Handedness Inventory, for both direction and degree. The severity of stuttering was not found to correlate with the degree of handedness. We suggest that parents and professionals not treat left- or mixed-hand preference as a reason for concern with regards to stuttering.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hiwa Mohammadi
- Department of Neurology & Sleep Disorders Research Center, School of Medicine, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran
| | - Marietta Papadatou-Pastou
- School of Education, Faculty of Primary Education, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece
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16
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Schmitz J, Güntürkün O, Ocklenburg S. Building an Asymmetrical Brain: The Molecular Perspective. Front Psychol 2019; 10:982. [PMID: 31133928 PMCID: PMC6524718 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00982] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2018] [Accepted: 04/15/2019] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The brain is one of the most prominent examples for structural and functional differences between the left and right half of the body. For handedness and language lateralization, the most widely investigated behavioral phenotypes, only a small fraction of phenotypic variance has been explained by molecular genetic studies. Due to environmental factors presumably also playing a role in their ontogenesis and based on first molecular evidence, it has been suggested that functional hemispheric asymmetries are partly under epigenetic control. This review article aims to elucidate the molecular factors underlying hemispheric asymmetries and their association with inner organ asymmetries. While we previously suggested that epigenetic mechanisms might partly account for the missing heritability of handedness, this article extends this idea by suggesting possible alternatives for transgenerational transmission of epigenetic states that do not require germ line epigenetic transmission. This is in line with a multifactorial model of hemispheric asymmetries, integrating genetic, environmental, and epigenetic influencing factors in their ontogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Judith Schmitz
- Biopsychology, Department of Psychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
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de Kovel CGF, Francks C. The molecular genetics of hand preference revisited. Sci Rep 2019; 9:5986. [PMID: 30980028 PMCID: PMC6461639 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-42515-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2018] [Accepted: 03/27/2019] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Hand preference is a prominent behavioural trait linked to human brain asymmetry. A handful of genetic variants have been reported to associate with hand preference or quantitative measures related to it. Most of these reports were on the basis of limited sample sizes, by current standards for genetic analysis of complex traits. Here we performed a genome-wide association analysis of hand preference in the large, population-based UK Biobank cohort (N = 331,037). We used gene-set enrichment analysis to investigate whether genes involved in visceral asymmetry are particularly relevant to hand preference, following one previous report. We found no evidence supporting any of the previously suggested variants or genes, nor that genes involved in visceral laterality have a role in hand preference. It remains possible that some of the previously reported genes or pathways are relevant to hand preference as assessed in other ways, or else are relevant within specific disorder populations. However, some or all of the earlier findings are likely to be false positives, and none of them appear relevant to hand preference as defined categorically in the general population. Our analysis did produce a small number of novel, significant associations, including one implicating the microtubule-associated gene MAP2 in handedness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carolien G F de Kovel
- Department of Language & Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Clyde Francks
- Department of Language & Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
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DNA methylation of dopamine-related gene promoters is associated with line bisection deviation in healthy adults. Sci Rep 2019; 9:5902. [PMID: 30976054 PMCID: PMC6459813 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-42553-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2018] [Accepted: 04/03/2019] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Handedness and language lateralization are the most investigated phenotypes among functional hemispheric asymmetries, i.e. differences in function between the left and the right half of the human brain. Both phenotypes are left hemisphere-dominant, while investigations of the molecular factors underlying right hemisphere-dominant phenotypes are less prominent. In the classical line bisection task, healthy subjects typically show a leftward attentional bias due to a relative dominance of the right hemisphere for visuospatial attention. Based on findings of variations in dopamine-related genes affecting performance in the line bisection task, we first tested whether DNA methylation in non-neuronal tissue in the promoter regions of DBH, SLC6A3, and DRD2 are associated with line bisection deviation. We replicated the typical behavioral pattern and found an effect of DNA methylation in the DBH promoter region on line bisection deviation in right-aligned trials. A second exploratory analysis indicated that an overall DNA methylation profile of genes involved in dopamine function predicts line bisection performance in right-aligned trials. Genetic variation in dopamine-related genes has been linked to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), a neurodevelopmental trait associated with rightward attentional bias. Overall, our findings point towards epigenetic markers for functional hemispheric asymmetries in non-neuronal tissue not only for left hemisphere-dominant, but also for right hemisphere-dominant phenotypes.
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Tracing the structural origins of atypical language representation: consequences of prenatal mirror-imaged brain asymmetries in a dizygotic twin couple. Brain Struct Funct 2018; 223:3757-3767. [PMID: 30062562 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-018-1717-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2017] [Accepted: 07/13/2018] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Abstract
We investigated the predictive value of prenatal superior temporal sulcus (STS) depth asymmetry in a special case of a female dizygotic twin that showed inverted prenatal asymmetry of this structure. For this purpose, we performed a follow-up investigation in this former fetus at the age of seven, where we assessed the functional language lateralization using task-based and resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). As control group we employed her twin brother, who showed a typical folding pattern prenatally, as well as a complementary set of four age-matched children that had fetal MRI of their brains and typical STS depth asymmetry. We could show that the twin with the atypical fetal asymmetry of the STS also showed significantly differing rightward language lateralization in the frontal and temporal lobes. Additionally, resting-state data suggest a stronger connectivity between inferior frontal gyri in this case. The twin showed normal cognitive development. This result gives a first glimpse into the STS' atypical asymmetry being a very early morphological marker for later language lateralization.
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Wilson AC, Bishop DVM. Resounding failure to replicate links between developmental language disorder and cerebral lateralisation. PeerJ 2018; 6:e4217. [PMID: 29333343 PMCID: PMC5764032 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.4217] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2017] [Accepted: 12/11/2017] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Background It has been suggested that failure to establish cerebral lateralisation may be related to developmental language disorder (DLD). There has been weak support for any link with handedness, but more consistent reports of associations with functional brain lateralisation for language. The consistency of lateralisation across different functions may also be important. We aimed to replicate previous findings of an association between DLD and reduced laterality on a quantitative measure of hand preference (reaching across the midline) and on language laterality assessed using functional transcranial Doppler ultrasound (fTCD). Methods From a sample of twin children aged from 6;0 to 11;11 years, we identified 107 cases of DLD and 156 typically-developing comparison cases for whom we had useable data from fTCD yielding a laterality index (LI) for language function during an animation description task. Handedness data were also available for these children. Results Indices of handedness and language laterality for this twin sample were similar to those previously reported for single-born children. There were no differences between the DLD and TD groups on measures of handedness or language lateralisation, or on a categorical measure of consistency of left hemisphere dominance. Contrary to prediction, there was a greater incidence of right lateralisation for language in the TD group (19.90%) than the DLD group (9.30%), confirming that atypical laterality is not inconsistent with typical language development. We also failed to replicate associations between language laterality and language test scores. Discussion and Conclusions Given the large sample studied here and the range of measures, we suggest that previous reports of atypical manual or language lateralisation in DLD may have been false positives.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander C Wilson
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Dorothy V M Bishop
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
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Schmitz J, Kumsta R, Moser D, Güntürkün O, Ocklenburg S. KIAA0319 promoter DNA methylation predicts dichotic listening performance in forced-attention conditions. Behav Brain Res 2018; 337:1-7. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2017.09.035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2017] [Revised: 09/19/2017] [Accepted: 09/22/2017] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
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22
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Schmitz J, Metz GA, Güntürkün O, Ocklenburg S. Beyond the genome—Towards an epigenetic understanding of handedness ontogenesis. Prog Neurobiol 2017; 159:69-89. [DOI: 10.1016/j.pneurobio.2017.10.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2017] [Revised: 09/18/2017] [Accepted: 10/26/2017] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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Schmitz J, Kumsta R, Moser D, Güntürkün O, Ocklenburg S. DNA methylation in candidate genes for handedness predicts handedness direction. Laterality 2017; 23:441-461. [DOI: 10.1080/1357650x.2017.1377726] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Judith Schmitz
- Biopsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany
| | - Robert Kumsta
- Genetic Psychology, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany
| | - Dirk Moser
- Genetic Psychology, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany
| | - Onur Güntürkün
- Biopsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany
- Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study (STIAS), Wallenberg Research Centre at Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch, South Africa
| | - Sebastian Ocklenburg
- Biopsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany
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de Kovel CGF, Lisgo S, Karlebach G, Ju J, Cheng G, Fisher SE, Francks C. Left-Right Asymmetry of Maturation Rates in Human Embryonic Neural Development. Biol Psychiatry 2017; 82:204-212. [PMID: 28267988 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2017.01.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2016] [Revised: 01/20/2017] [Accepted: 01/20/2017] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Left-right asymmetry is a fundamental organizing feature of the human brain, and neuropsychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia sometimes involve alterations of brain asymmetry. As early as 8 weeks postconception, the majority of human fetuses move their right arms more than their left arms, but because nerve fiber tracts are still descending from the forebrain at this stage, spinal-muscular asymmetries are likely to play an important developmental role. METHODS We used RNA sequencing to measure gene expression levels in the left and right spinal cords, and the left and right hindbrains, of 18 postmortem human embryos aged 4 to 8 weeks postconception. Genes showing embryonic lateralization were tested for an enrichment of signals in genome-wide association data for schizophrenia. RESULTS The left side of the embryonic spinal cord was found to mature faster than the right side. Both sides transitioned from transcriptional profiles associated with cell division and proliferation at earlier stages to neuronal differentiation and function at later stages, but the two sides were not in synchrony (p = 2.2 E-161). The hindbrain showed a left-right mirrored pattern compared with the spinal cord, consistent with the well-known crossing over of function between these two structures. Genes that showed lateralization in the embryonic spinal cord were enriched for association signals with schizophrenia (p = 4.3 E-05). CONCLUSIONS These are the earliest stage left-right differences of human neural development ever reported. Disruption of the lateralized developmental program may play a role in the genetic susceptibility to schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carolien G F de Kovel
- Language and Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Steven Lisgo
- Institute of Genetic Medicine, Newcastle, United Kingdom
| | - Guy Karlebach
- Language and Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Jia Ju
- Beijing Genomics Institute-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China
| | - Gang Cheng
- Beijing Genomics Institute-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China
| | - Simon E Fisher
- Language and Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands; Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Clyde Francks
- Language and Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands; Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
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25
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Somers M, Olde Loohuis LM, Aukes MF, Pasaniuc B, de Visser KCL, Kahn RS, Sommer IE, Ophoff RA. A Genetic Population Isolate in The Netherlands Showing Extensive Haplotype Sharing and Long Regions of Homozygosity. Genes (Basel) 2017; 8:E133. [PMID: 28471380 PMCID: PMC5448007 DOI: 10.3390/genes8050133] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2017] [Accepted: 04/20/2017] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Genetic isolated populations have features that may facilitate genetic analyses and can be leveraged to improve power of mapping genes to complex traits. Our aim was to test the extent to which a population with a former history of geographic isolation and religious endogamy, and currently with one of the highest fertility rates in The Netherlands, shows signs of genetic isolation. For this purpose, genome-wide genotype data was collected of 72 unrelated individuals from this population as well as in a sample of 104 random control subjects from The Netherlands. Additional reference data from different populations and population isolates was available through HapMap and the Human Genome Diversity Project. We performed a number of analyses to compare the genetic structure between these populations: we calculated the pairwise genetic distance between populations, examined the extent of identical-by-descent (IBD) sharing and estimated the effective population size. Genetic analysis of this population showed consistent patterns of a population isolate at all levels tested. We confirmed that this population is most closely related to the Dutch control subjects, and detected high levels of IBD sharing and runs of homozygosity at equal or even higher levels than observed in previously described population isolates. The effective population size of this population was estimated to be several orders of magnitude smaller than that of the Dutch control sample. We conclude that the geographic isolation of this population combined with rapid population growth has resulted in a genetic isolate with great potential value for future genetic studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Metten Somers
- Brain Center Rudolf Magnus, Department of Psychiatry, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht 3584 CX, The Netherlands.
| | - Loes M Olde Loohuis
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
| | - Maartje F Aukes
- Brain Center Rudolf Magnus, Department of Psychiatry, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht 3584 CX, The Netherlands.
| | - Bogdan Pasaniuc
- Department of Human Genetics, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
| | - Kees C L de Visser
- Department of General Practice, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen 9713 GZ, The Netherland.
| | - René S Kahn
- Brain Center Rudolf Magnus, Department of Psychiatry, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht 3584 CX, The Netherlands.
| | - Iris E Sommer
- Brain Center Rudolf Magnus, Department of Psychiatry, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht 3584 CX, The Netherlands.
| | - Roel A Ophoff
- Brain Center Rudolf Magnus, Department of Psychiatry, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht 3584 CX, The Netherlands.
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
- Department of Human Genetics, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
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The Genetics of Asymmetry: Whole Exome Sequencing in a Consanguineous Turkish Family with an Overrepresentation of Left-Handedness. Symmetry (Basel) 2017. [DOI: 10.3390/sym9050066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
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Güntürkün O, Ocklenburg S. Ontogenesis of Lateralization. Neuron 2017; 94:249-263. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2017.02.045] [Citation(s) in RCA: 127] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2016] [Revised: 02/27/2017] [Accepted: 02/27/2017] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
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Muntané G, Santpere G, Verendeev A, Seeley WW, Jacobs B, Hopkins WD, Navarro A, Sherwood CC. Interhemispheric gene expression differences in the cerebral cortex of humans and macaque monkeys. Brain Struct Funct 2017; 222:3241-3254. [PMID: 28317062 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-017-1401-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2017] [Accepted: 03/05/2017] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Handedness and language are two well-studied examples of asymmetrical brain function in humans. Approximately 90% of humans exhibit a right-hand preference, and the vast majority shows left-hemisphere dominance for language function. Although genetic models of human handedness and language have been proposed, the actual gene expression differences between cerebral hemispheres in humans remain to be fully defined. In the present study, gene expression profiles were examined in both hemispheres of three cortical regions involved in handedness and language in humans and their homologues in rhesus macaques: ventrolateral prefrontal cortex, posterior superior temporal cortex (STC), and primary motor cortex. Although the overall pattern of gene expression was very similar between hemispheres in both humans and macaques, weighted gene correlation network analysis revealed gene co-expression modules associated with hemisphere, which are different among the three cortical regions examined. Notably, a receptor-enriched gene module in STC was particularly associated with hemisphere and showed different expression levels between hemispheres only in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gerard Muntané
- Department of Anthropology and Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, 20052, USA.
- Institut Biologia Evolutiva, Universitat Pompeu Fabra-CSIC, 08003, Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Gabriel Santpere
- Institut Biologia Evolutiva, Universitat Pompeu Fabra-CSIC, 08003, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Andrey Verendeev
- Department of Anthropology and Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, 20052, USA
| | - William W Seeley
- Department of Neurology, Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, CA, 94158, USA
| | - Bob Jacobs
- Laboratory of Quantitative Neuromorphology, Neuroscience Program, Colorado College, Colorado Springs, CO, 80903, USA
| | - William D Hopkins
- Neuroscience Institute and the Language Research Center, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, 30302, USA
| | - Arcadi Navarro
- Institut Biologia Evolutiva, Universitat Pompeu Fabra-CSIC, 08003, Barcelona, Spain
| | - 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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Ocklenburg S, Schmitz J, Moinfar Z, Moser D, Klose R, Lor S, Kunz G, Tegenthoff M, Faustmann P, Francks C, Epplen JT, Kumsta R, Güntürkün O. Epigenetic regulation of lateralized fetal spinal gene expression underlies hemispheric asymmetries. eLife 2017; 6. [PMID: 28145864 PMCID: PMC5295814 DOI: 10.7554/elife.22784] [Citation(s) in RCA: 65] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2016] [Accepted: 01/31/2017] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Lateralization is a fundamental principle of nervous system organization but its molecular determinants are mostly unknown. In humans, asymmetric gene expression in the fetal cortex has been suggested as the molecular basis of handedness. However, human fetuses already show considerable asymmetries in arm movements before the motor cortex is functionally linked to the spinal cord, making it more likely that spinal gene expression asymmetries form the molecular basis of handedness. We analyzed genome-wide mRNA expression and DNA methylation in cervical and anterior thoracal spinal cord segments of five human fetuses and show development-dependent gene expression asymmetries. These gene expression asymmetries were epigenetically regulated by miRNA expression asymmetries in the TGF-β signaling pathway and lateralized methylation of CpG islands. Our findings suggest that molecular mechanisms for epigenetic regulation within the spinal cord constitute the starting point for handedness, implying a fundamental shift in our understanding of the ontogenesis of hemispheric asymmetries in humans. DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.22784.001
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian Ocklenburg
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department Biopsychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Judith Schmitz
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department Biopsychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Zahra Moinfar
- Department of Neuroanatomy and Molecular Brain Research, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Dirk Moser
- Department of Genetic Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Rena Klose
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department Biopsychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Stephanie Lor
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department Biopsychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Georg Kunz
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, St. Johannes Hospital, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Martin Tegenthoff
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital Bergmannsheil, Bochum, Germany
| | - Pedro Faustmann
- Department of Neuroanatomy and Molecular Brain Research, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Clyde Francks
- Language and Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, Netherlands.,Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, Nijmegen, Netherlands
| | - Jörg T Epplen
- Department of Human Genetics, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Robert Kumsta
- Department of Genetic Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Onur Güntürkün
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department Biopsychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany.,Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study (STIAS), Wallenberg Research Centre at Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch, South Africa
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31
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Investigating heritability of laterality and cognitive control in speech perception. Brain Cogn 2016; 109:34-39. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bandc.2016.09.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2016] [Revised: 08/24/2016] [Accepted: 09/12/2016] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
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The Contribution of the Corpus Callosum to Language Lateralization. J Neurosci 2016; 36:4522-33. [PMID: 27098695 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.3850-14.2016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2014] [Accepted: 12/03/2015] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
UNLABELLED The development of hemispheric lateralization for language is poorly understood. In one hypothesis, early asymmetric gene expression assigns language to the left hemisphere. In an alternate view, language is represented a priori in both hemispheres and lateralization emerges via cross-hemispheric communication through the corpus callosum. To address this second hypothesis, we capitalized on the high temporal and spatial resolution of magnetoencephalographic imaging to measure cortical activity during language processing, speech preparation, and speech execution in 25 participants with agenesis of the corpus callosum (AgCC) and 21 matched neurotypical individuals. In contrast to strongly lateralized left hemisphere activations for language in neurotypical controls, participants with complete or partial AgCC exhibited bilateral hemispheric activations in both auditory or visually driven language tasks, with complete AgCC participants showing significantly more right hemisphere activations than controls or than individuals with partial AgCC. In AgCC individuals, language laterality positively correlated with verbal IQ. These findings suggest that the corpus callosum helps to drive language lateralization. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The role that corpus callosum development has on the hemispheric specialization of language is poorly understood. Here, we used magnetoencephalographic imaging during linguistic tests (verb generation, picture naming) to test for hemispheric dominance in patients with agenesis of the corpus callosum (AgCC) and found reduced laterality (i.e., greater likelihood of bilaterality or right hemisphere dominance) in this cohort compared with controls, especially in patients with complete agenesis. Laterality was positively correlated with behavioral measures of verbal intelligence. These findings provide support for the hypothesis that the callosum aids in functional specialization throughout neural development and that the loss of this mechanism correlates with impairments in verbal performance.
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Robinson KJ, Hurd PL, Read S, Crespi BJ. The PCSK6 gene is associated with handedness, the autism spectrum, and magical ideation in a non-clinical population. Neuropsychologia 2016; 84:205-12. [PMID: 26921480 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2016.02.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2015] [Revised: 02/22/2016] [Accepted: 02/23/2016] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Common polymorphisms in the gene PCSK6, whose protein product mediates the development of brain and body asymmetry through the NODAL pathway, have recently been associated with handedness in three studies, making it a key candidate gene for understanding the developmental and expression of human lateralization. We tested the hypothesis that the PCSK6 VNTR polymorphism rs1053972 influences the expression of handedness and aspects of dimensional schizotypy and autism. For a sample of 709 healthy individuals, rs1053972 genotype was significantly associated with categorical measures of handedness, and with dimensional handedness in subsets of the population with high schizotypy and magical ideation or a lack of strong right-handedness. Both findings showed evidence of stronger or exclusive effects among females, compared to males. Genotypes of PCSK6 also showed significant sex-limited associations with magical ideation, a component of positive schizotypal cognition measured using the Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire, and total autism score, measured using the Autism Spectrum Quotient. These results partially replicate previous studies on effects of PCSK6 rs1053972 genetic variation on handedness phenotypes, link the PCSK6 gene with the dimensional expression of neurodevelopmental conditions in healthy individuals, and show that associations of this gene with handedness and psychological phenotypes exhibit evidence of sex-limited effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kelsey J Robinson
- Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, 8888 University Drive, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada V5A 1S6
| | - Peter L Hurd
- Department of Psychology, and Centre for Neuroscience, University of Alberta, 116 St. and 85 Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2R3.
| | - Silven Read
- Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, 8888 University Drive, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada V5A 1S6
| | - Bernard J Crespi
- Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, 8888 University Drive, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada V5A 1S6.
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Ocklenburg S, Güntürkün O, Hugdahl K, Hirnstein M. Laterality and mental disorders in the postgenomic age – A closer look at schizophrenia and language lateralization. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2015; 59:100-10. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2015.08.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2015] [Revised: 07/08/2015] [Accepted: 08/31/2015] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
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35
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Ocklenburg S, Arning L, Gerding WM, Hengstler JG, Epplen JT, Güntürkün O, Beste C, Akkad DA. Left-Right Axis Differentiation and Functional Lateralization: a Haplotype in the Methyltransferase Encoding Gene SETDB2 Might Mediate Handedness in Healthy Adults. Mol Neurobiol 2015; 53:6355-6361. [PMID: 26572639 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-015-9534-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2015] [Accepted: 11/08/2015] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Handedness is a multifactorial trait, and genes contributing to the differentiation of the left-right axis during embryogenesis have been identified as a major gene group associated with this trait. The methyltransferase SETDB2 (SET domain, bifurcated 2) has been shown to regulate structural left-right asymmetry in the vertebrate central nervous system by suppressing fgf8 expression. Here, we investigated the relation of genetic variation in SETDB2-and its paralogue SETDB1-with different handedness phenotypes in 950 healthy adult participants. We identified a haplotype on SETDB2 for which homozygous individuals showed a significantly lower lateralization quotient for handedness than the rest of the cohort after correction for multiple comparisons. Moreover, direction of handedness was significantly associated with genetic variation in this haplotype. This effect was mainly, but not exclusively, driven by the sequence variation rs4942830, as individuals homozygous for the A allele of this single nucleotide polymorphism had a significantly lower lateralization quotient than individuals with at least one T allele. These findings further confirm a role of genetic pathways relevant for structural left-right axis differentiation for functional lateralization. Moreover, as the protein encoded by SETDB2 regulates gene expression epigenetically by histone H3 methylation, our findings highlight the importance of investigating the role of epigenetic modulations of gene expression in relation to handedness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian Ocklenburg
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Biopsychology, Department of Psychology, Ruhr-University, 44780, Bochum, Germany.
| | - Larissa Arning
- Department of Human Genetics, Ruhr-University, 44780, Bochum, Germany
| | - Wanda M Gerding
- Department of Human Genetics, Ruhr-University, 44780, Bochum, Germany
| | - Jan G Hengstler
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors (IfADo), 44139, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Jörg T Epplen
- Department of Human Genetics, Ruhr-University, 44780, Bochum, Germany
- Faculty of Health, University Witten-Herdecke, 58448, Witten, Germany
| | - Onur Güntürkün
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Biopsychology, Department of Psychology, Ruhr-University, 44780, Bochum, Germany
| | - Christian Beste
- Cognitive Neurophysiology, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine of the TU Dresden, 01309, Dresden, Germany
| | - Denis A Akkad
- Department of Human Genetics, Ruhr-University, 44780, Bochum, Germany
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Kavaklioglu T, Ajmal M, Hameed A, Francks C. Whole exome sequencing for handedness in a large and highly consanguineous family. Neuropsychologia 2015; 93:342-349. [PMID: 26581626 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2015.11.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2015] [Revised: 11/05/2015] [Accepted: 11/10/2015] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Pinpointing genes involved in non-right-handedness has the potential to clarify developmental contributions to human brain lateralization. Major-gene models have been considered for human handedness which allow for phenocopy and reduced penetrance, i.e. an imperfect correspondence between genotype and phenotype. However, a recent genome-wide association scan did not detect any common polymorphisms with substantial genetic effects. Previous linkage studies in families have also not yielded significant findings. Genetic heterogeneity and/or polygenicity are therefore indicated, but it remains possible that relatively rare, or even unique, major-genetic effects may be detectable in certain extended families with many non-right-handed members. Here we applied whole exome sequencing to 17 members from a single, large consanguineous family from Pakistan. Multipoint linkage analysis across all autosomes did not yield clear candidate genomic regions for involvement in the trait and single-point analysis of exomic variation did not yield clear candidate mutations/genes. Any genetic contribution to handedness in this unusual family is therefore likely to have a complex etiology, as at the population level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tulya Kavaklioglu
- Language and Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Muhammad Ajmal
- Institute of Biomedical and Genetic Engineering (IBGE), 24-Mauve Area, G-9/1, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - Abdul Hameed
- Institute of Biomedical and Genetic Engineering (IBGE), 24-Mauve Area, G-9/1, Islamabad, Pakistan.
| | - Clyde Francks
- Language and Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
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