A forkhead-domain gene is mutated in a severe speech and language disorder
Nature. 2001 Oct 4;413(6855):519-23.
doi: 10.1038/35097076.
Authors
C S Lai 1, S E Fisher, J A Hurst, F Vargha-Khadem, A P Monaco
Affiliation
●1Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics, University of Oxford, Roosevelt Drive, Oxford OX3 7BN, UK.
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PMID:
11586359
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DOI:
10.1038/35097076
Abstract
Individuals affected with developmental disorders of speech and language have substantial difficulty acquiring expressive and/or receptive language in the absence of any profound sensory or neurological impairment and despite adequate intelligence and opportunity. Although studies of twins consistently indicate that a significant genetic component is involved, most families segregating speech and language deficits show complex patterns of inheritance, and a gene that predisposes individuals to such disorders has not been identified. We have studied a unique three-generation pedigree, KE, in which a severe speech and language disorder is transmitted as an autosomal-dominant monogenic trait. Our previous work mapped the locus responsible, SPCH1, to a 5.6-cM interval of region 7q31 on chromosome 7 (ref. 5). We also identified an unrelated individual, CS, in whom speech and language impairment is associated with a chromosomal translocation involving the SPCH1 interval. Here we show that the gene FOXP2, which encodes a putative transcription factor containing a polyglutamine tract and a forkhead DNA-binding domain, is directly disrupted by the translocation breakpoint in CS. In addition, we identify a point mutation in affected members of the KE family that alters an invariant amino-acid residue in the forkhead domain. Our findings suggest that FOXP2 is involved in the developmental process that culminates in speech and language.
Publication types
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Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
MeSH terms
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Amino Acid Sequence
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Chromosome Mapping
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Chromosomes, Human, Pair 7
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Female
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Forkhead Transcription Factors
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Humans
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Language Disorders / genetics*
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Male
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Molecular Sequence Data
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Pedigree
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Point Mutation
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Protein Structure, Tertiary
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Repressor Proteins / chemistry
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Repressor Proteins / genetics*
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Repressor Proteins / physiology
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Sequence Homology, Amino Acid
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Speech Disorders / genetics*
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Transcription Factors*
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Translocation, Genetic
Substances
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FOXP2 protein, human
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Forkhead Transcription Factors
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Repressor Proteins
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Transcription Factors