From: David Grosof To: "jeevacation®gmail.com" <jeevacation®gmail.com> Subject: Genetics of brain size variation Date: Mon, 24 Aug 2009 23:54:36 +0000 Genetic variations lied to brain size for first time Posted In: R&D Daily I Biotechnology I Medical Imaging I Nanomedicine By Mark Schrope Monday, August 24, 2009 Using advanced brain imaging and genomics technologies, an international team of researchers co-led by Scripps Research Institute scientists has shown for the first time that natural variations in a specific gene influence brain structure. By establishing this link, the researchers have opened the door to a range of potential research efforts that could reveal gene variations responsible for a number of neurological conditions such as autism. The work was reported in an advance, online Early Edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) the week of August 17, 2009. The research grew out of a larger project called the Thematic Organized Psychosis (TOP) study, led by Ole Andreassen at Ullelval University Hospital and Institute of Psychiatry at the University of Oslo in Norway. TOP called for using extensive magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanning of hundreds of patients, including many with severe mental disorders, in collaboration with Anders Dale of the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), School of Medicine. Recognizing the potential of genetic studies conducted in conjunction with the braining imaging, the team reached out to include Nicholas Schork, a genetics expert at Scripps Research. In deciding a first target, the group decided to focus on a gene known as MECP2 because it plays major roles in controlling brain development. Past studies with mice have shown that MECP2 regulates the activity of a wide range of other genes important in brain development. Substantial mutations in the gene also cause the rare disease Retts syndrome, in which brain growth slows, leading to a range of debilitating neuro