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Of the 20,000 genes in the human genome, few are more fascinating than FOXP2, a gene that underlies the faculty of human speech. All animals have an FOXP2 gene, but the human version's product differs at just 2 of its 740 units from that of chimpanzees, suggesting that this tiny evolutionary fix may hold the key to why people can speak and chimps cannot.

"Birds learn to sing their songs and babies learn to make the sounds of their language in the same way.... Furthermore, both birds and humans go through a period [critical period] when learning is best accomplished... the brain architecture supporting babbling and birdsong is similar...the same mutated gene, FOXP2, is implicated in both [birdsong and speech]."

What a find! He talks about so many of the things we've touched on, and the fact that he titles his post "Birds R Us" is just too funny. :) I like that he provides the links to the original research, too.

This paper discusses how the gene FOXP2 is related to certain speech and language disorders, such as apraxia, or difficulty coordinating parts of the mouth to form speech. This research is important when placed into the wider debate of Nature Vs. Nurture, as it demonstrates that genetics may have the capacity to influence language acquisition.

The importance of FOXP2, and how it affects language.

People have a deep desire to communicate with animals, as is evident from the way they converse with their dogs, enjoy myths about talking animals or devote lifetimes to teaching chimpanzees how to speak. A delicate, if tiny, step has now been taken toward the real thing: the creation of a mouse with a human gene for language.

This article explores the role of the human language gene (FOXP2) in mice and how it has affected them cognitively.

"...consensus is emerging that FOXP2 probably plays a more fundamental role in the brain. Its presence in the basal ganglia and cerebellums of different animals provides a clue as to what that role might be. Both regions help to produce precise sequences of muscle movements. Not only that, they are also able to integrate information coming in from the senses with motor commands sent from other parts of the brain."

The FOXP2 gene, a front-runner to explain the evolution of language in humans, may have rewired the brain to allow more advanced learning, according to preliminary research presented at the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting this month. In a recent experiment, Christiane Schreiweis of the Max Planck Institute and colleagues looked at the human version of the gene in mice.