TIFR scientists identify ‘critical’ role of gene in brain wiring

Once the mechanism of this gene control wiring is understood,it could be tested as a potential marker to screen for neurological disorders such as schizophrenia and autism.

The findings will be published this week in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS),USA.

“Our sensory system has the ability to discern signals coming in from various sensory modalities such as visual,auditory,or somatosensory (touch) pathways at a high resolution. We found that a gene,Lhx2,regulates the formation of high-resolution neuro-circuitry for touch in mice,that gives the animal the ability to tell two things apart. This gene controls how the brain is wired up and a better circuitry leads to a richer ability to enjoy a richer sensory world,” said

Dr Shubha Tole,principal investigator.

Ashwin Shetty,a PhD student who made the key observation in his experiments,said while this gene was discovered long ago,the team has discovered a new critical role that it plays as a central regulator of circuit formation in the brain.

“This will open the door to further studies that unravel exactly how the process is executed. This,in turn,could give insights into how defective circuit formation leads to neurological disorders such as schizophrenia and other disorders of the brain function,” said Shetty.

Tole said the gene controls how the brain is wired and the more enhanced the wiring,the better the ability to differentiate between two things.

“For instance,those who used Braille readers have an

enhanced touch perception. This can be attributed to a better developed touch-sensation circuitry in the brain,” she said.

mihika.basu@expressindia.com