Selection in European populations of genes regulated by
FOXP2, a key factor in development and language
Researchers have designed a method that can universally test
for evolutionary adaption, or positive (Darwinian) selection, in any chosen set
of genes, using re-sequencing data such as that generated by the 1000 Genomes
Project. The method identifies gene sets that show evidence for positive
selection in comparison with matched controls, and thus highlights genes for
further functional studies.
The method was employed to test whether any of the genes
directly regulated by FOXP2 may themselves have undergone positive selection
following the known selection at the FOXP2 genetic region. Human FOXP2 defects
have been implicated in speech and language disorders, and altered versions of
the gene have been selected several times during human evolution. Have these
evolutionary changes in FOXP2 function or expression exposed its target genes
to novel selective pressures?