by Why did people talk? Scientists suggest that genetics played a major role – and they say that the development of this unique ability is the key to our survival.
A new study combines a certain gene with the old origins of the spoken language and suggests that a protein variant that was only found in humans helped us to communicate in a new way. Through the language we were able to exchange information, coordinate activities and pass on the knowledge, which gave us an advantage over extinct cousins such as Neanderthals and Denisovans.
The new study is “a good first step to examine the specific genes” that can affect language and language development, said Liza Finestack at the University of Minnesota, which was not involved in research.
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What scientists learn can even help people with language problems.
The genetic variant researchers looked at one of a variety of genes “who contributed to the development of Homo sapiens as dominant species,” said Dr. Robert Darnell, author of the study published on Tuesday in the magazine Nature Communication.
Darnell has been investigating the protein that is known as Nova1 and is known for the development of the brain since the early 1990s. For the latest studies, scientists used the processing of crispr genes in his laboratory at New York Rockefeller University to replace the Nova1 protein found in mice with the only human type in order to test the real effects of the genetic variant. To her surprise, it changed the way the animals spoke out of each other when they called each other.
Baby mice with the human variant squeaked differently than normal throwing siblings when her mother came around. Adult male mice with the variant chirping differently than their normal counterparts when they saw a woman in the heat.
Both are settings in which mice are motivated to speak, said Darnell, “and they spoke differently” with the human variant and illustrate their role in the language.
This is not the first time that a gene has been connected to the language. In 2001 British scientists said they had discovered the first gene that was associated with a language and language disorder.
Called FoxP2, it was referred to as the human language gene. Although FOXP2 is involved in human language, it turned out that the variant of modern man was not unique for us. Later studies showed that it was shared with Neanderthals. The Nova1 variant in modern people, on the other hand, can only be found in our species, said Darnell.
The presence of a gene variant is not the only reason why people can speak. The ability also depends on things like anatomical characteristics in the human neck and the areas of the brain that work together to enable people to speak and understand language.
Darnell hopes that the latest work not only helps people to understand their origins better, but also lead to new opportunities for the treatment of language problems.
The Finstack of University of Minnesota said that it is more likely that the genetic knowledge would make it possible to recognize scientists very early in life that may need language and language interventions.
“This is certainly a possibility,” she said.
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