WCPG 2011

Recent articles

Spectrum from The Transmitter.

Ambitious U.K. project set to sequence 10,000 genomes

The largest and most ambitious genome-sequencing project to date aims to identify rare variants and study their association to disease traits in 10,000 people.

By Deborah Rudacille
15 September 2011 | 3 min read
Spectrum from The Transmitter.

Autism exome study pinpoints mutations in brain genes

Children with autism carry many more spontaneous point mutations in genes expressed in the brain compared with their unaffected siblings, according to unpublished findings presented Monday at the World Congress of Psychiatric Genetics in Washington, D.C.

By Deborah Rudacille
14 September 2011 | 4 min read
Spectrum from The Transmitter.

Researchers identify gene regulating amygdala volume

A variant of the FGF14 gene may decrease the volume of the amygdala, a brain structure needed to interpret emotions in facial expressions, according to results presented on Sunday at the World Congress of Psychiatric Genetics in Washington, D.C.

By Deborah Rudacille
13 September 2011 | 3 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

Colorful illustration of a latticework of proteins.

Cracking the code of the extracellular matrix

Despite evidence for a role in plasticity and other crucial functions, many neuroscientists still view these proteins as “brain goop.” The field needs technical advances and a shift in scientific thinking to move beyond this outdated perspective.

By Anna Victoria Molofsky
17 January 2025 | 5 min read
A repeated DNA strand extends farther from the left side of the image with each iteration.

Huntington’s disease gene variants past a certain size poison select cells

The findings—providing “the next step in the whole pathway”—help explain the disease’s late onset and offer hope that it has an extended therapeutic window.

By Angie Voyles Askham
16 January 2025 | 6 min read
Research image highlighting different brain regions.

X marks the spot in search for autism variants

Genetic variants on the X chromosome, including those in the gene DDX53, contribute to autism’s gender imbalance, two new studies suggest.

By Holly Barker
16 January 2025 | 6 min read