




“This ground breaking work has implications for how we understand the emergence of psychiatric disorders and will offer new avenues for the development of new treatments,” said John Williams, head of Neuroscience and Mental Health at the Wellcome Trust and a sponsor of the study.

The research team examined and compared the mental abilities of mice and humans through the use of tasks that involved the identification of objects on touch-screen computers. The results of these tests were then combined with detailed genetic information from a variety of animal species. In this way, the scientists were able to determine when different types of animal behavior evolved.

Their results indicated that higher-level cognitive functions in both humans and mice are actually controlled by the same genes. They also observed that when these genes were damaged through mutation, they tended to damage the sophisticated mental functions in both species.

“Our work shows that the price of higher intelligence and more complex behaviours is more mental illness,” concluded Grant.

The same research team previously demonstrated that over 100 childhood and adult brain diseases are caused by genetic mutations.

“We can now apply genetics and behavioural testing to help patients with these diseases,” said Professor Tim Bussey, a neuroscientist at Cambridge University who was also involved in the study.

About these ads