[Source: Science Daily]

Genes for many may be widely associated with determining certain traits and characteristics. Now a study co-led by John H. Martin of The CUNY School of Medicine at The City College of New York is demonstrating that they could also influence neural motor skills. This could lead to new insights in the treatment of motor skills impairments such as Cerebral Palsy.

Martin and his collaborators from Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Yutaka Yoshida and Zirong Gu, found that the lost function of two genes prevent infant laboratory mice from developing motor skills as they mature into adults. The cause is neural circuits between the brain’s motor cortex region and the spinal cord that did not properly reorganize in mice as they matured. These circuits are part of the cortical spinal network, which coordinates the activation of muscles in limbs.

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