[00:00.00]A new study suggests the beginnings of human speech are linked to genetics.
[00:09.03]The research identifies a protein - found only in people - that may have helped early humans develop spoken communication.
[00:19.11]Scientists involved in the study say this new speaking ability became important for humans' survival.
[00:27.80]For example, speech permitted individuals to share information, organize activities and pass down knowledge.
[00:36.73]These abilities are now seen as an advantage humans had over their relatives, such as the Neanderthals and Denisovans.
[00:47.52]The researchers recently published their findings in a study in the journal Nature Communications.
[00:55.06]Liza Finestack teaches about speech and hearing at the University of Minnesota.
[01:01.03]She told The Associated Press (AP) the new study is "a good first step to start looking at the specific genes" that may affect speech and language development.
[01:14.74]Finestack was not involved in the study.
[01:19.07]Dr. Robert Darnell has long been studying the protein - called NOVA1 - at his laboratory at New York's Rockefeller University.
[01:29.92]He helped lead the new research and was a writer of the study.
[01:35.82]Darnell told the AP the genetic version, or variant, included the protein that helped humans develop into the "dominant species" that remains today.
[01:47.50]The latest research involved scientists using CRISPR gene editing methods to replace the NOVA1 protein found in mice with the one found in humans.
[02:00.90]The aim was to test the real-life effects of the genetic variant.
[02:05.48]The researchers were surprised to learn that the variant changed the way the animals called out to each other.
[02:13.62]Baby mice with the human variant made a different sound than normal mice do when their mother came around.
[02:22.34]Adult male mice with the variant also made different sounds when they were near a female they wanted to mate with.
[02:31.89]Darnell said both of these situations gave the mice a reason to speak.
[02:37.31]Those with the human variant "spoke differently," demonstrating the gene's influence in speech, he added.
[02:46.30]This is not the first time a gene has been linked to speech.
[02:51.02]In 2001, British scientists said they had discovered the first gene tied to a language and speech disorder.
[03:00.20]Researchers called this human language gene FOXP2.
[03:04.47]But even though FOXP2 was found to be linked to human language, the variant in modern humans was not found in our species alone.
[03:14.72]Later research found it was shared with Neanderthals.
[03:19.59]The NOVA1 variant in modern humans, on the other hand, is found only in our species, Darnell said.
[03:29.53]The presence of a gene variant is not the only thing that permits people to speak.
[03:35.70]The ability also depends on physical elements in the human throat and areas of the brain that work together to help people produce speech and understand language.
[03:48.84]Darnell said he hopes the recent work can lead to new ways to treat speech-related problems.
[03:56.07]The University of Minnesota's Finestack noted the genetic findings could also one day permit scientists to identify people who might need help developing speech and language early in life.
[04:12.00]"That's certainly a possibility," she said.
[04:15.75]I'm Jill Robbins.
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Words in This Story
advantage - n. something (such as a good position or condition) that helps to make someone or something better or more likely to succeed than others
specific - adj. special or particular
variant - n. something that is different in some way from others of the same kind
dominant - adj. more important, powerful, or successful than most or all others
species - n. biology. a group of animals or plants that are similar and can reproduce
CRISPR - n. short for CRISPR-Cas9, it is a genome-editing tool that allows scientists to precisely cut and modify DNA sequences.
throat - n. the tube inside the neck that leads to the stomach and lungs
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