FOXP2

Forkhead box protein P2 (FOXP2) is a <a href="/facts/Protein/Jxmagu3E">protein</a> that, in humans, is encoded by the FOXP2 <a href="/facts/Gene/e1swwPY6">gene</a>. FOXP2 is a member of the <a href="/facts/Forkhead_box/lqTnl0XV">forkhead box</a> family of <a href="/facts/Transcription_factors/wro0DPHe">transcription factors</a>, proteins that <a href="/facts/Regulation_of_gene_expression/9N4G341I">regulate gene expression</a> by <a href="/facts/DNA-binding_protein/HEMm9eDX">binding to DNA</a>. It is expressed in the brain, heart, lungs and digestive system.
FOXP2 is found in many <a href="/facts/Vertebrates/tT54FSTT">vertebrates</a>, where it plays an important role in mimicry in birds (such as <a href="/facts/Birdsong/5A0oHvHo">birdsong</a>) and <a href="/facts/Animal_echolocation/2hggutJV">echolocation</a> in bats. FOXP2 is also required for the proper development of speech and language in humans. In humans, mutations in FOXP2 cause the severe speech and language disorder <a href="/facts/Developmental_verbal_dyspraxia/810mWJsC">developmental verbal dyspraxia</a>. Studies of the gene in mice and songbirds indicate that it is necessary for vocal imitation and the related motor learning. Outside the brain, FOXP2 has also been implicated in development of other tissues such as the lung and digestive system.
Initially identified in 1998 as the genetic cause of a <a href="/facts/Speech_disorder/99psJAz4">speech disorder</a> in a British family designated the <a href="/facts/KE_family/JyeYp2E5">KE family</a>, FOXP2 was the first gene discovered to be associated with speech and language and was subsequently dubbed "the language gene". However, other genes are necessary for human language development, and a 2018 analysis confirmed that there was no evidence of recent positive <a href="/facts/Evolutionary_selection/JXTte6en">evolutionary selection</a> of FOXP2 in humans.

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FOXP2