Overview
- NYCU researchers reported Tuesday in EMBO Reports that early neural firing in newborn mice helps mature vocal circuits by turning up the speech‑linked gene Foxp2 in a preclinical rodent model.
- The team mapped a pathway from the ventromedial prefrontal cortex to the striatum that bursts with activity just before ultrasonic calls.
- Driving this forebrain loop raised Foxp2 levels in the connected neurons during early development.
- Heightened activity during this period also increased the number of new synapses within corticostriatal circuits that link emotion, sensing, and movement.
- Stimulating the same pathway during development partially restored vocalizations in mice carrying a Foxp2 mutation.