BIOL 320 Lecture Notes - Lecture 19: Foxp2, Nidopallium, Rna Interference
James
atricial = need to be raised and taught by parents
→
delayed neurogenesis—
precocial = are more independent when they're born, e.g. can walk around right away—
parrots/songbirds can learn songs vs. ducks/geese can't•
black, grey = brain doesn't grow as much—
blue = tends to grow a lot—
so we think this delaying of neurogenesis may have lead to ability in these animals to learn, and to have these
higher cognitive functions. it makes sense—if your brain grows as you're interacting with the environment, you
have a better ability to learn, because your brain isn't already set
•
they can learn from the environment in more complex ways
•
pedigree suggested that there was a genetic disease more than just environmental. and so they were
eventually able to identify the specific gen causing these mutations
•
it's active in a bunch of different pathways —
just have a sense of the variability and the wide use of this protein (you don't need to remember specifics)—
FOXP2 is not a human-specific gene, it's been identified in a lot of different species•
vocal learning: sensory phase (learning), sensorimotor phase (practicing), crystallisation •
FoxP2 Expression in Avian Vocal Learners
zebra finch is a close-ended learner, i.e. only 1 window of opportunity to learn songs, at juvenile stage
•
they're able to continue learning new elements over time
—
vs. canary can learn songs over time•
19. FoxP2
March 26, 2018 11:52
BIOL 320 Page 1
