A paper published by the Flores laboratory sheds some light on the role of gene, called DCC, which controls dopamine connectivity in the prefrontal cortex during adolescence, and show that dysfunction of the gene — through stress and drug abuse, for example — can lead to long-term mental health consequences.
View the original research article:
Manitt C, Eng C, Pokinko M, Ryan R, Torres-Berrio A, Lopez J P, Yogendran S, Daubaras M, Grant A, Ewoud R E, Krimpenfort P, Cooper H, Pasterkamp J, Kolb B, Turecki G, Wong T-P, Nestler E J, Giros B, Flores C (2013) dcc orchestrates the development of the prefrontal cortex during adolescence and is altered in psychiatric patients Translational Psychiatry, 3,e338; doi:10.1038/tp.2013.105 PMID:24346136
View media coverage of this story:
- CTV National News: Discovery of ‘teen gene’ could help combat severe mental illness later in life
- The Boston Globe: Teens’ brains make them more vulnerable to suicide
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