Accelerated evolution of Protocadherin11X/Y: a candidate gene-pair for cerebral asymmetry and language.

It has been argued that cerebral asymmetry (the "torque") is the characteristic that defines the human brain and that morphological findings in psychosis are consistent with a deviation in this sex-dependent dimension of brain growth. Evidence from sex chromosome aneuploidies and an association within families between sex and handedness is consistent with the presence of a determinant of cerebral asymmetry (a possible correlate of language) on the X and the Y chromosomes. During hominid evolution a 3.

ProtocadherinX/Y, a candidate gene-pair for schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder: a DHPLC investigation of genomic sequence.

Protocadherin X and Protocadherin Y (PCDHX and PCDHY) are cell-surface adhesion molecules expressed predominantly in the brain. The PCDHX/Y gene-pair was generated by an X-Y translocation approximately 3 million years ago (MYA) that gave rise to the Homo sapiens-specific region of Xq21.3 and Yp11.