Media Release | May 6, 2002
UBC researcher finds genetic link to aggression
A University of British Columbia geneticist and senior scientist
at Vancouver's Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics (CMMT)
has defined a link between mouse genes and pathological aggression
which may lead to new understanding and treatment of violent behaviour
and brain disease in humans.
Elizabeth M. Simpson, an associate professor of Medical Genetics,
has discovered a genetic mutation, dubbed fierce, that produces
violence in mice. Its effects are extreme aggression including killing
of intended mates and sibling mice, significant brain defects and
physical differences such as decreased size, body fat and eye abnormalities.
Simpson is the first Canadian researcher amongst a small group
worldwide identifying genes linked to extreme aggression.
The mutation occurs in the gene Nr2e1, which is the first
in a newly classified group of brain receptors known to exist in
organisms ranging from fruit flies to humans. The mutation clearly
demonstrates that in mice, violence has a genetic component.
"This discovery reinforces Dr. Simpson's leadership in research
that combines genetic engineering with the study of the brain and
mental health," says Dr. Michael Hayden, CMMT director. "By
advancing the understanding of genetics and behaviour, scientists
at the centre hope to contribute to new diagnostics and treatment
for both physical and mental illness."
Simpson is principal investigator in the study, which was done
in collaboration with U.S. researchers at Johns Hopkins University
and The Jackson Laboratory. The findings will be published in this
month's issue of Behavioural Brain Research.
"My approach is to develop mouse models of mental disease
and use what we learn from mice to accelerate the understanding
of human abnormal behaviour and to develop gene-based therapies
to treat inherited mental illness," says Simpson, who is the
Canada Research Chair in Genetics and Behaviour.
By studying the genetic defect on three separate strains of mouse,
she has determined that other genes can influence the original mutation.
Future studies will focus on identifying genes that may act as modifiers.
"The fierce mouse is not yet an ideal model for human aggression
and a lot more work remains to be done before this discovery leads
to new therapies for humans," Simpson says.
The CMMT, a centre of the B.C. Research Institute for Children's
& Women's Health, is a multidisciplinary centre focused on determining
genetic contributions to different illnesses and developing new
approaches to therapy.
B.C.'s Children's Hospital Foundation is launching a $35 million
campaign to support genetic research at the CMMT.
UBC's Faculty of Medicine currently graduates 128 students annually
from a four-year program and attracts more than $90 million in research
funding annually.
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