Behavioural Genetics Group
The Behavioural Genetics Group (BGG) works on one of the biggest questions in biology today. How do the genetic cards we are dealt at the moment of conception interact with our lifetime experiences, from womb to grave, to give rise to our unique behavioural profile and our risk of neurological and psychiatric disorder? Until recently, the complexities of such gene-environment interactions seemed overwhelming but new methods and insights now mean this problem is becoming increasingly tractable.
Active areas of research in the BGG include work on familial forms of dementia and novel autosomal and X-linked genetic mechanisms influencing fear, attention and impulsive behaviours. Work on the X chromosome is giving rise to new ideas about the genetic basis of sexually dimorphic behaviours (beyond SRY and gonadal hormones). A major interest of the group is in the emerging field of behavioural epigenetics (gene effects not involving changes in DNA sequence) and the concept that environmental stimuli can influence gene expression in brain, and subsequent long term behaviour patterns, by epigenetic changes in DNA methylation and/or chromatin modifications. Recently, we have been studying a special form of epigenetic mechanism, genomic imprinting, in the context of brain function and behaviour.
We work with colleagues in Cardiff, the UK and Internationally, to develop our work and to translate our basic research findings into clinically relevant areas.