Biology:LRRTM1

Short description: Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Generic protein structure example

LRRTM1 is a brain-expressed imprinted gene that encodes a leucine-rich repeat transmembrane protein that interacts with neurexins and neuroligins to modulate synaptic cell adhesion in neurons. As the name implies, its protein product is a transmembrane protein that contains many leucine rich repeats. It is expressed during the development of specific forebrain structures and shows a variable pattern of maternal downregulation (genomic imprinting).

Clinical significance

LRRTM1 is the first gene linked to increased odds of being left-handed, when inherited from the father's side. Possessing one particular variant of the LRRTM1 gene slightly raises the risk of psychotic mental illnesses such as schizophrenia, again only if inherited from the father's side. As well, LRRTM1 has been associated with measures of schizotypy in non-clinical populations, indicating that the gene may have shared effects on neurodevelopment in both healthy and unhealthy individuals and individuals with schizophrenia.

LRRTM1 is also critically involved in synapse formation within the dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus (dLGN) of mice. LRRTM1 aids in the assembly of complex retinogenciulate synapses in mice, which are believed to help process complex visual signals. Lack of this gene shows decreased performance in complex visual tasks.

See also

• Handedness

Further reading

• "The imprinted gene LRRTM1 mediates schizotypy and handedness in a nonclinical population". Journal of Human Genetics 59 (6): 332–6. June 2014. doi:10.1038/jhg.2014.30. PMID 24785688. 
• "Polymorphisms in leucine-rich repeat genes are associated with autism spectrum disorder susceptibility in populations of European ancestry". Molecular Autism 1 (1): 7. March 2010. doi:10.1186/2040-2392-1-7. PMID 20678249. 
• "Where and what is the right shift factor or cerebral dominance gene? A critique of Francks et al. (2007)". Laterality 14 (1): 3–10. January 2009. doi:10.1080/13576500802574984. PMID 19125366. 
• "Oligo-capping: a simple method to replace the cap structure of eukaryotic mRNAs with oligoribonucleotides". Gene 138 (1–2): 171–4. January 1994. doi:10.1016/0378-1119(94)90802-8. PMID 8125298. 
• "The secreted protein discovery initiative (SPDI), a large-scale effort to identify novel human secreted and transmembrane proteins: a bioinformatics assessment". Genome Research 13 (10): 2265–70. October 2003. doi:10.1101/gr.1293003. PMID 12975309. 
• "Supporting evidence for LRRTM1 imprinting effects in schizophrenia". Molecular Psychiatry 14 (8): 743–5. August 2009. doi:10.1038/mp.2009.28. PMID 19626025. 
• "Editorial commentary: is LRRTM1 the gene for handedness?". Laterality 14 (1): 1–2. January 2009. doi:10.1080/13576500802542577. PMID 19125365. 
• "Construction and characterization of a full length-enriched and a 5'-end-enriched cDNA library". Gene 200 (1–2): 149–56. October 1997. doi:10.1016/S0378-1119(97)00411-3. PMID 9373149. 
• "Understanding the genetics of behavioural and psychiatric traits will only be achieved through a realistic assessment of their complexity". Laterality 14 (1): 11–6. January 2009. doi:10.1080/13576500802536439. PMID 19125367.