ReviewJournal of speech, language, and hearing research : JSLHR2025
Four Decades of Inquiry Into the Genetic Bases of Specific Reading Disability.
Review in Journal of speech, language, and hearing research : JSLHR, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
- Deciphering the Language in Our DNA and Leveraging the Discoveries Toward Improved Outcomes: Introduction to the Forum.Journal of speech, language, and hearing research : JSLHR · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
Abstract
purposeThis study investigated the genetic bases of specific reading disability (SRD) by systematically cataloging candidate genes reported as associated with SRD and reading-related processes over the last 4 decades and analyzing their evolutionary conservation, developmental expression patterns, and functional networks to address significant knowledge gaps in understanding the genetic architecture of reading (dis)ability.
methodThrough a comprehensive literature review, we identified 175 putative SRD (and reading-related processes) candidate genes (hereafter, SRD genes). Using bioinformatic approaches, we analyzed their evolutionary conservation across species, examined their expression patterns in developmental and single-cell transcriptome data sets from the Allen Brain Atlas, and performed functional pathway analyses to identify biological processes associated with these genes.
resultsSRD genes showed remarkable evolutionary conservation, with enrichment in ancient taxonomic groups. Developmental transcriptome analysis revealed two distinct gene clusters with expression differentiation around 24 postconception weeks: early genes associated with brain morphology development and later genes involved in synaptic signaling. Single-cell analysis identified cell-type-specific expression patterns and protein-protein interaction networks with hub genes potentially coordinating reading-related neural pathways.
conclusionsOur findings challenge the notion of the existence of reading-specific genes, suggesting instead that SRD reflects the disruption of ancient evolutionary neural mechanisms operating within human-specific brain architecture. The identification of developmental expression transitions and functional networks provides insight into how genetic variation might impact reading development and offers potential targets for future clinical approaches to the identification and remediation of reading difficulties. SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL: https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.30290446.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.