Passage 31
学霸导读 关于左撇子的遗传学研究，终于有了进展！
Scientists have d 1 the f irst genetic markers （ 遗传标志 ） tied to being left-handed， according to a new study. In addition， these genetic markers may play r 2 in brain development and communication between different brain areas， the authors said. According to Dr. Akira Wiberg， a research fellow （ 研究员 ） at the University of Oxford，the f indings， published in the journal Brain， has made it easier to explain the biological processes leading to left-handedness.
About one in ten people worldwide are left-handed. Scientists have known that genes contribute to being left-handed， but it was not c 3 which genes are involved. In the new study， the researchers analyzed the genomes （ 基因组 ） of about 400，000 people in the U.K. whose health records and genomic （ 基因组的 ） data are part of a database （ 数据库 ） known as the U.K. Biobank （ 英国生物样本库 ）. Of these， about 38，000 were left-handed.
The researchers looked for differences in the DNA between left-handers and right-handers， and they identif ied （ 识别 ） four genetic markers related to being left-handed. Three of these markers were located in genes that provide instructions （ 指令 ） for making proteins involved in the setup of microtubules （ 微管 ）， which make up the “scaffolding （ 脚手架 ）” i 4 cells， known as the cytoskeleton （ 细胞骨架 ）.
The researchers also analyzed brain scans （ 扫描结果 ） of about 10，000 participants （ 参与者 ） and found that these genetic markers are linked with differences in the brain’s white matter （ 白 质 ） —long nerve f ibers that a 5 the areas of the brain to communicate. In particular， the differences were most noticeable in areas connecting language-related regions in the brain. “We discovered that， in left-handed participants， the l 6 areas of the left and right sides of the brain communicate with each other in a more coordinated （ 协调的 ） way，” Dr. Wiberg said.
The f inding suggests that the “left-handers might have an a 7 when it comes to preforming verbal tasks”, but much more research would be needed to show this.
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高频词汇
contribute /kən'trɪbjuːt/ v. 贡献，奉献
analyze /'ænəlaɪz/ v. 分析
setup /'setʌp/ n. 组织，设置，安排
in particular 特别，尤其
verbal /'vɜːbl/ adj. 言语的；文字的