Short Biographical Sketch

Nicoline G. Ambrose, Ph.D. CCC-SLP, is an Associate Professor in the Department of Speech and Hearing Science. Her research has focused on the onset and development of childhood stuttering, with particular reference to epidemiologic factors and identification of subtypes in terms of genetics and neural substrates. She also has an interest in evolution of human communication.

Lecture Title | videoconferencing

Possible Genetic Factors in Subtypes of Stuttering

Abstract

It is clear that there is a genetic component in the transmission of susceptibility to stuttering, but its exact nature remains unclear. We do not know what or how many genes are involved, what their effects on the development of language-related areas of the brain are, how they interact with environmental factors, and how this results in stuttering behaviors. Despite the enormity of the task, much progress is being made. The Illinois International Stuttering Research Program has identified a possible genetic component in the differentiation of stuttering that persists and early natural recovery from stuttering, and has begun to narrow down the search for specific genes involved. It appears that there are, in part, significantly different genetic contributions to stuttering in males and females. Thus there may be some genetic components common to all developmental stuttering, but other components may differ between the sexes and perhaps from family to family. The current findings on the genetic etiology and subsequent development of childhood stuttering into possible subtypes will be presented.

Learning Outcomes

Participants will learn:

1. to describe the nature of genetic contributions to the development of stuttering,
2. to describe possible subtypes of stuttering,
3. to understand how genetic studies of stuttering are conducted.