Excitation/inhibition imbalance has been proposed as a fundamental mechanism in the pathogenesis of neuropsychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders, in which copy number variations of the Unc-51 like kinase 4 (ULK4) gene encoding a putative Serine/Threonine kinase have been reported in approximately 1/1000 of patients suffering pleiotropic clinical conditions of schizophrenia, depression, autistic spectrum disorder (ASD), developmental delay, language delay, intellectual disability, or behavioral disorder. The gene discussed is ULK4; the disease is depressive disorder.