![]() So, we decided to do this study to understand what is unique about humans in this brain region.” It has also been implicated in several neuropsychiatric disorders. “It has been associated with several relevant functions in terms of high cognition, like working memory. It doesn’t exist in other species,” Sousa says. This cortical area only exists in primates. “We are profiling the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex because it is particularly interesting. Sousa, who studies the developmental biology of the brain at UW–Madison’s Waisman Center, decided to start by studying and categorizing the cells in the prefrontal cortex in partnership with the Yale University lab where he worked as a postdoctoral researcher. The cellular differences between these species may illuminate steps in their evolution and how those differences can be implicated in disorders, such as autism and intellectual disabilities, seen in humans. A new study, published recently in the journal Science by a team including University of Wisconsin–Madison neuroscience professor Andre Sousa, investigates the differences and similarities of cells in the prefrontal cortex - the frontmost region of the brain, an area that plays a central role in higher cognitive functions - between humans and non-human primates such as chimpanzees, Rhesus macaques and marmosets. Understanding the molecular differences that make the human brain distinct can help researchers study disruptions in its development. And yet, the smallest changes may make big differences in developmental and psychiatric disorders. While the physical differences between humans and non-human primates are quite distinct, a new study reveals their brains may be remarkably similar. Researchers analyzed genetic material from cells in the prefrontal cortex (the area shaded in each brain) from four closely-related primates to characterize subtle differences in cell type and genetics.
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