Comparative studies of the cerebral cortex have identified various human and primate-specific changes in both local and long-range connectivity, which are thought to underlie our advanced cognitive capabilities. These changes are likely mediated by the divergence of spatiotemporal regulation of gene expression, which is particularly prominent in the prenatal and early postnatal human and non-human primate cerebral cortex. In this review, we describe recent advances in characterizing human and primate genetic and cellular innovations including identification of novel species-specific, especially human-specific, genes, gene expression patterns, and cell types. Finally, we highlight three recent studies linking these molecular changes to reorganization of cortical connectivity.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.conb.2023.102699 | DOI Listing |
Sci Rep
January 2025
Support Centre for Advanced Neuroimaging (SCAN), Institute for Diagnostic and Interventional Neuroradiology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
This study aims to establish an imitation task of multi-finger haptics in the context of regular grasping and regrasping processes during activities of daily living. A video guided the 26 healthy, right-handed volunteers through the three phases of the task: (1) fixation of a hand holding a cuboid, (2) observation of the sensori-motor manipulation, (3) imitation of that motor action. fMRI recorded the task; graph analysis of the acquisitions revealed the associated functional cerebral connectivity patterns.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPsychiatr Clin North Am
March 2025
Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA; Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA.
The underlying pathophysiology of tics in Tourette syndrome is a topic of major scientific interest. To date, there is an absence of consensus among researchers regarding the precise anatomic location responsible for tics. The goal of this article is to review the current understanding of these brain circuits and data supporting specific anatomic regions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBiol Open
January 2025
Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.
Cell fate decisions during cortical development sculpt the identity of long-range connections that subserve complex behaviors. These decisions are largely dictated by mutually exclusive transcription factors, including CTIP2/Bcl11b for subcerebral projection neurons and BRN1/Pou3f3 for intra-telencephalic projection neurons. We have recently reported that the balance of cortical CTIP2-expressing neurons is altered in a mouse model of DDX3X syndrome, a female-biased neurodevelopmental disorder associated with intellectual disability, autism spectrum disorder, and significant motor challenges.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHum Brain Mapp
February 2025
Department of Psychology, Ludwig Maximilian University Munich, Munich, Germany.
Accurate metacognitive judgments about an individual's performance in a mental task require the brain to have access to representations of the quality and difficulty of first-order cognitive processes. However, little is known about how accurate metacognitive judgments are implemented in the brain. Here, we combine brain stimulation with functional neuroimaging to determine the neural and psychological mechanisms underlying the frontopolar cortex's (FPC) role in metacognition.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPhysiol Rep
February 2025
Berlin Institute of Health at Charité, Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Center of Functional Genomics, Berlin, Germany.
The zona glomerulosa (ZG) synthesizes the mineralocorticoid aldosterone. The primary role of aldosterone is the maintenance of volume and electrolyte homeostasis. Aldosterone synthesis is primarily regulated via tightly controlled oscillations in intracellular calcium levels in response to stimulation.
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