Open AccessAccelerated evolution of oligodendrocytes in the human brain
Author(s) -
Stefano Berto,
Isabel Mendizabal,
Noriyoshi Usui,
Kazuya Toriumi,
Paramita Chatterjee,
Connor Douglas,
Carol A. Tamminga,
Todd M. Preuss,
Soojin V. Yi,
Geneviève Konopka
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
proceedings of the national academy of sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.011
H-Index - 771
eISSN - 1091-6490
pISSN - 0027-8424
DOI - 10.1073/pnas.1907982116
Subject(s) - oligodendrocyte , neuroscience , biology , human brain , transcriptome , neuron , lineage (genetic) , cell type , alternative splicing , gene , gene expression , cell , myelin , central nervous system , genetics , messenger rna
Significance Neurons have an important role in human brain evolution. However, the contribution of other brain cell types to human brain evolution has been largely unexplored. In this study, we take advantage of recent advances in transcriptomic profiling techniques to characterize 2 distinct cell types (neurons and oligodendrocytes) from the prefrontal cortex of human, chimpanzee, and rhesus macaque brain tissue. Our data reveal that oligodendrocytes have undergone an increased acceleration in the human lineage compared with neurons. Moreover, we find that human-specific genes in oligodendrocytes are enriched for genes associated with neuropsychiatric disorders, underscoring the importance of oligodendrocytes in both human brain evolution and cognitive diseases.
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