8/23/2023 0 Comments Companies like decode genetics![]() One, roughly the thickness of printer paper, was used to sequence each cell’s genetic profile. To start, the team carefully sliced the brain from front to back with several expert cuts. ![]() With over six billion cells, their brains are evolutionarily close to ours. The team analyzed brains from three adult male macaque monkeys. The new study mainly focused on these brain cells. They aren’t side characters: recent studies show they play a critical role in the shaping of neural networks in early development and for battling neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer’s. Others support neural metabolism and clean up molecular waste. Some help protect the brain from infections. GABAergic cells are inhibitory, lowering network activity. Glutamatergic cells are excitatory, ramping up the brain’s computation. The two main types help balance the brain’s overall activity level. Neurons are usually the star of the show: these electrically-activated cells connect into neural networks to process information. The cortex is an elaborate six-layered structure packed with different types of neurons and other brain cells. The macaque cerebral cortex is like ours, and this study offers the most complete map of its kind. ![]() Chengyu Li at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. “The cell composition of the brain and its spatial distribution are the basic issues of brain science, and its importance is similar to the DNA base sequence discovered by human genome sequencing,” said study author Dr. Neurons that either ramp up or dampen overall brain activity also have preferred spots, with their numbers changing between cortical regions and depth.Īlso, when compared to a mouse brain atlas, the new map found several cell types specific to primates huddled together in one layer of the cortex. Some types prefer the company of certain other cells, suggesting they form local neural networks. The project has already yielded some insights. Then, thanks to a hefty dose of AI, they categorized nearly 1.5 million cells from 143 regions into distinct cell types and mapped their location in the cortex. The team created a molecular fingerprint for each cell by recording the activity of roughly 500 genes. ![]() Called Stereo-seq, the technology extracts genetic information-the transcriptome-from multiple cells at once, adding a new data layer to each cell’s position. The study, published in Cell, also tapped into a relatively new tool for brain mapping. A key theme in biology is “structure determines function.” Like building a computer from scratch, each component and its placement and wiring can alter performance.Ĭataloging the precise location of every cell in the monkey cortex could help decode-and perhaps digitally recreate-the rules that make the primate cortex a computational powerhouse. The secret may be hidden in the cortex’s many cell types and how they organize. Scientist have long thought this evolutionary quirk is what gives our brains the ability to manage complex computations. The outermost layer of the brain, the cortex houses many of our treasured cognitive functions: the ability to reason, make decisions, and adapt to ever-changing environments on the fly.Ĭompared to other animals, primates-including humans-have a massively expanded cortex. An international team led by Chinese scientists just built the most complete atlas of the macaque monkey cortex to date.
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