Scientists find a human-only gene that may help explain our brainpower

Scientists discovered that human microglia, immune cells that help shape developing brain circuits, can take four to eight years to mature instead of just weeks as they do in mice. The unusually slow process may help explain how the human brain develops its remarkable complexity and cognitive abilities. Scientists find a human-only gene that may help explain our brainpower.

Scientists find a human-only gene that may help explain our brainpower Science News from research organizations Scientists find a human-only gene that may help explain our brainpower Human brain immune cells take years to mature, and scientists suspect their unusually slow development may be one secret behind our extraordinary brainpower. They help protect the brain from harmful invaders, clear away damaged neurons, and support normal brain development. Researchers at Columbia’s Zuckerman Institute have now found for the first time that human microglia, much like human neurons, mature far more slowly than comparable cells in other animals.

"This slow development may help human microglia influence the human brain in ways that enable our powerful cognitive abilities," said Carlos Diaz-Salazar, PhD, the lead author of a new Neuron study on the subject, who carried out the work while in the lab of Franck Polleux, PhD. A Human-Specific Gene With an Unusual Role The Polleux lab has spent more than 15 years studying SRGAP2, one of several dozen genes that were duplicated specifically in humans. The group’s broader goal is to understand the biological features that distinguish the human brain from those of other animals.

Polleux showed that human-specific copies of SRGAP2 increase the number of synapses, or connections, made by neurons while also causing those synapses to mature very slowly.