US EditionHuman-Brain Study Links Fast-Evolving Neurons to Autism-Related Genetic Shifts
Researchers identified a human-specific neuron type that evolved rapidly, linking genetic changes under natural selection to autism's higher prevalence in humans.
- Researchers led by Alexander L. Starr published a study showing that the rapid evolution of certain brain neurons is linked to autism's high prevalence in humans.
- This research builds on findings that layer 2/3 intratelencephalic excitatory neurons have evolved faster in humans than in other apes, coinciding with changes in autism-associated genes.
- The study analyzed brain cells from six mammal species and found typical neurons evolve slowly, but these abundant human neurons evolved unusually rapidly with significant gene expression shifts tied to autism.
- About 3.2% of U.S. children and roughly 1% of children worldwide have autism, highlighting its strong association with uniquely human brain evolution and neurodiversity, as Starr noted that the evolutionary benefit remains unclear.
- The findings imply that autism may result from natural selection favoring genetic changes that slowed early brain development or increased language capacity, producing both cognitive advantages and higher neurodiversity.
15 Articles
15 Articles
Large-scale genetic studies have revealed radical changes in the human brain that are not observed in other mammals
Spectrum disorders do not usually appear in other mammals, which affects precisely the skills in which humans have surpassed primates.
How evolution explains autism rates in humans
A paper in Molecular Biology and Evolution finds that the relatively high rate of autism-spectrum disorders in humans is likely due to how humans evolved in the past. The paper is titled "A general principle of neuronal evolution reveals a human accelerated neuron type potentially underlying the high prevalence of autism in humans."
A major scientific revelation comes to light in a totally new light one of the most complex questions of modern neurology. Why does autism so frequently touch the human species while it remains almost non-existent in our primate cousins? The answer, published in the prestigious journal Molecular Biology and Evolution, suggests a disturbing truth: autism [...]
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