Scientists added human brain genes in monkeys

 Scientists in China have been studying what the effects of adding human brain genes to monkeys would be.  In a recent article, it is mentioned that the scientists took the MCPH1 gene and introduced it into monkey embryos.  The five macaque monkeys were then tested and they performed better on short-term memory tests than the control group of monkeys did.  The tests also showed that their brains developed over a longer time period, which is similar to human brains.  The question they are after an answer to is how did humans develop our unique intelligence.  The scientists have already started to do more testing, this time adding the SRGAP2C gene but they do not have any results yet.  They also want to start implanting the FOXP2 gene, which is believed to be responsible for humans having the ability to speak. 

Genetics Influence Human Empathy

Empathy is a complex part of a person’s mind and allows people foster emotionally charged relationships with others. A lack of empathy is usually associated with behavioral issues, making finding out the variables that control a person’s empathy levels important. Around 46,000 23AndMe customers took part in an experiment to see if empathy levels were influenced by genetics, run by a group of scientists from the University of Cambridge and Institut Pasteur. The genetic information of the participants was then compared to their empathy quotient or EQ scored (a 50-question long test to help rate one’s empathy level) to see how much of the difference in the EQ score could be attributed to a participant’s genetics. According to the article around 10 percent could be attributed to genetic factors. However, the sample of people used was not representative of the world’s diversity.

The experiment sounded fascinating due to its hard-to-quantify subject even though it was sparsely detailed in the news article on how the calculation went from EQ score to the difference in empathy level. The news article did bring up doubt about the experiment (issues with the sample size and diversity) which is refreshing to see.

News Article- http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/d-brief/2018/03/12/genetics-of-empathy/#.Wq3SqUxFzIU
Other article- https://www.nature.com/articles/s41398-017-0082-6

Migraine may permanently change brain structure

Migraines have been considered a benign disorder without long-term consequences until a recent study proved otherwise.  Migraines can permanently alter the brain structure in multiple ways such as increasing the risk of brain lesions, white matter abnormalities and altered brain volume compared to people without the disorder, even stronger in those that have migraine with aura.  A meta-analysis study consisted of 6 population based studies and 13 clinic-based studies to test if migraine with aura had increased risk of silent abnormalities, brain lesions or brain volume changes on MRI brain scans.  Results showed migraine with aura increased risk of white matter brain lesions by 68% and migraine with no aura 34% increase to those that don’t suffer from migraines.  Migraines affect about 10-15% of the general population.  Hopefully through more study research can clarify the association of brain structure changes to attack frequency and length of the disease.

 

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/08/130828172644.htm
https://www.aan.com/PressRoom/Home/PressRelease/1204

Obama Unveils Vast Brain-Mapping Project

President Obama has asked congress to commit $100 million dollars in 2014 for the 10 year BRAIN Initiative project, which will record and create a detailed map of the inner workings of the human brain. Knowing more about how the brain works will in theory give a better understanding of and help develop preventative treatments as well as cures for brain disorders such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, autism, as well as psychiatric conditions and brain injuries. Alzheimer’s being the main target. Tools not yet available will need to be developed to record hundreds of thousands of neurons at once.

"Right now, a billion people worldwide suffer from brain disorders and we have very little capacity to prevent them, treat them, or cure them. Making the 'Brain' project a high priority for decades to come should have a very powerful impact on disorders of the human brain," said John Morrison, dean of the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at the Icahn School of Medicine.

Taking part in this initiative are scientist, government agencies including the National Institutes of Health, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and the National Science Foundation and private foundations including The Allen Institute for Brain Science, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Kavli Foundation, and the Salk Institute for Biological Studies. Goals and the multi-year plan will be developed by a group from the government agency, National Institutes of Health, headed by Cornelia Bragmann of Rockefeller University and William Newsome of Stanford University.

http://health.usnews.com/health-news/news/articles/2013/04/02/obama-unveils-vast-brain-mapping-project

Neural Networks could be how Intelligence Evolved

From Scientific American, is an article pertaining to the brain and the evolution of intelligence through working with others to complete a task. This was suggested based on a computer simulation that shows neural networks "learning" to work together. These results support a theory of social interactions being the root cause of brain development in human ancestors. Researcher Luke McNally said "it is the transition to a cooperative group that can lead to maximum selection for intelligence." This would explain why the technical cave man, who usually did things alone, became more civilized and learned that with others, more was accomplished.

The reason that the brain could have evolved from this acitivty is because neural networks send signals to one another, and reproduce random mutations and extra neurons, which was all simulated via computer. The researches used two difference scenarios to test the computers and how the brain would evolve. This scenarios were then tested with 50,000 generations of neural networks were experiment, and "intelligence" was measured by the number of nodes after each play. This article caught my attention because we never think of how we have evolved to our current standing. We know the physical differences, as well as the differences of our brain, but we do not fully understand how we have gotten here.