TY - JOUR
T1 - An RNA gene expressed during cortical development evolved rapidly in humans.
AU - Pollard, Katherine S
AU - Salama, Sofie R
AU - Lambert, Nelle
AU - Lambot, Marie-Alexandra
AU - Coppens, Sandra
AU - Pedersen, Jakob Skou
AU - Katzman, Sol
AU - King, Bryan
AU - Onodera, Courtney
AU - Siepel, Adam
AU - Kern, Andrew D
AU - Dehay, Colette
AU - Igel, Haller
AU - Ares, Manuel
AU - Vanderhaeghen, Pierre
AU - Haussler, David
N1 - Keywords: Aging; Animals; Base Sequence; Cell Adhesion Molecules, Neuronal; Cerebral Cortex; Evolution, Molecular; Extracellular Matrix Proteins; Gene Expression Profiling; Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; Humans; Macaca; Molecular Sequence Data; Mutation; Neocortex; Nerve Tissue Proteins; Nucleic Acid Conformation; Organ Specificity; RNA Stability; RNA, Untranslated; Serine Endopeptidases; Time Factors
PY - 2006
Y1 - 2006
N2 - The developmental and evolutionary mechanisms behind the emergence of human-specific brain features remain largely unknown. However, the recent ability to compare our genome to that of our closest relative, the chimpanzee, provides new avenues to link genetic and phenotypic changes in the evolution of the human brain. We devised a ranking of regions in the human genome that show significant evolutionary acceleration. Here we report that the most dramatic of these 'human accelerated regions', HAR1, is part of a novel RNA gene (HAR1F) that is expressed specifically in Cajal-Retzius neurons in the developing human neocortex from 7 to 19 gestational weeks, a crucial period for cortical neuron specification and migration. HAR1F is co-expressed with reelin, a product of Cajal-Retzius neurons that is of fundamental importance in specifying the six-layer structure of the human cortex. HAR1 and the other human accelerated regions provide new candidates in the search for uniquely human biology.
AB - The developmental and evolutionary mechanisms behind the emergence of human-specific brain features remain largely unknown. However, the recent ability to compare our genome to that of our closest relative, the chimpanzee, provides new avenues to link genetic and phenotypic changes in the evolution of the human brain. We devised a ranking of regions in the human genome that show significant evolutionary acceleration. Here we report that the most dramatic of these 'human accelerated regions', HAR1, is part of a novel RNA gene (HAR1F) that is expressed specifically in Cajal-Retzius neurons in the developing human neocortex from 7 to 19 gestational weeks, a crucial period for cortical neuron specification and migration. HAR1F is co-expressed with reelin, a product of Cajal-Retzius neurons that is of fundamental importance in specifying the six-layer structure of the human cortex. HAR1 and the other human accelerated regions provide new candidates in the search for uniquely human biology.
U2 - 10.1038/nature05113
DO - 10.1038/nature05113
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 16915236
SN - 0028-0836
VL - 443
SP - 167
EP - 172
JO - Nature
JF - Nature
IS - 7108
ER -