Evolution and cell-type specificity of human-specific genes preferentially expressed in progenitors of fetal neocortex.

ABSTRACT: Understanding the molecular basis that underlies the expansion of the neocortex during primate, and notably human, evolution requires the identification of genes that are particularly active in the neural stem and progenitor cells of the developing neocortex. Here, we have used existing transcriptome datasets to carry out a comprehensive screen for protein-coding genes preferentially expressed in progenitors of fetal human neocortex. We show that 15 human-specific genes exhibit such expression, and many of them evolved distinct neural progenitor cell-type expression profiles and levels compared to their ancestral paralogs. Functional studies on one such gene, NOTCH2NL, demonstrate its ability to promote basal progenitor proliferation in mice. An additional 35 human genes with progen

SUBMITTER: Florio M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5898914 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature