The Evolutionary History of Common Genetic Variants Influencing Human Cortical Surface Area.

ABSTRACT: Structural brain changes along the lineage leading to modern Homo sapiens contributed to our distinctive cognitive and social abilities. However, the evolutionarily relevant molecular variants impacting key aspects of neuroanatomy are largely unknown. Here, we integrate evolutionary annotations of the genome at diverse timescales with common variant associations from large-scale neuroimaging genetic screens. We find that alleles with evidence of recent positive polygenic selection over the past 2000-3000 years are associated with increased surface area (SA) of the entire cortex, as well as specific regions, including those involved in spoken language and visual processing. Therefore, polygenic selective pressures impact the structure of specific cortical areas even over relatively recent t

SUBMITTER: Tilot AK 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7945014 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature