1
|
Constant-Varlet C, Nakai T, Prado J. Intergenerational transmission of brain structure and function in humans: a narrative review of designs, methods, and findings. Brain Struct Funct 2024; 229:1327-1348. [PMID: 38710874 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-024-02804-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2024] [Accepted: 04/23/2024] [Indexed: 05/08/2024]
Abstract
Children often show cognitive and affective traits that are similar to their parents. Although this indicates a transmission of phenotypes from parents to children, little is known about the neural underpinnings of that transmission. Here, we provide a general overview of neuroimaging studies that explore the similarity between parents and children in terms of brain structure and function. We notably discuss the aims, designs, and methods of these so-called intergenerational neuroimaging studies, focusing on two main designs: the parent-child design and the multigenerational design. For each design, we also summarize the major findings, identify the sources of variability between studies, and highlight some limitations and future directions. We argue that the lack of consensus in defining the parent-child transmission of brain structure and function leads to measurement heterogeneity, which is a challenge for future studies. Additionally, multigenerational studies often use measures of family resemblance to estimate the proportion of variance attributed to genetic versus environmental factors, though this estimate is likely inflated given the frequent lack of control for shared environment. Nonetheless, intergenerational neuroimaging studies may still have both clinical and theoretical relevance, not because they currently inform about the etiology of neuromarkers, but rather because they may help identify neuromarkers and test hypotheses about neuromarkers coming from more standard neuroimaging designs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Charlotte Constant-Varlet
- Centre de Recherche en Neurosciences de Lyon (CRNL), INSERM U1028 - CNRS UMR5292, Université de Lyon, Bron, France.
| | - Tomoya Nakai
- Centre de Recherche en Neurosciences de Lyon (CRNL), INSERM U1028 - CNRS UMR5292, Université de Lyon, Bron, France
- Araya Inc., Tokyo, Japan
| | - Jérôme Prado
- Centre de Recherche en Neurosciences de Lyon (CRNL), INSERM U1028 - CNRS UMR5292, Université de Lyon, Bron, France.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Hopkins WD, Mulholland M, Latzman RD. Characterizing the personality and gray matter volume of chimpanzees that exhibit autism-related socio-communicative phenotypes. PERSONALITY NEUROSCIENCE 2023; 6:e10. [PMID: 38107781 PMCID: PMC10725775 DOI: 10.1017/pen.2023.8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2023] [Revised: 08/08/2023] [Accepted: 08/17/2023] [Indexed: 12/19/2023]
Abstract
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a developmental disorder characterized by stereotypies or repetitive behaviors and impairments in social behavior and socio-communicative skills. One hallmark phenotype of ASD is poor joint attention skills compared to neurotypical controls. In addition, individuals with ASD have lower scores on several of the Big 5 personality dimensions, including Extraversion. Here, we examine these traits in a nonhuman primate model (chimpanzees; Pan troglodytes) to further understand the relationship between personality and joint attention skills, as well as the genetic and neural systems that contribute to these phenotypes. We used archival data including receptive joint attention (RJA) performance, personality based on caretaker ratings, and magnetic resonance images from 189 chimpanzees. We found that, like humans, chimpanzees who performed worse on the RJA task had lower Extraversion scores. We also found that joint attention skills and several personality dimensions, including Extraversion, were significantly heritable. There was also a borderline significant genetic correlation between RJA and Extraversion. A conjunction analysis examining gray matter volume showed that there were five main brain regions associated with both higher levels of Extraversion and social cognition. These regions included the right posterior middle and superior temporal gyrus, bilateral inferior frontal gyrus, left inferior frontal sulcus, and left superior frontal sulcus, all regions within the social brain network. Altogether, these findings provide further evidence that chimpanzees serve as an excellent model for understanding the mechanisms underlying social impairment related to ASD. Future research should further examine the relationship between social cognition, personality, genetics, and neuroanatomy and function in nonhuman primate models.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- William D. Hopkins
- The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Bastrop, TX78602, USA
| | - Michele Mulholland
- The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Bastrop, TX78602, USA
| | | |
Collapse
|
3
|
Clark FE, Greggor AL, Montgomery SH, Plotnik JM. The endangered brain: actively preserving ex-situ animal behaviour and cognition will benefit in-situ conservation. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2023; 10:230707. [PMID: 37650055 PMCID: PMC10465207 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.230707] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2023] [Accepted: 08/15/2023] [Indexed: 09/01/2023]
Abstract
Endangered species have small, unsustainable population sizes that are geographically or genetically restricted. Ex-situ conservation programmes are therefore faced with the challenge of breeding sufficiently sized, genetically diverse populations earmarked for reintroduction that have the behavioural skills to survive and breed in the wild. Yet, maintaining historically beneficial behaviours may be insufficient, as research continues to suggest that certain cognitive-behavioural skills and flexibility are necessary to cope with human-induced rapid environmental change (HIREC). This paper begins by reviewing interdisciplinary studies on the 'captivity effect' in laboratory, farmed, domesticated and feral vertebrates and finds that captivity imposes rapid yet often reversible changes to the brain, cognition and behaviour. However, research on this effect in ex-situ conservation sites is lacking. This paper reveals an apparent mismatch between ex-situ enrichment aims and the cognitive-behavioural skills possessed by animals currently coping with HIREC. After synthesizing literature across neuroscience, behavioural biology, comparative cognition and field conservation, it seems that ex-situ endangered species deemed for reintroduction may have better chances of coping with HIREC if their natural cognition and behavioural repertoires are actively preserved. Evaluating the effects of environmental challenges rather than captivity per se is recommended, in addition to using targeted cognitive enrichment.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Fay E. Clark
- School of Psychological Science, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | | | | | - Joshua M. Plotnik
- Department of Psychology, Hunter College, City University of New York, New York, NY, USA
- Department of Psychology, The Graduate Center, City University of New York, New York, NY, USA
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Hopkins WD, Coulon O, Meguerditchian A, Staes N, Sherwood CC, Schapiro SJ, Mangin JF, Bradley B. Genetic determinants of individual variation in the superior temporal sulcus of chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). Cereb Cortex 2023; 33:1925-1940. [PMID: 35697647 PMCID: PMC9977371 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhac183] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2022] [Revised: 04/08/2022] [Accepted: 04/09/2022] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The superior temporal sulcus (STS) is a conserved fold that divides the middle and superior temporal gyri. In humans, there is considerable variation in the shape, folding pattern, lateralization, and depth of the STS that have been reported to be associated with social cognition and linguistic functions. We examined the role that genetic factors play on individual variation in STS morphology in chimpanzees. The surface area and depth of the STS were quantified in sample of 292 captive chimpanzees comprised of two genetically isolated population of individuals. The chimpanzees had been previously genotyped for AVPR1A and KIAA0319, two genes that play a role in social cognition and communication in humans. Single nucleotide polymorphisms in the KIAA0319 and AVPR1A genes were associated with average depth as well as asymmetries in the STS. By contrast, we found no significant effects of these KIA0319 and AVPR1A polymorphism on surface area and depth measures for the central sulcus. The overall findings indicate that genetic factors account for a small to moderate amount of variation in STS morphology in chimpanzees. These findings are discussed in the context of the role of the STS in social cognition and language in humans and their potential evolutionary origins.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- William D Hopkins
- Department of Comparative Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Bastrop, TX 78602, USA
- IMéRA – Institut d’Etudes Avancées, Aix-Marseille Universite, Marseille 13004, France
- Institute of Language, Communication and The Brain, Aix-Marseille Universite, CNRS, Aix-en-Provence 13604, France
| | - Oliver Coulon
- Institute of Language, Communication and The Brain, Aix-Marseille Universite, CNRS, Aix-en-Provence 13604, France
- Aix-Marseille Univ, CNRS, Institut de Neurosciences de La Timone, UMR7289, Marseille 13284, France
| | - Adrien Meguerditchian
- Institute of Language, Communication and The Brain, Aix-Marseille Universite, CNRS, Aix-en-Provence 13604, France
- Laboratoire de Psychologie Cognitive, UMR 7290, LPC, Aix-Marseille Univ, CNRS, Marseille 13284, France
| | - Nicky Staes
- Department of Anthropology and Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA
| | - Chet C Sherwood
- Department of Anthropology and Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA
| | - Steven J Schapiro
- Department of Comparative Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Bastrop, TX 78602, USA
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen 2200N, Denmark
| | | | - Brenda Bradley
- Department of Anthropology and Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Mulholland MM, Schapiro SJ, Sherwood CC, Hopkins WD. Phenotypic and genetic associations between gray matter covariation and tool use skill in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes): Repeatability in two genetically isolated populations. Neuroimage 2022; 257:119292. [PMID: 35551989 PMCID: PMC9351395 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2022.119292] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2022] [Revised: 04/13/2022] [Accepted: 05/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Humans and chimpanzees both exhibit a diverse set of tool use skills which suggests selection for tool manufacture and use occurred in the common ancestors of the two species. Our group has previously reported phenotypic and genetic associations between tool use skill and gray matter covariation, as quantified by source-based morphometry (SBM), in chimpanzees. As a follow up study, here we evaluated repeatability in heritability in SBM components and their phenotypic association with tool use skill in two genetically independent chimpanzee cohorts. Within the two independent cohorts of chimpanzees, we identified 8 and 16 SBM components, respectively. Significant heritability was evident for multiple SBM components within both cohorts. Further, phenotypic associations between tool use performance and the SBM components were largely consistent between the two cohorts; the most consistent finding being an association between tool use performance and an SBM component including the posterior superior temporal sulcus (STS) and superior temporal gyrus (STG), and the interior and superior parietal regions (p< 0.05). These findings indicate that the STS, STG, and parietal cortices are phenotypically and genetically implicated in chimpanzee tool use abilities.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- M M Mulholland
- Department of Comparative Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 650 Cool Water Drive, Bastrop, TX 78602, USA.
| | - S J Schapiro
- Department of Comparative Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 650 Cool Water Drive, Bastrop, TX 78602, USA; Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - C C Sherwood
- Department of Anthropology and Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA
| | - W D Hopkins
- Department of Comparative Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 650 Cool Water Drive, Bastrop, TX 78602, USA
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Hopkins WD, Westerhausen R, Schapiro S, Sherwood CC. Heritability in corpus callosum morphology and its association with tool use skill in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes): Reproducibility in two genetically isolated populations. GENES, BRAIN, AND BEHAVIOR 2022; 21:e12784. [PMID: 35044083 PMCID: PMC8830772 DOI: 10.1111/gbb.12784] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2021] [Revised: 11/15/2021] [Accepted: 11/17/2021] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
The corpus callosum (CC) is the major white matter tract connecting the left and right cerebral hemispheres. It has been hypothesized that individual variation in CC morphology is negatively associated with forebrain volume (FBV) and this accounts for variation in behavioral and brain asymmetries as well as sex differences. To test this hypothesis, CC surface area and thickness as well as FBV was quantified in 221 chimpanzees with known pedigrees. CC surface area, thickness and FBV were significantly heritable and phenotypically associated with each other; however, no significant genetic association was found between FBV, CC surface area and thickness. The CC surface area and thickness measures were also found to be significantly heritable in both chimpanzee cohorts as were phenotypic associations with variation in asymmetries in tool use skill, suggesting that these findings are reproducible. Finally, significant phenotypic and genetic associations were found between hand use skill and region-specific variation in CC surface area and thickness. These findings suggest that common genes may underlie individual differences in chimpanzee tool use skill and interhemispheric connectivity as manifest by variation in surface area and thickness within the anterior region of the CC.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- William D. Hopkins
- Department of Comparative Medicine, Michael E. Keeling Center for Comparative Medicine and ResearchUniversity of Texas M D Anderson Cancer CenterBastropTexasUSA
| | | | - Steve Schapiro
- Department of Comparative Medicine, Michael E. Keeling Center for Comparative Medicine and ResearchUniversity of Texas M D Anderson Cancer CenterBastropTexasUSA
- Department of Experimental MedicineUniversity of CopenhagenCopenhagenDenmark
| | - Chet C. Sherwood
- Department of Anthropology and Center for the Advanced Study of Human PaleobiologyThe George Washington UniversityWashingtonDistrict of ColumbiaUSA
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Poirier C, Hamed SB, Garcia-Saldivar P, Kwok SC, Meguerditchian A, Merchant H, Rogers J, Wells S, Fox AS. Beyond MRI: on the scientific value of combining non-human primate neuroimaging with metadata. Neuroimage 2021; 228:117679. [PMID: 33359343 PMCID: PMC7903159 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.117679] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2020] [Revised: 12/07/2020] [Accepted: 12/16/2020] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Sharing and pooling large amounts of non-human primate neuroimaging data offer new exciting opportunities to understand the primate brain. The potential of big data in non-human primate neuroimaging could however be tremendously enhanced by combining such neuroimaging data with other types of information. Here we describe metadata that have been identified as particularly valuable by the non-human primate neuroimaging community, including behavioural, genetic, physiological and phylogenetic data.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Colline Poirier
- Biosciences Institute & Centre for Behaviour and Evolution, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle 6, UK.
| | - Suliann Ben Hamed
- Institut des Sciences Cognitives Marc Jeannerod, UMR 5229, Université de Lyon - CNRS, France
| | - Pamela Garcia-Saldivar
- Instituto de Neurobiología, UNAM, Campus Juriquilla. Boulevard Juriquilla No. 3001 Querétaro, Qro. 76230 México
| | - Sze Chai Kwok
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Brain Functional Genomics, Key Laboratory of Brain Functional Genomics Ministry of Education, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Magnetic Resonance, Affiliated Mental Health Center (ECNU), Shanghai Changning Mental Health Center, School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China; Division of Natural and Applied Sciences, Duke Kunshan University, Duke Institute for Brain Sciences, Kunshan, Jiangsu, China; NYU-ECNU Institute of Brain and Cognitive Science at NYU Shanghai, Shanghai, China
| | - Adrien Meguerditchian
- Laboratoire de Psychologie Cognitive, UMR7290, Université Aix-Marseille/CNRS, Institut Language, Communication and the Brain 13331 Marseille, France
| | - Hugo Merchant
- Instituto de Neurobiología, UNAM, Campus Juriquilla. Boulevard Juriquilla No. 3001 Querétaro, Qro. 76230 México
| | - Jeffrey Rogers
- Human Genome Sequencing Center and Dept. of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA 77030
| | - Sara Wells
- Centre for Macaques, MRC Harwell Institute, Porton Down, Salisbury, United Kingdom
| | - Andrew S Fox
- California National Primate Research Center, Department of Psychology, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Colby AE, Kimock CM, Higham JP. Endocranial volume is variable and heritable, but not related to fitness, in a free-ranging primate. Sci Rep 2021; 11:4235. [PMID: 33608572 PMCID: PMC7895985 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-81265-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2020] [Accepted: 12/24/2020] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Large relative brain size is a defining characteristic of the order Primates. Arguably, this can be attributed to selection for behavioral aptitudes linked to a larger brain size. In order for selection of a trait to occur, the trait must vary, that variation must be heritable, and enhance fitness. In this study, we use a quantitative genetic approach to investigate the production and maintenance of variation in endocranial volume in a population of free-ranging rhesus macaques. We measured the endocranial volume and body mass proxies of 542 rhesus macaques from Cayo Santiago. We investigated variation in endocranial volume within and between sexes. Using a genetic pedigree, we estimated heritability of absolute and relative endocranial volume, and selection gradients of both traits as well as estimated body mass in the sample. Within this population, both absolute and relative endocranial volume display variation and sexual dimorphism. Both absolute and relative endocranial volume are highly heritable, but we found no evidence of selection on absolute or relative endocranial volume. These findings suggest that endocranial volume is not undergoing selection, or that we did not detect it because selection is neither linear nor quadratic, or that we lacked sufficient sample sizes to detect it.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Abigail E Colby
- Department of Anthropology, New York University, New York, NY, 10003, USA
| | - Clare M Kimock
- Department of Anthropology, New York University, New York, NY, 10003, USA
| | - James P Higham
- Department of Anthropology, New York University, New York, NY, 10003, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Hopkins WD, Latzman RD, Mareno MC, Schapiro SJ, Gómez-Robles A, Sherwood CC. Heritability of Gray Matter Structural Covariation and Tool Use Skills in Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes): A Source-Based Morphometry and Quantitative Genetic Analysis. Cereb Cortex 2020; 29:3702-3711. [PMID: 30307488 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhy250] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2017] [Revised: 08/22/2018] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Nonhuman primates, and great apes in particular, possess a variety of cognitive abilities thought to underlie human brain and cognitive evolution, most notably, the manufacture and use of tools. In a relatively large sample (N = 226) of captive chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) for whom pedigrees are well known, the overarching aim of the current study was to investigate the source of heritable variation in brain structure underlying tool use skills. Specifically, using source-based morphometry (SBM), a multivariate analysis of naturally occurring patterns of covariation in gray matter across the brain, we investigated (1) the genetic contributions to variation in SBM components, (2) sex and age effects for each component, and (3) phenotypic and genetic associations between SBM components and tool use skill. Results revealed important sex- and age-related differences across largely heritable SBM components and associations between structural covariation and tool use skill. Further, shared genetic mechanisms appear to account for a heritable link between variation in both the capacity to use tools and variation in morphology of the superior limb of the superior temporal sulcus and adjacent parietal cortex. Findings represent the first evidence of heritability of structural covariation in gray matter among nonhuman primates.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- William D Hopkins
- Neuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Division of Developmental and Cognitive Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Robert D Latzman
- Department of Psychology, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Mary Catherine Mareno
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Bastrop, TX, USA
| | - Steven J Schapiro
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Bastrop, TX, USA
| | - Aida Gómez-Robles
- Department of Anthropology and Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Chet C Sherwood
- Department of Anthropology and Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Spocter MA, Sherwood CC, Schapiro SJ, Hopkins WD. Reproducibility of leftward planum temporale asymmetries in two genetically isolated populations of chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes). Proc Biol Sci 2020; 287:20201320. [PMID: 32900313 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2020.1320] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Once considered a hallmark of human uniqueness, brain asymmetry has emerged as a feature shared with several other species, including chimpanzees, one of our closest living relatives. Most notable has been the discovery of asymmetries in homologues of cortical language areas in apes, particularly in the planum temporale (PT), considered a central node of the human language network. Several lines of evidence indicate a role for genetic mechanisms in the emergence of PT asymmetry; however, the genetic determinants of cerebral asymmetries have remained elusive. Studies in humans suggest that there is heritability of brain asymmetries of the PT, but this has not been explored to any extent in chimpanzees. Furthermore, the potential influence of non-genetic factors has raised questions about the reproducibility of earlier observations of PT asymmetry reported in chimpanzees. As such, the present study was aimed at examining both the heritability of phenotypic asymmetries in PT morphology, as well as their reproducibility. Using magnetic resonance imaging, we evaluated morphological asymmetries of PT surface area (mm2) and mean depth (mm) in captive chimpanzees (n = 291) derived from two genetically isolated populations. Our results confirm that chimpanzees exhibit a significant population-level leftward asymmetry for PT surface area, as well as significant heritability in the surface area and mean depth of the PT. These results conclusively demonstrate the existence of a leftward bias in PT asymmetry in chimpanzees and suggest that genetic mechanisms play a key role in the emergence of anatomical asymmetry in this region.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad A Spocter
- Department of Anatomy, Des Moines University, 3200 Grand Avenue, Des Moines, IA 50312, USA.,School of Anatomical Sciences, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 2094, South Africa
| | - Chet C Sherwood
- Department of Anthropology and Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA
| | - Steven J Schapiro
- Department of Comparative Medicine, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center Bastrop, TX 78602, USA.,Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - William D Hopkins
- Department of Comparative Medicine, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center Bastrop, TX 78602, USA
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Takemura H, Palomero-Gallagher N, Axer M, Gräßel D, Jorgensen MJ, Woods R, Zilles K. Anatomy of nerve fiber bundles at micrometer-resolution in the vervet monkey visual system. eLife 2020; 9:e55444. [PMID: 32844747 PMCID: PMC7532002 DOI: 10.7554/elife.55444] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2020] [Accepted: 08/22/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Although the primate visual system has been extensively studied, detailed spatial organization of white matter fiber tracts carrying visual information between areas has not been fully established. This is mainly due to the large gap between tracer studies and diffusion-weighted MRI studies, which focus on specific axonal connections and macroscale organization of fiber tracts, respectively. Here we used 3D polarization light imaging (3D-PLI), which enables direct visualization of fiber tracts at micrometer resolution, to identify and visualize fiber tracts of the visual system, such as stratum sagittale, inferior longitudinal fascicle, vertical occipital fascicle, tapetum and dorsal occipital bundle in vervet monkey brains. Moreover, 3D-PLI data provide detailed information on cortical projections of these tracts, distinction between neighboring tracts, and novel short-range pathways. This work provides essential information for interpretation of functional and diffusion-weighted MRI data, as well as revision of wiring diagrams based upon observations in the vervet visual system.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hiromasa Takemura
- Center for Information and Neural Networks (CiNet), National Institute of Information and Communications Technology, and Osaka UniversityOsakaJapan
- Graduate School of Frontier Biosciences, Osaka UniversityOsakaJapan
| | - Nicola Palomero-Gallagher
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine INM-1, Research Centre JülichJülichGermany
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Medical Faculty, RWTH AachenAachenGermany
- C. & O. Vogt Institute for Brain Research, Heinrich-Heine-UniversityDüsseldorfGermany
| | - Markus Axer
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine INM-1, Research Centre JülichJülichGermany
| | - David Gräßel
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine INM-1, Research Centre JülichJülichGermany
| | - Matthew J Jorgensen
- Department of Pathology, Section on Comparative Medicine, Wake Forest School of MedicineWinston-SalemUnited States
| | - Roger Woods
- Ahmanson-Lovelace Brain Mapping Center, Departments of Neurology and of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, UCLALos AngelesUnited States
| | - Karl Zilles
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine INM-1, Research Centre JülichJülichGermany
- JARA - Translational Brain MedicineAachenGermany
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
The role of early social rearing, neurological, and genetic factors on individual differences in mutual eye gaze among captive chimpanzees. Sci Rep 2020; 10:7412. [PMID: 32366881 PMCID: PMC7198555 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-64051-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2019] [Accepted: 04/09/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Mutual eye gaze plays an important role in primate social development and communication. In the current study, we examined the underlying experiential, genetic, and neuroanatomical basis of mutual eye gaze variation in adult captive chimpanzees. A multivariate analysis of variance revealed a significant rearing effect on bout length, with human-reared chimpanzees engaging in longer bouts of mutual gaze compared to mother-reared and wild-born individuals. Next, we utilized source-based morphometry (SBM) to examine gray matter covariation in magnetic resonance imaging scans and determine the relationship between the resulting gray matter covariation components and mutual eye gaze. One SBM component was negatively correlated with gaze duration (nucleus accumbens and anterior insular cortex), while two components were positively correlated with bout length (posterior cingulate cortex, inferior occipital cortex, middle temporal cortex, hippocampus, and the precentral sulcus). Finally, heritability analyses revealed mutual eye gaze to be modestly heritable and significant genetic correlations between bout length and two gray matter covariation components. This study reveals that non-genetic factors, and to a lesser extent, genetic factors appear to influence mutual eye gaze in adult chimpanzees, and is the first to report neuroanatomical correlates of mutual eye gaze variation in chimpanzees.
Collapse
|
13
|
Jasinska AJ. Resources for functional genomic studies of health and development in nonhuman primates. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2020; 171 Suppl 70:174-194. [PMID: 32221967 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2019] [Revised: 01/22/2020] [Accepted: 02/26/2020] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Primates display a wide range of phenotypic variation underlaid by complex genetically regulated mechanisms. The links among DNA sequence, gene function, and phenotype have been of interest from an evolutionary perspective, to understand functional genome evolution and its phenotypic consequences, and from a biomedical perspective to understand the shared and human-specific roots of health and disease. Progress in methods for characterizing genetic, transcriptomic, and DNA methylation (DNAm) variation is driving the rapid development of extensive omics resources, which are now increasingly available from humans as well as a growing number of nonhuman primates (NHPs). The fast growth of large-scale genomic data is driving the emergence of integrated tools and databases, thus facilitating studies of gene functionality across primates. This review describes NHP genomic resources that can aid in exploration of how genes shape primate phenotypes. It focuses on the gene expression trajectories across development in different tissues, the identification of functional genetic variation (including variants deleterious for protein function and regulatory variants modulating gene expression), and DNAm profiles as an emerging tool to understand the process of aging. These resources enable comparative functional genomics approaches to identify species-specific and primate-shared gene functionalities associated with health and development.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anna J Jasinska
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA.,Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Polish Academy of Sciences, Poznan, Poland.,Eye on Primates, Los Angeles, California, USA
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Hopkins WD, Mareno MC, Schapiro SJ. Further evidence of a left hemisphere specialization and genetic basis for tool use skill in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes): Reproducibility in two genetically isolated populations of apes. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2019; 133:512-519. [PMID: 31246047 DOI: 10.1037/com0000183] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
It has been hypothesized that the evolution of tool use may have served as a preadaptation for the emergence of left hemispheric specialization in motor skill in humans. Here, we tested for intermanual differences in performance on a tool use task in a sample of 206 captive chimpanzees in relation to their sex, age, and hand preference. In addition, we examined heritability in tool use skill for the entire sample, as well as within 2 genetically isolated populations of captive chimpanzees. This was done to determine the degree of reproducibility in heritability on motor performance. The results revealed a significant effect of hand preference on intermanual differences in performance. Right-handed chimpanzees performed the task more quickly with their right compared with left hand. In contrast, no significant intermanual differences in performance were found in left- and ambiguous-handed apes. Tool use performance was found to be significantly heritable for overall performance, as well as separately for the left and right hands. Further, significant heritability in tool use performance was found in both populations of apes, suggesting these results were reproducible. The results are discussed in the context of evolutionary theories of handedness and hemispheric specialization and the genetic mechanisms that underlie their expression in primates, including humans. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).
Collapse
|
15
|
Spocter MA, Uddin A, Ng JC, Wong E, Wang VX, Tang C, Wicinski B, Haas J, Bitterman K, Raghanti MA, Dunn R, Hof PR, Sherwood CC, Jovanovik J, Rusbridge C, Manger PR. Scaling of the corpus callosum in wild and domestic canids: Insights into the domesticated brain. J Comp Neurol 2018; 526:2341-2359. [DOI: 10.1002/cne.24486] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2018] [Revised: 05/24/2018] [Accepted: 05/25/2018] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad A. Spocter
- Department of Anatomy; Des Moines University; Des Moines Iowa
- School of Anatomical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences; University of the Witwatersrand; Johannesburg Republic of South Africa
| | - Ashraf Uddin
- Department of Anatomy; Des Moines University; Des Moines Iowa
| | - Johnny C. Ng
- Departments of Radiology and Psychiatry; Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai; New York New York
| | - Edmund Wong
- Departments of Radiology and Psychiatry; Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai; New York New York
| | - Victoria X. Wang
- Departments of Radiology and Psychiatry; Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai; New York New York
| | - Cheuk Tang
- Departments of Radiology and Psychiatry; Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai; New York New York
| | - Bridget Wicinski
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute; Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai; New York New York
| | - Jordan Haas
- Department of Anatomy; Des Moines University; Des Moines Iowa
| | | | - Mary Ann Raghanti
- Department of Anthropology and School of Biomedical Sciences; Kent State University; Kent Ohio
| | - Rachel Dunn
- Department of Anatomy; Des Moines University; Des Moines Iowa
| | - Patrick R. Hof
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute; Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai; New York New York
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology; New York New York
| | - Chet C. Sherwood
- Department of Anthropology and Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology; The George Washington University; Washington District of Columbia
| | - Jelena Jovanovik
- Fitzpatrick Referrals Orthopedics and Neurology; Fitzpatrick Referrals Ltd; United Kingdom
| | - Clare Rusbridge
- Fitzpatrick Referrals Orthopedics and Neurology; Fitzpatrick Referrals Ltd; United Kingdom
- School of Veterinary Medicine; University of Surrey; Guildford Surrey United Kingdom
| | - Paul R. Manger
- School of Anatomical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences; University of the Witwatersrand; Johannesburg Republic of South Africa
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Rogers J. The behavioral genetics of nonhuman primates: Status and prospects. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2018; 165 Suppl 65:23-36. [PMID: 29380886 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
The complexity and diversity of primate behavior have long attracted the attention of ethologists, psychologists, behavioral ecologists, and neuroscientists. Recent studies have advanced our understanding of the nature of genetic influences on differences in behavior among individuals within species. A number of analyses have focused on the genetic analysis of behavioral reactions to specific experimental tests, providing estimates of the degree of genetic control over reactivity, and beginning to identify the genes involved. Substantial progress is also being made in identifying genetic factors that influence the structure and function of the primate brain. Most of the published studies on these topics have examined either cercopithecines or chimpanzees, though a few studies have addressed these questions in other primate species. One potentially important line of research is beginning to identify the epigenetic processes that influence primate behavior, thus revealing specific cellular and molecular mechanisms by which environmental experiences can influence gene expression or gene function relevant to behavior. This review summarizes many of these studies of non-human primate behavioral genetics. The primary focus is on analyses that address the nature of the genes and genetic processes that affect differences in behavior among individuals within non-human primate species. Analyses of between species differences and potential avenues for future research are also discussed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey Rogers
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics and Human Genome Sequencing Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas 77030
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Chen JA, Fears SC, Jasinska AJ, Huang A, Al‐Sharif NB, Scheibel KE, Dyer TD, Fagan AM, Blangero J, Woods R, Jorgensen MJ, Kaplan JR, Freimer NB, Coppola G. Neurodegenerative disease biomarkers Aβ 1-40, Aβ 1-42, tau, and p-tau 181 in the vervet monkey cerebrospinal fluid: Relation to normal aging, genetic influences, and cerebral amyloid angiopathy. Brain Behav 2018; 8:e00903. [PMID: 29484263 PMCID: PMC5822592 DOI: 10.1002/brb3.903] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2017] [Accepted: 11/19/2017] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Background The Caribbean vervet monkey (Chlorocebus aethiops sabaeus) is a potentially valuable animal model of neurodegenerative disease. However, the trajectory of aging in vervets and its relationship to human disease is incompletely understood. Methods To characterize biomarkers associated with neurodegeneration, we measured cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) concentrations of Aβ1-40, Aβ1-42, total tau, and p-tau181 in 329 members of a multigenerational pedigree. Linkage and genome-wide association were used to elucidate a genetic contribution to these traits. Results Aβ1-40 concentrations were significantly correlated with age, brain total surface area, and gray matter thickness. Levels of p-tau181 were associated with cerebral volume and brain total surface area. Among the measured analytes, only CSF Aβ1-40 was heritable. No significant linkage (LOD > 3.3) was found, though suggestive linkage was highlighted on chromosomes 4 and 12. Genome-wide association identified a suggestive locus near the chromosome 4 linkage peak. Conclusions Overall, these results support the vervet as a non-human primate model of amyloid-related neurodegeneration, such as Alzheimer's disease and cerebral amyloid angiopathy, and highlight Aβ1-40 and p-tau181 as potentially valuable biomarkers of these processes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jason A. Chen
- Department of PsychiatryThe Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human BehaviorDavid Geffen School of MedicineUniversity of CaliforniaLos AngelesCAUSA
- Interdepartmental Program in BioinformaticsUniversity of CaliforniaLos AngelesCAUSA
- Verge GenomicsSan FranciscoCAUSA
| | - Scott C. Fears
- Department of PsychiatryThe Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human BehaviorDavid Geffen School of MedicineUniversity of CaliforniaLos AngelesCAUSA
- Department of PsychiatryGreater Los Angeles Veterans AdministrationLos AngelesCAUSA
| | - Anna J. Jasinska
- Department of PsychiatryThe Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human BehaviorDavid Geffen School of MedicineUniversity of CaliforniaLos AngelesCAUSA
- Institute of Bioorganic ChemistryPolish Academy of SciencesPoznanPoland
| | - Alden Huang
- Department of PsychiatryThe Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human BehaviorDavid Geffen School of MedicineUniversity of CaliforniaLos AngelesCAUSA
- Interdepartmental Program in BioinformaticsUniversity of CaliforniaLos AngelesCAUSA
| | - Noor B. Al‐Sharif
- Department of PsychiatryThe Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human BehaviorDavid Geffen School of MedicineUniversity of CaliforniaLos AngelesCAUSA
| | - Kevin E. Scheibel
- Department of PsychiatryThe Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human BehaviorDavid Geffen School of MedicineUniversity of CaliforniaLos AngelesCAUSA
| | - Thomas D. Dyer
- South Texas Diabetes and Obesity InstituteUniversity of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of MedicineBrownsvilleTXUSA
| | - Anne M. Fagan
- Department of NeurologyWashington University in St. LouisSt. LouisMOUSA
| | - John Blangero
- South Texas Diabetes and Obesity InstituteUniversity of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of MedicineBrownsvilleTXUSA
| | - Roger Woods
- Department of PsychiatryThe Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human BehaviorDavid Geffen School of MedicineUniversity of CaliforniaLos AngelesCAUSA
- Department of NeurologyDavid Geffen School of Medicine at UCLAUniversity of CaliforniaLos AngelesCAUSA
| | - Matthew J. Jorgensen
- Department of PathologySection on Comparative MedicineWake Forest School of MedicineWinston‐SalemNCUSA
| | - Jay R. Kaplan
- Department of PathologySection on Comparative MedicineWake Forest School of MedicineWinston‐SalemNCUSA
| | - Nelson B. Freimer
- Department of PsychiatryThe Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human BehaviorDavid Geffen School of MedicineUniversity of CaliforniaLos AngelesCAUSA
| | - Giovanni Coppola
- Department of PsychiatryThe Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human BehaviorDavid Geffen School of MedicineUniversity of CaliforniaLos AngelesCAUSA
- Department of NeurologyDavid Geffen School of Medicine at UCLAUniversity of CaliforniaLos AngelesCAUSA
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Jasinska AJ, Zelaya I, Service SK, Peterson CB, Cantor RM, Choi OW, DeYoung J, Eskin E, Fairbanks LA, Fears S, Furterer AE, Huang YS, Ramensky V, Schmitt CA, Svardal H, Jorgensen MJ, Kaplan JR, Villar D, Aken BL, Flicek P, Nag R, Wong ES, Blangero J, Dyer TD, Bogomolov M, Benjamini Y, Weinstock GM, Dewar K, Sabatti C, Wilson RK, Jentsch JD, Warren W, Coppola G, Woods RP, Freimer NB. Genetic variation and gene expression across multiple tissues and developmental stages in a nonhuman primate. Nat Genet 2017; 49:1714-1721. [PMID: 29083405 PMCID: PMC5714271 DOI: 10.1038/ng.3959] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2017] [Accepted: 08/29/2017] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
By analyzing multitissue gene expression and genome-wide genetic variation data in samples from a vervet monkey pedigree, we generated a transcriptome resource and produced the first catalog of expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs) in a nonhuman primate model. This catalog contains more genome-wide significant eQTLs per sample than comparable human resources and identifies sex- and age-related expression patterns. Findings include a master regulatory locus that likely has a role in immune function and a locus regulating hippocampal long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs), whose expression correlates with hippocampal volume. This resource will facilitate genetic investigation of quantitative traits, including brain and behavioral phenotypes relevant to neuropsychiatric disorders.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anna J. Jasinska
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Polish Academy of Sciences, Poznan, Poland
| | - Ivette Zelaya
- Interdepartmental Program in Bioinformatics, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles CA, USA
| | - Susan K. Service
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Christine B. Peterson
- Department of Biostatistics, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston TX, USA
| | - Rita M. Cantor
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Human Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA,USA
| | - Oi-Wa Choi
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Joseph DeYoung
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Eleazar Eskin
- Department of Human Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA,USA
- Department of Computer Science, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Lynn A. Fairbanks
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Scott Fears
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Allison E. Furterer
- Interdepartmental Graduate Program in Neuroscience, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles CA, USA
| | - Yu S. Huang
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Vasily Ramensky
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Christopher A. Schmitt
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | | | | | - Jay R. Kaplan
- Department of Pathology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, USA
| | - Diego Villar
- University of Cambridge, Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute, Cambridge, UK
| | - Bronwen L. Aken
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory, European Bioinformatics Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge, UK
| | - Paul Flicek
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory, European Bioinformatics Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge, UK
| | - Rishi Nag
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory, European Bioinformatics Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge, UK
| | - Emily S. Wong
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory, European Bioinformatics Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge, UK
| | - John Blangero
- South Texas Diabetes and Obesity Institute, UTHSCSA/UTRGV, Brownsville, TX, USA
| | - Thomas D. Dyer
- South Texas Diabetes and Obesity Institute, UTHSCSA/UTRGV, Brownsville, TX, USA
| | - Marina Bogomolov
- Faculty of Industrial Engineering and Management, Technion, Haifa, Israel
| | - Yoav Benjamini
- Department of Statistics and Operation Research, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | | | - Ken Dewar
- Department of Human Genetics, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Chiara Sabatti
- Department of Biomedical Data Science, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA
- Department of Statistics, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA
| | - Richard K. Wilson
- The McDonnell Genome Institute, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - J. David Jentsch
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Wesley Warren
- The McDonnell Genome Institute, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Giovanni Coppola
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles CA, USA
| | - Roger P. Woods
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles CA, USA
| | - Nelson B. Freimer
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Human Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA,USA
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Latzman RD, Schapiro SJ, Hopkins WD. Triarchic Psychopathy Dimensions in Chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes): Investigating Associations with Genetic Variation in the Vasopressin Receptor 1A Gene. Front Neurosci 2017; 11:407. [PMID: 28769746 PMCID: PMC5511813 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2017.00407] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2017] [Accepted: 06/30/2017] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Vasopressin is a neuropeptide known to be associated with the development and evolution of complex socio-emotional behaviors including those relevant to psychopathic personality. In both humans and chimpanzees, recent research suggests a strong genetic contribution to individual variation in psychopathic traits. To date, however, little is known concerning specific genes that might explain the observed heritability of psychopathy. In a relatively large sample of captive chimpanzees (N = 164), the current study thus sought to investigate gene-environment associations between triarchic psychopathy dimensions (i.e., disinhibition, meanness, and boldness) and (1) early social rearing experiences and (2) polymorphisms in the promoter region of the V1A receptor gene (AVPR1A). Among chimpanzees raised by their biological conspecific mothers, AVPR1A was found to uniquely explain variability in disinhibition and in sex-specific ways for boldness and a total psychopathy score; however, in contrast, no significant associations were found between AVPR1A and any of the triarchic psychopathy dimensions in chimpanzees raised the first 3 years of life in a human nursery. Thus, when considered in its entirety, results suggest an important contributory influence of V1A receptor genotype variation in the explanation of the development of psychopathy under some but not all early rearing conditions. Results of the current study provide additional support for the assertion that psychopathic tendencies are rooted in basic, evolutionarily-meaningful dispositions, and provide support for a primate-translational operationalization of key neurobehavioral constructs relevant both to psychopathy and to broader forms of psychopathology.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Robert D. Latzman
- Department of Psychology, Georgia State UniversityAtlanta, GA, United States
| | - Steven J. Schapiro
- Michael E. Keeling Center for Comparative Medicine and Research, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer CenterBastrop, TX, United States
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of CopenhagenCopenhagen, Denmark
| | - William D. Hopkins
- Neuroscience Institute, Georgia State UniversityAtlanta, GA, United States
- Division of Developmental and Cognitive Neurosciences, Yerkes National Primate Research CenterAtlanta, GA, United States
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Harrison PW, Montgomery SH. Genetics of Cerebellar and Neocortical Expansion in Anthropoid Primates: A Comparative Approach. BRAIN, BEHAVIOR AND EVOLUTION 2017; 89:274-285. [PMID: 28683440 PMCID: PMC5637284 DOI: 10.1159/000477432] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2017] [Revised: 05/10/2017] [Accepted: 05/10/2017] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
What adaptive changes in brain structure and function underpin the evolution of increased cognitive performance in humans and our close relatives? Identifying the genetic basis of brain evolution has become a major tool in answering this question. Numerous cases of positive selection, altered gene expression or gene duplication have been identified that may contribute to the evolution of the neocortex, which is widely assumed to play a predominant role in cognitive evolution. However, the components of the neocortex co-evolve with other functionally interdependent regions of the brain, most notably in the cerebellum. The cerebellum is linked to a range of cognitive tasks and expanded rapidly during hominoid evolution. Here we present data that suggest that, across anthropoid primates, protein-coding genes with known roles in cerebellum development were just as likely to be targeted by selection as genes linked to cortical development. Indeed, based on currently available gene ontology data, protein-coding genes with known roles in cerebellum development are more likely to have evolved adaptively during hominoid evolution. This is consistent with phenotypic data suggesting an accelerated rate of cerebellar expansion in apes that is beyond that predicted from scaling with the neocortex in other primates. Finally, we present evidence that the strength of selection on specific genes is associated with variation in the volume of either the neocortex or the cerebellum, but not both. This result provides preliminary evidence that co-variation between these brain components during anthropoid evolution may be at least partly regulated by selection on independent loci, a conclusion that is consistent with recent intraspecific genetic analyses and a mosaic model of brain evolution that predicts adaptive evolution of brain structure.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Peter W. Harrison
- Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, London, UK
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory, European Bioinformatics Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, UK
| | - Stephen H. Montgomery
- Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, London, UK
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| |
Collapse
|
21
|
Genetic Factors and Orofacial Motor Learning Selectively Influence Variability in Central Sulcus Morphology in Chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes). J Neurosci 2017; 37:5475-5483. [PMID: 28473646 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.2641-16.2017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2016] [Revised: 01/23/2017] [Accepted: 02/01/2017] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Captive chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) have been shown to learn the use of novel attention-getting (AG) sounds to capture the attention of humans as a means of requesting or drawing their attention to a desired object or food. There are significant individual differences in the use of AG sounds by chimpanzees and, here, we examined whether changes in cortical organization of the central sulcus (CS) were associated with AG sound production. MRI scans were collected from 240 chimpanzees, including 122 that reliably produced AG sounds and 118 that did not. For each subject, the depth of CS was quantified along the superior-inferior plane with specific interest in the inferior portion corresponding to the region of the motor cortex where the mouth and orofacial movements are controlled. Results indicated that CS depth in the inferior, but not superior, portion was significantly greater in chimpanzees that reliably produced AG sounds compared with those who did not. Quantitative genetic analyses indicated that overall CS surface area and depth were significantly heritable, particularly in the superior regions, but less so in the inferior and central portions. Further, heritability in CS depth was altered as a function of acquisition of AG sounds. The collective results suggest that learning to produce AG sounds resulted in region-specific cortical reorganization within the inferior portion of the CS, a finding previously undocumented in chimpanzees or any nonhuman primate.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Recent studies in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) have shown that some can learn to produce novel sounds by configuring different orofacial movement patterns and these sounds are used in communicatively relevant contexts. Here, we examined the neuromorphological correlates in the production of these sounds in chimpanzees. We show that chimpanzees that have learned to produce these sounds show significant differences in central sulcus (CS) morphology, particularly in the inferior region. We further show that overall CS morphology and regions within the superior portion are significantly heritable, whereas central and inferior portions of the CS are not. The collective findings suggest chimpanzees exhibit cortical plasticity in regions of the brain that were central to the emergence of speech functions in humans.
Collapse
|
22
|
Latzman RD, Patrick CJ, Freeman HJ, Schapiro SJ, Hopkins WD. Etiology of Triarchic Psychopathy Dimensions in Chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes). Clin Psychol Sci 2017; 5:341-354. [PMID: 28503367 PMCID: PMC5423660 DOI: 10.1177/2167702616676582] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
The current study undertook analyses of genealogical data from a sample of 178 socially-housed chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) with well-documented pedigrees, to clarify the etiologic bases of triarchic psychopathy dimensions and the influence of early social rearing experiences. Whereas biometric analyses for the full sample indicated significant heritability for the boldness dimension of psychopathy only, heritability estimates varied by early rearing, with all three triarchic dimensions showing significant heritabilities among mother-reared but not nursery-reared apes. For mother-reared apes, both genes and environment contributed to covariance between meanness and disinhibition, whereas environment contributed mainly to covariation between these dimensions and boldness. Results indicate contributions of both genes and environment to psychopathic tendencies, with an important role for early-rearing in their relative contributions to distinct phenotypic subdimensions. In conjunction with findings from human studies, results provide valuable insights into core biobehavioral processes relevant to psychological illness and health.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Hani J. Freeman
- Michael E. Keeling Center for Comparative Medicine and Research, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
| | - Steven J. Schapiro
- Michael E. Keeling Center for Comparative Medicine and Research, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
- Department of Experiment Medicine, University of Copenhagen
| | - William D. Hopkins
- Neuroscience Institute, Georgia State University
- Division of Developmental and Cognitive Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Jorgensen MJ, Lambert KR, Breaux SD, Baker KC, Snively BM, Weed JL. Pair housing of Vervets/African Green Monkeys for biomedical research. Am J Primatol 2017; 79:1-10. [PMID: 26539878 PMCID: PMC4860176 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.22501] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2015] [Revised: 10/23/2015] [Accepted: 10/24/2015] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Vervets, also known as African green monkeys, are a nonhuman primate species widely used in biomedical research. However, there are currently few references available describing techniques and rates of success for pair-housing this species. We present data from four cohorts of vervets from three different facilities: (i) the Wake Forest Vervet Research Colony (VRC; n = 72 female pairs, n= 52 male pairs), (ii) the University of Louisiana at Lafayette-New Iberia Research Center (UL-NIRC; n = 57 female pairs, n = 54 male pairs), (iii) the Tulane National Primate Research Center (TNRPC; n = 18 male pairs), and (iv) a cohort of imported males (n = 18 pairs) at Wake Forest. Compatibility was measured at 14, 30, and 60 days following introduction. Success rates for pair-housing at 14 days ranged from 96% to 98% for females and 96% to 100% for males at the VRC and UL-NIRC but were lower in the smaller imported male cohorts (TNPRC: 50%; WF: 28%). Among the UL-NIRC cohort and VRC male cohort, most of the pair separations after 14 days were due to reasons unrelated to social incompatibility. In contrast, a large proportion of TNPRC and imported male pairs successful at 14 days required separation within 60 days due to incompatibility. Multiple logistic regressions were performed using cohort, mean age of pair and weight difference between pair-mates as potential predictors of compatibility at 14 days. All three predicted the 14-day outcome in males but not females. A separate analysis in the VRC cohort found no evidence that prior familiarity in a group setting influenced outcomes. Variations in success rates across cohorts may have been influenced by introduction methodology. Behavioral differences between vervets and macaques, coupled with our findings, lead us to theorize that the gradual introduction techniques commonly implemented to pair house macaques may not be beneficial or suitable for this species. Am. J. Primatol. 79:e22501, 2017. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Matthew J. Jorgensen
- Department of Pathology, Section on Comparative Medicine, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
| | - Kelsey R. Lambert
- Animal Resources Program, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
| | - Sarah D. Breaux
- Department of Veterinary Resources, University of Louisiana at Lafayette – New Iberia Research Center, Lafayette, Louisiana
| | - Kate C. Baker
- Division of Veterinary Medicine, Tulane National Primate Research Center, Covington, Louisiana
| | - Beverly M. Snively
- Division of Public Health Sciences, Department of Biostatistical Sciences, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
| | - James L. Weed
- Animal Resources Branch, National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
Logan CJ, Kruuk LEB, Stanley R, Thompson AM, Clutton-Brock TH. Endocranial volume is heritable and is associated with longevity and fitness in a wild mammal. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2016; 3:160622. [PMID: 28083105 PMCID: PMC5210687 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.160622] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2016] [Accepted: 11/17/2016] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
Research on relative brain size in mammals suggests that increases in brain size may generate benefits to survival and costs to fecundity: comparative studies of mammals have shown that interspecific differences in relative brain size are positively correlated with longevity and negatively with fecundity. However, as yet, no studies of mammals have investigated whether similar relationships exist within species, nor whether individual differences in brain size within a wild population are heritable. Here we show that, in a wild population of red deer (Cervus elaphus), relative endocranial volume was heritable (h2 = 63%; 95% credible intervals (CI) = 50-76%). In females, it was positively correlated with longevity and lifetime reproductive success, though there was no evidence that it was associated with fecundity. In males, endocranial volume was not related to longevity, lifetime breeding success or fecundity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- C. J. Logan
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
- Author for correspondence: C. J. Logan e-mail:
| | - L. E. B. Kruuk
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
- Division of Evolution, Ecology and Genetics, Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
| | - R. Stanley
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - A. M. Thompson
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | | |
Collapse
|
25
|
Neuroanatomy of the killer whale (Orcinus orca): a magnetic resonance imaging investigation of structure with insights on function and evolution. Brain Struct Funct 2016; 222:417-436. [PMID: 27119362 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-016-1225-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2015] [Accepted: 04/07/2016] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
The evolutionary process of adaptation to an obligatory aquatic existence dramatically modified cetacean brain structure and function. The brain of the killer whale (Orcinus orca) may be the largest of all taxa supporting a panoply of cognitive, sensory, and sensorimotor abilities. Despite this, examination of the O. orca brain has been limited in scope resulting in significant deficits in knowledge concerning its structure and function. The present study aims to describe the neural organization and potential function of the O. orca brain while linking these traits to potential evolutionary drivers. Magnetic resonance imaging was used for volumetric analysis and three-dimensional reconstruction of an in situ postmortem O. orca brain. Measurements were determined for cortical gray and cerebral white matter, subcortical nuclei, cerebellar gray and white matter, corpus callosum, hippocampi, superior and inferior colliculi, and neuroendocrine structures. With cerebral volume comprising 81.51 % of the total brain volume, this O. orca brain is one of the most corticalized mammalian brains studied to date. O. orca and other delphinoid cetaceans exhibit isometric scaling of cerebral white matter with increasing brain size, a trait that violates an otherwise evolutionarily conserved cerebral scaling law. Using comparative neurobiology, it is argued that the divergent cerebral morphology of delphinoid cetaceans compared to other mammalian taxa may have evolved in response to the sensorimotor demands of the aquatic environment. Furthermore, selective pressures associated with the evolution of echolocation and unihemispheric sleep are implicated in substructure morphology and function. This neuroanatomical dataset, heretofore absent from the literature, provides important quantitative data to test hypotheses regarding brain structure, function, and evolution within Cetacea and across Mammalia.
Collapse
|
26
|
Hopkins WD, Misiura M, Pope SM, Latash EM. Behavioral and brain asymmetries in primates: a preliminary evaluation of two evolutionary hypotheses. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2015; 1359:65-83. [PMID: 26426409 PMCID: PMC4715693 DOI: 10.1111/nyas.12936] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Contrary to many historical views, recent evidence suggests that species-level behavioral and brain asymmetries are evident in nonhuman species. Here, we briefly present evidence of behavioral, perceptual, cognitive, functional, and neuroanatomical asymmetries in nonhuman primates. In addition, we describe two historical accounts of the evolutionary origins of hemispheric specialization and present data from nonhuman primates that address these specific theories. Specifically, we first discuss the evidence that genes play specific roles in determining left-right differences in anatomical and functional asymmetries in primates. We next consider and present data on the hypothesis that hemispheric specialization evolved as a by-product of increasing brain size relative to the surface area of the corpus callosum in different primate species. Last, we discuss some of the challenges in the study of hemispheric specialization in primates and offer some suggestions on how to advance the field.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- William D Hopkins
- Neuroscience Institute and Language Research Center, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia
- Division of Developmental and Cognitive Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Maria Misiura
- Department of Psychology, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Sarah M Pope
- Neuroscience Institute and Language Research Center, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Elitaveta M Latash
- Neuroscience Institute and Language Research Center, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia
| |
Collapse
|
27
|
Croston R, Branch C, Kozlovsky D, Dukas R, Pravosudov V. Heritability and the evolution of cognitive traits: Table 1. Behav Ecol 2015. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arv088] [Citation(s) in RCA: 81] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
|
28
|
Croston R, Branch CL, Kozlovsky DY, Roth TC, LaDage LD, Freas CA, Pravosudov VV. Potential Mechanisms Driving Population Variation in Spatial Memory and the Hippocampus in Food-caching Chickadees. Integr Comp Biol 2015; 55:354-71. [DOI: 10.1093/icb/icv029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
|
29
|
Hopkins WD, Reamer L, Mareno MC, Schapiro SJ. Genetic basis in motor skill and hand preference for tool use in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). Proc Biol Sci 2015; 282:20141223. [PMID: 25520351 PMCID: PMC4298198 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2014.1223] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2014] [Accepted: 11/25/2014] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Chimpanzees are well known for their tool using abilities. Numerous studies have documented variability in tool use among chimpanzees and the role that social learning and other factors play in their development. There are also findings on hand use in both captive and wild chimpanzees; however, less understood are the potential roles of genetic and non-genetic mechanisms in determining individual differences in tool use skill and laterality. Here, we examined heritability in tool use skill and handedness for a probing task in a sample of 243 captive chimpanzees. Quantitative genetic analysis, based on the extant pedigrees, showed that overall both tool use skill and handedness were significantly heritable. Significant heritability in motor skill was evident in two genetically distinct populations of apes, and between two cohorts that received different early social rearing experiences. We further found that motor skill decreased with age and that males were more commonly left-handed than females. Collectively, these data suggest that though non-genetic factors do influence tool use performance and handedness in chimpanzees, genetic factors also play a significant role, as has been reported in humans.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- William D Hopkins
- Neuroscience Institute and the Language Research Center, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30302, USA Division of Developmental and Cognitive Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Lisa Reamer
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Bastrop, TX 78602, USA
| | - Mary Catherine Mareno
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Bastrop, TX 78602, USA
| | - Steven J Schapiro
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Bastrop, TX 78602, USA Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Panum, Blegdamsvej 3B, DK-2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
In the blink of an eye: relating positive-feedback sensitivity to striatal dopamine D2-like receptors through blink rate. J Neurosci 2015; 34:14443-54. [PMID: 25339755 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.3037-14.2014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 70] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
For >30 years, positron emission tomography (PET) has proven to be a powerful approach for measuring aspects of dopaminergic transmission in the living human brain; this technique has revealed important relationships between dopamine D2-like receptors and dimensions of normal behavior, such as human impulsivity, and psychopathology, particularly behavioral addictions. Nevertheless, PET is an indirect estimate that lacks cellular and functional resolution and, in some cases, is not entirely pharmacologically specific. To identify the relationships between PET estimates of D2-like receptor availability and direct in vitro measures of receptor number, affinity, and function, we conducted neuroimaging and behavioral and molecular pharmacological assessments in a group of adult male vervet monkeys. Data gathered from these studies indicate that variation in D2-like receptor PET measurements is related to reversal-learning performance and sensitivity to positive feedback and is associated with in vitro estimates of the density of functional dopamine D2-like receptors. Furthermore, we report that a simple behavioral measure, eyeblink rate, reveals novel and crucial links between neuroimaging assessments and in vitro measures of dopamine D2 receptors.
Collapse
|
31
|
Hänggi J, Fövenyi L, Liem F, Meyer M, Jäncke L. The hypothesis of neuronal interconnectivity as a function of brain size-a general organization principle of the human connectome. Front Hum Neurosci 2014; 8:915. [PMID: 25426059 PMCID: PMC4227509 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2014.00915] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2014] [Accepted: 10/26/2014] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Twenty years ago, Ringo and colleagues proposed that maintaining absolute connectivity in larger compared with smaller brains is computationally inefficient due to increased conduction delays in transcallosal information transfer and expensive with respect to the brain mass needed to establish these additional connections. Therefore, they postulated that larger brains are relatively stronger connected intrahemispherically and smaller brains interhemispherically, resulting in stronger functional lateralization in larger brains. We investigated neuronal interconnections in 138 large and small human brains using diffusion tensor imaging-based fiber tractography. We found a significant interaction between brain size and the type of connectivity. Structural intrahemispheric connectivity is stronger in larger brains, whereas interhemispheric connectivity is only marginally increased in larger compared with smaller brains. Although brain size and gender are confounded, this effect is gender-independent. Additionally, the ratio of interhemispheric to intrahemispheric connectivity correlates inversely with brain size. The hypothesis of neuronal interconnectivity as a function of brain size might account for shorter and more symmetrical interhemispheric transfer times in women and for empirical evidence that visual and auditory processing are stronger lateralized in men. The hypothesis additionally shows that differences in interhemispheric and intrahemispheric connectivity are driven by brain size and not by gender, a finding contradicting a recently published study. Our findings are also compatible with the idea that the more asymmetric a region is, the smaller the density of interhemispheric connections, but the larger the density of intrahemispheric connections. The hypothesis represents an organization principle of the human connectome that might be applied also to non-human animals as suggested by our cross-species comparison.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jürgen Hänggi
- Division Neuropsychology, Department of Psychology, University of Zurich Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Laszlo Fövenyi
- Division Neuropsychology, Department of Psychology, University of Zurich Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Franziskus Liem
- Division Neuropsychology, Department of Psychology, University of Zurich Zurich, Switzerland ; Research Unit for Neuroplasticity and Learning in the Healthy Aging Brain (HAB LAB), Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Zurich Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Martin Meyer
- Research Unit for Neuroplasticity and Learning in the Healthy Aging Brain (HAB LAB), Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Zurich Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Lutz Jäncke
- Division Neuropsychology, Department of Psychology, University of Zurich Zurich, Switzerland ; Department of Psychology, International Normal Aging and Plasticity Imaging Center, University of Zurich Zurich, Switzerland ; Center for Integrative Human Physiology (ZIHP), University of Zurich Zurich, Switzerland ; University Research Priority Program, Dynamic of Healthy Aging, University of Zurich Zurich, Switzerland ; Department of Special Education, King Abdulaziz University Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
| |
Collapse
|
32
|
Hopkins WD, Meguerditchian A, Coulon O, Bogart S, Mangin JF, Sherwood CC, Grabowski MW, Bennett AJ, Pierre PJ, Fears S, Woods R, Hof PR, Vauclair J. Evolution of the central sulcus morphology in primates. BRAIN, BEHAVIOR AND EVOLUTION 2014; 84:19-30. [PMID: 25139259 PMCID: PMC4166656 DOI: 10.1159/000362431] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2013] [Accepted: 06/22/2013] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
The central sulcus (CS) divides the pre- and postcentral gyri along the dorsal-ventral plane of which all motor and sensory functions are topographically organized. The motor-hand area of the precentral gyrus or KNOB has been described as the anatomical substrate of the hand in humans. Given the importance of the hand in primate evolution, here we examine the evolution of the motor-hand area by comparing the relative size and pattern of cortical folding of the CS surface area from magnetic resonance images in 131 primates, including Old World monkeys, apes and humans. We found that humans and great apes have a well-formed motor-hand area that can be seen in the variation in depth of the CS along the dorsal-ventral plane. We further found that great apes have relatively large CS surface areas compared to Old World monkeys. However, relative to great apes, humans have a small motor-hand area in terms of both adjusted and absolute surface areas.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- William D. Hopkins
- Neuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia 30302
- Division of Developmental and Cognitive Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, 954 Gatewood Road, Atlanta, Georgia 30322
| | - Adrien Meguerditchian
- Laboratoire de Psychologie Cognitive, Aix-Marseille University/CNRS, UMR7290, Marseille, France
| | - Olivier Coulon
- Laboratoire des Sciences de l'Information et des Systèmes, Aix-Marseille Universite, Marseille, France
| | - Stephanie Bogart
- Neuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia 30302
- Division of Developmental and Cognitive Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, 954 Gatewood Road, Atlanta, Georgia 30322
| | | | - Chet C. Sherwood
- Department of Anthropology and Center for the Advanced Study of Hominid Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052
| | - Mark W. Grabowski
- Department of Anthropology and Center for the Advanced Study of Hominid Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052
| | - Allyson J. Bennett
- Harlow Center for Biological Psychology, Psychology Department, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin 53715
| | - Peter J. Pierre
- Department of Behavioral Management, Wisconsin National Primate Research Center, Madison, Wisconsin 53115
| | - Scott Fears
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, California 90095
- Department of Neurology, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, California 90095
| | - Roger Woods
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, California 90095
- Department of Neurology, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, California 90095
| | - Patrick R. Hof
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, New York 10029
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, New York 10029
| | - Jacques Vauclair
- Department of Psychology, Research Center in Psychology of Cognition, Language & Emotion, Aix-Marseille University, Aix-en-Provence, France
| |
Collapse
|
33
|
Hopkins WD, Russell JL, Schaeffer J. Chimpanzee intelligence is heritable. Curr Biol 2014; 24:1649-1652. [PMID: 25017206 PMCID: PMC4108509 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2014.05.076] [Citation(s) in RCA: 70] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2013] [Revised: 03/18/2014] [Accepted: 05/30/2014] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
The role that genes play in human intelligence or IQ has remained a point of significant scientific debate dating back to the time of Galton [1]. It has now become increasingly clear that IQ is heritable in humans, but these effects can be modified by nongenetic mechanisms [2-4]. In contrast to human IQ, until recently, views of learning and cognition in animals have largely been dominated by the behaviorist school of thought, originally championed by Watson [5] and Skinner [6]. A large body of accumulated research now demonstrates a variety of cognitive abilities in nonhuman animals and challenges traditional behaviorist interpretations of performance [7, 8]. This, in turn, has led to a renewed interest in the role that social and biological factors might play in explaining individual and phylogenetic differences in cognition [9]. Specifically, aside from early attempts to selectively breed for learning skills in rodents [10-12], studies examining the role that genetic factors might play in individual variation in cognitive abilities in nonhuman animals, particularly nonhuman primates, are scarce. Here, we utilized a modified Primate Cognitive Test Battery [13] in conjunction with quantitative genetic analyses to examine whether cognitive performance is heritable in chimpanzees. We found that some but not all cognitive traits were significantly heritable in chimpanzees. We further found significant genetic correlations between different dimensions of cognitive functioning, suggesting that the genes that explain the variability of one cognitive trait might also explain that of other cognitive traits.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- William D Hopkins
- Neuroscience Institute and Language Research Center, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia 30302, USA; Division of Developmental and Cognitive Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, USA.
| | - Jamie L Russell
- Neuroscience Institute and Language Research Center, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia 30302, USA; Division of Developmental and Cognitive Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, USA
| | - Jennifer Schaeffer
- Neuroscience Institute and Language Research Center, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia 30302, USA
| |
Collapse
|
34
|
Abstract
Because of their strong similarities to humans across physiologic, developmental, behavioral, immunologic, and genetic levels, nonhuman primates are essential models for a wide spectrum of biomedical research. But unlike other animal models, nonhuman primates possess substantial outbred genetic variation, reducing statistical power and potentially confounding interpretation of results in research studies. Although unknown genetic variation is a hindrance in studies that allocate animals randomly, taking genetic variation into account in study design affords an opportunity to transform the way that nonhuman primates are used in biomedical research. New understandings of how the function of individual genes in rhesus macaques mimics that seen in humans are greatly advancing the rhesus macaques utility as research models, but epistatic interaction, epigenetic regulatory mechanisms, and the intricacies of gene networks limit model development. We are now entering a new era of nonhuman primate research, brought on by the proliferation and rapid expansion of genomic data. Already the cost of a rhesus macaque genome is dwarfed by its purchase and husbandry costs, and complete genomic datasets will inevitably encompass each rhesus macaque used in biomedical research. Advancing this outcome is paramount. It represents an opportunity to transform the way animals are assigned and used in biomedical research and to develop new models of human disease. The genetic and genomic revolution brings with it a paradigm shift for nonhuman primates and new mandates on how nonhuman primates are used in biomedical research.
Collapse
|
35
|
Jasinska AJ, Schmitt CA, Service SK, Cantor RM, Dewar K, Jentsch JD, Kaplan JR, Turner TR, Warren WC, Weinstock GM, Woods RP, Freimer NB. Systems biology of the vervet monkey. ILAR J 2014; 54:122-43. [PMID: 24174437 DOI: 10.1093/ilar/ilt049] [Citation(s) in RCA: 72] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Nonhuman primates (NHP) provide crucial biomedical model systems intermediate between rodents and humans. The vervet monkey (also called the African green monkey) is a widely used NHP model that has unique value for genetic and genomic investigations of traits relevant to human diseases. This article describes the phylogeny and population history of the vervet monkey and summarizes the use of both captive and wild vervet monkeys in biomedical research. It also discusses the effort of an international collaboration to develop the vervet monkey as the most comprehensively phenotypically and genomically characterized NHP, a process that will enable the scientific community to employ this model for systems biology investigations.
Collapse
|
36
|
|
37
|
Genetic influences on receptive joint attention in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). Sci Rep 2014; 4:3774. [PMID: 24440967 PMCID: PMC3895903 DOI: 10.1038/srep03774] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2013] [Accepted: 12/06/2013] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Despite their genetic similarity to humans, our understanding of the role of genes on cognitive traits in chimpanzees remains virtually unexplored. Here, we examined the relationship between genetic variation in the arginine vasopressin V1a receptor gene (AVPR1A) and social cognition in chimpanzees. Studies have shown that chimpanzees are polymorphic for a deletion in a sequence in the 5′ flanking region of the AVPR1A, DupB, which contains the variable RS3 repetitive element, which has been associated with variation in social behavior in humans. Results revealed that performance on the social cognition task was significantly heritable. Furthermore, males with one DupB+ allele performed significantly better and were more responsive to socio-communicative cues than males homozygous for the DupB- deletion. Performance on a non-social cognition task was not associated with the AVPR1A genotype. The collective findings show that AVPR1A polymorphisms are associated with individual differences in performance on a receptive joint attention task in chimpanzees.
Collapse
|
38
|
Groman SM, Morales AM, Lee B, London ED, Jentsch JD. Methamphetamine-induced increases in putamen gray matter associate with inhibitory control. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2013; 229:527-38. [PMID: 23748383 PMCID: PMC3770792 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-013-3159-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2013] [Accepted: 05/18/2013] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE Problematic drug use is associated with difficulty in exerting self-control over behaviors, and this difficulty may be a consequence of atypical morphometric characteristics that are exhibited by drug-experienced individuals. The extent to which these structural abnormalities result from drug use or reflect neurobiological risk factors that predate drug use, however, is unknown. OBJECTIVES The purpose of this study is to determine how methamphetamine affects corticostriatal structure and how drug-induced changes relate to alterations in inhibitory control. METHODS Structural magnetic resonance images and positron emission tomography (PET) scans, assessing dopamine D₂-like receptor and transporter availability, were acquired in monkeys trained to acquire, retain, and reverse three-choice visual discrimination problems before and after exposure to an escalating dose regimen of methamphetamine (or saline, as a control). Voxel-based morphometry was used to compare changes in corticostriatal gray matter between methamphetamine- and saline-exposed monkeys. The change in gray matter before and after the dosing regimen was compared to the change in the behavioral performance and in dopaminergic markers measured with PET. RESULTS Methamphetamine exposure, compared to saline, increased gray matter within the right putamen. These changes were positively correlated with changes in performance of methamphetamine-exposed monkeys in the reversal phase, and were negatively correlated with alterations in D₂-like receptor and DAT availability. CONCLUSIONS The results provide the first evidence that exposure to a methamphetamine dosing regimen that resembles human use alters the structural integrity of the striatum and that gray-matter abnormalities detected in human methamphetamine users are due, at least in part, to the pharmacological effects of drug experience.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Angelica M. Morales
- Department of Psychiatry & Bio-behavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles
| | - Buyean Lee
- Department of Psychiatry & Bio-behavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles
| | - Edythe D. London
- Department of Psychiatry & Bio-behavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles,Department of Medical and Molecular Pharmacology, University of California, Los Angeles
| | - James David Jentsch
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles,Department of Psychiatry & Bio-behavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles,Correspondence should be sent to: J. David Jentsch () UCLA Department of Psychology PO Box 951563 Los Angeles, CA 90095-1563
| |
Collapse
|
39
|
Montgomery SH. The human frontal lobes: not relatively large but still disproportionately important? A commentary on Barton and Venditti. BRAIN, BEHAVIOR AND EVOLUTION 2013; 82:147-9. [PMID: 24021355 DOI: 10.1159/000354157] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
|
40
|
Willemet R. Reconsidering the evolution of brain, cognition, and behavior in birds and mammals. Front Psychol 2013; 4:396. [PMID: 23847570 PMCID: PMC3696912 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00396] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2013] [Accepted: 06/12/2013] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Despite decades of research, some of the most basic issues concerning the extraordinarily complex brains and behavior of birds and mammals, such as the factors responsible for the diversity of brain size and composition, are still unclear. This is partly due to a number of conceptual and methodological issues. Determining species and group differences in brain composition requires accounting for the presence of taxon-cerebrotypes and the use of precise statistical methods. The role of allometry in determining brain variables should be revised. In particular, bird and mammalian brains appear to have evolved in response to a variety of selective pressures influencing both brain size and composition. “Brain” and “cognition” are indeed meta-variables, made up of the variables that are ecologically relevant and evolutionarily selected. External indicators of species differences in cognition and behavior are limited by the complexity of these differences. Indeed, behavioral differences between species and individuals are caused by cognitive and affective components. Although intra-species variability forms the basis of species evolution, some of the mechanisms underlying individual differences in brain and behavior appear to differ from those between species. While many issues have persisted over the years because of a lack of appropriate data or methods to test them; several fallacies, particularly those related to the human brain, reflect scientists' preconceptions. The theoretical framework on the evolution of brain, cognition, and behavior in birds and mammals should be reconsidered with these biases in mind.
Collapse
|
41
|
Danchin E, Pujol B, Wagner RH. The double pedigree: a method for studying culturally and genetically inherited behavior in tandem. PLoS One 2013; 8:e61254. [PMID: 23700404 PMCID: PMC3659024 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0061254] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2010] [Accepted: 03/12/2013] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Transgenerational sources of biological variation have been at the center of evolutionary studies ever since Darwin and Wallace identified natural selection. This is because evolution can only operate on traits whose variation is transmitted, i.e. traits that are heritable. The discovery of genetic inheritance has led to a semantic shift, resulting in the tendency to consider that only genes are inherited across generations. Today, however, concepts of heredity are being broadened again to integrate the accruing evidence of non-genetic inheritance, and many evolutionary biologists are calling for the inclusion of non-genetic inheritance into an inclusive evolutionary synthesis. Here, we focus on social heredity and its role in the inheritance of behavioral traits. We discuss quantitative genetics methods that might allow us to disentangle genetic and non-genetic transmission in natural populations with known pedigrees. We then propose an experimental design based on cross-fostering among animal cultures, environments and families that has the potential to partition inherited phenotypic variation into socially (i.e. culturally) and genetically inherited components. This approach builds towards a new conceptual framework based on the use of an extended version of the animal model of quantitative genetics to integrate genetic and cultural components of behavioral inheritance.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Etienne Danchin
- CNRS, UPS, ENFA, EDB (Laboratoire Evolution et Diversité Biologique), UMR5174, Toulouse, France.
| | | | | |
Collapse
|
42
|
Shively CA, Willard SL, Register TC, Bennett AJ, Pierre PJ, Laudenslager ML, Kitzman DW, Childers MK, Grange RW, Kritchevsky SB. Aging and physical mobility in group-housed Old World monkeys. AGE (DORDRECHT, NETHERLANDS) 2012; 34:1123-1131. [PMID: 22203457 PMCID: PMC3448999 DOI: 10.1007/s11357-011-9350-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2011] [Accepted: 12/01/2011] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
While indices of physical mobility such as gait speed are significant predictors of future morbidity/mortality in the elderly, mechanisms of these relationships are not understood. Relevant animal models of aging and physical mobility are needed to study these relationships. The goal of this study was to develop measures of physical mobility including activity levels and gait speed in Old World monkeys which vary with age in adults. Locomotor behaviors of 21 old ([Formula: see text] = 20 yoa) and 24 young ([Formula: see text] = 9 yoa) socially housed adult females of three species were recorded using focal sample and ad libitum behavior observation methods. Self-motivated walking speed was 17% slower in older than younger adults. Likewise, young adults climbed more frequently than older adults. Leaping and jumping were more common, on average, in young adults, but this difference did not reach significance. Overall activity levels did not vary significantly by age, and there were no significant age by species interactions in any of these behaviors. Of all the behaviors evaluated, walking speed measured in a simple and inexpensive manner appeared most sensitive to age and has the added feature of being least affected by differences in housing characteristics. Thus, walking speed may be a useful indicator of decline in physical mobility in nonhuman primate models of aging.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Carol A Shively
- Department of Pathology, Section on Comparative Medicine, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC 27157-1040, USA.
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
43
|
Abstract
The degree to which genes and environment determine variations in brain structure and function is fundamentally important to understanding normal and disease-related patterns of neural organization and activity. We studied genetic contributions to the midsagittal area of the corpus callosum (CC) in pedigreed baboons (68 males, 112 females) to replicate findings of high genetic contribution to that area of the CC reported in humans, and to determine if the heritability of the CC midsagittal area in adults was modulated by fetal development rate. Measurements of callosal area were obtained from high-resolution MRI scans. Heritability was estimated from pedigree-based maximum likelihood estimation of genetic and non-genetic variance components as implemented in Sequential Oligogenic Linkage Analysis Routines (SOLAR). Our analyses revealed significant heritability for the total area of the CC and all of its subdivisions, with h2 = .46 for the total CC, and h2 = .54, .37, .62, .56, and .29 for genu, anterior midbody, medial midbody, posterior midbody and splenium, respectively. Genetic correlation analysis demonstrated that the individual subdivisions shared between 41% and 98% of genetic variability. Combined with previous research reporting high heritability of other brain structures in baboons, these results reveal a consistent pattern of high heritability for brain morphometric measures in baboons.
Collapse
|
44
|
Jasinska AJ, Lin MK, Service S, Choi OW, DeYoung J, Grujic O, Kong SY, Jung Y, Jorgensen MJ, Fairbanks LA, Turner T, Cantor RM, Wasserscheid J, Dewar K, Warren W, Wilson RK, Weinstock G, Jentsch JD, Freimer NB. A non-human primate system for large-scale genetic studies of complex traits. Hum Mol Genet 2012; 21:3307-16. [PMID: 22556363 PMCID: PMC3392106 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/dds160] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2012] [Revised: 04/04/2012] [Accepted: 04/18/2012] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Non-human primates provide genetic model systems biologically intermediate between humans and other mammalian model organisms. Populations of Caribbean vervet monkeys (Chlorocebus aethiops sabaeus) are genetically homogeneous and large enough to permit well-powered genetic mapping studies of quantitative traits relevant to human health, including expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL). Previous transcriptome-wide investigation in an extended vervet pedigree identified 29 heritable transcripts for which levels of expression in peripheral blood correlate strongly with expression levels in the brain. Quantitative trait linkage analysis using 261 microsatellite markers identified significant (n = 8) and suggestive (n = 4) linkages for 12 of these transcripts, including both cis- and trans-eQTL. Seven transcripts, located on different chromosomes, showed maximum linkage to markers in a single region of vervet chromosome 9; this observation suggests the possibility of a master trans-regulator locus in this region. For one cis-eQTL (at B3GALTL, beta-1,3-glucosyltransferase), we conducted follow-up single nucleotide polymorphism genotyping and fine-scale association analysis in a sample of unrelated Caribbean vervets, localizing this eQTL to a region of <200 kb. These results suggest the value of pedigree and population samples of the Caribbean vervet for linkage and association mapping studies of quantitative traits. The imminent whole genome sequencing of many of these vervet samples will enhance the power of such investigations by providing a comprehensive catalog of genetic variation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anna J. Jasinska
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Michelle K. Lin
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Department of Neurobehavioral Genetics, Institute of Psychobiology, University of Trier, Johanniterufer 15, D-54290 Trier, Germany
| | - Susan Service
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Oi-Wa Choi
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Joseph DeYoung
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Olivera Grujic
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Sit-Yee Kong
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Yoon Jung
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Mathew J. Jorgensen
- Department of Pathology, Section on Comparative Medicine, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC 27157, USA
| | - Lynn A. Fairbanks
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Trudy Turner
- University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI 53201, USA
| | - Rita M. Cantor
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Jessica Wasserscheid
- Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, McGill University and Génome Québec Innovation Centre
- Department of Human Genetics and
- Department of Experimental Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, PQ, CanadaH3A 1A1
| | - Ken Dewar
- Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, McGill University and Génome Québec Innovation Centre
- Department of Human Genetics and
- Department of Experimental Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, PQ, CanadaH3A 1A1
| | - Wesley Warren
- The Genome Institute at Washington University, St Louis, MO 63108, USA and
| | - Richard K. Wilson
- The Genome Institute at Washington University, St Louis, MO 63108, USA and
| | - George Weinstock
- The Genome Institute at Washington University, St Louis, MO 63108, USA and
| | - J. David Jentsch
- Department of Psychology and Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Nelson B. Freimer
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| |
Collapse
|
45
|
Willemet R. Understanding the evolution of Mammalian brain structures; the need for a (new) cerebrotype approach. Brain Sci 2012; 2:203-24. [PMID: 24962772 PMCID: PMC4061787 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci2020203] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/20/2012] [Revised: 04/25/2012] [Accepted: 05/03/2012] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The mammalian brain varies in size by a factor of 100,000 and is composed of anatomically and functionally distinct structures. Theoretically, the manner in which brain composition can evolve is limited, ranging from highly modular ("mosaic evolution") to coordinated changes in brain structure size ("concerted evolution") or anything between these two extremes. There is a debate about the relative importance of these distinct evolutionary trends. It is shown here that the presence of taxa-specific allometric relationships between brain structures makes a taxa-specific approach obligatory. In some taxa, the evolution of the size of brain structures follows a unique, coordinated pattern, which, in addition to other characteristics at different anatomical levels, defines what has been called here a "taxon cerebrotype". In other taxa, no clear pattern is found, reflecting heterogeneity of the species' lifestyles. These results suggest that the evolution of brain size and composition depends on the complex interplay between selection pressures and constraints that have changed constantly during mammalian evolution. Therefore the variability in brain composition between species should not be considered as deviations from the normal, concerted mammalian trend, but in taxa and species-specific versions of the mammalian brain. Because it forms homogenous groups of species within this complex "space" of constraints and selection pressures, the cerebrotype approach developed here could constitute an adequate level of analysis for evo-devo studies, and by extension, for a wide range of disciplines related to brain evolution.
Collapse
|
46
|
Stein JL, Medland SE, Vasquez AA, Hibar DP, Senstad RE, Winkler AM, Toro R, Appel K, Bartecek R, Bergmann Ø, Bernard M, Brown AA, Cannon DM, Chakravarty MM, Christoforou A, Domin M, Grimm O, Hollinshead M, Holmes AJ, Homuth G, Hottenga JJ, Langan C, Lopez LM, Hansell NK, Hwang KS, Kim S, Laje G, Lee PH, Liu X, Loth E, Lourdusamy A, Mattingsdal M, Mohnke S, Maniega SM, Nho K, Nugent AC, O'Brien C, Papmeyer M, Pütz B, Ramasamy A, Rasmussen J, Rijpkema M, Risacher SL, Roddey JC, Rose EJ, Ryten M, Shen L, Sprooten E, Strengman E, Teumer A, Trabzuni D, Turner J, van Eijk K, van Erp TGM, van Tol MJ, Wittfeld K, Wolf C, Woudstra S, Aleman A, Alhusaini S, Almasy L, Binder EB, Brohawn DG, Cantor RM, Carless MA, Corvin A, Czisch M, Curran JE, Davies G, de Almeida MAA, Delanty N, Depondt C, Duggirala R, Dyer TD, Erk S, Fagerness J, Fox PT, Freimer NB, Gill M, Göring HHH, Hagler DJ, Hoehn D, Holsboer F, Hoogman M, Hosten N, Jahanshad N, Johnson MP, Kasperaviciute D, Kent JW, Kochunov P, Lancaster JL, Lawrie SM, Liewald DC, Mandl R, Matarin M, Mattheisen M, Meisenzahl E, Melle I, Moses EK, Mühleisen TW, Nauck M, Nöthen MM, Olvera RL, Pandolfo M, Pike GB, Puls R, Reinvang I, Rentería ME, Rietschel M, Roffman JL, Royle NA, Rujescu D, Savitz J, Schnack HG, Schnell K, Seiferth N, Smith C, Steen VM, Valdés Hernández MC, Van den Heuvel M, van der Wee NJ, Van Haren NEM, Veltman JA, Völzke H, Walker R, Westlye LT, Whelan CD, Agartz I, Boomsma DI, Cavalleri GL, Dale AM, Djurovic S, Drevets WC, Hagoort P, Hall J, Heinz A, Jack CR, Foroud TM, Le Hellard S, Macciardi F, Montgomery GW, Poline JB, Porteous DJ, Sisodiya SM, Starr JM, Sussmann J, Toga AW, Veltman DJ, Walter H, Weiner MW, Bis JC, Ikram MA, Smith AV, Gudnason V, Tzourio C, Vernooij MW, Launer LJ, DeCarli C, Seshadri S, Andreassen OA, Apostolova LG, Bastin ME, Blangero J, Brunner HG, Buckner RL, Cichon S, Coppola G, de Zubicaray GI, Deary IJ, Donohoe G, de Geus EJC, Espeseth T, Fernández G, Glahn DC, Grabe HJ, Hardy J, Hulshoff Pol HE, Jenkinson M, Kahn RS, McDonald C, McIntosh AM, McMahon FJ, McMahon KL, Meyer-Lindenberg A, Morris DW, Müller-Myhsok B, Nichols TE, Ophoff RA, Paus T, Pausova Z, Penninx BW, Potkin SG, Sämann PG, Saykin AJ, Schumann G, Smoller JW, Wardlaw JM, Weale ME, Martin NG, Franke B, Wright MJ, Thompson PM. Identification of common variants associated with human hippocampal and intracranial volumes. Nat Genet 2012; 44:552-61. [PMID: 22504417 PMCID: PMC3635491 DOI: 10.1038/ng.2250] [Citation(s) in RCA: 524] [Impact Index Per Article: 43.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2011] [Accepted: 03/19/2012] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Identifying genetic variants influencing human brain structures may reveal new biological mechanisms underlying cognition and neuropsychiatric illness. The volume of the hippocampus is a biomarker of incipient Alzheimer's disease and is reduced in schizophrenia, major depression and mesial temporal lobe epilepsy. Whereas many brain imaging phenotypes are highly heritable, identifying and replicating genetic influences has been difficult, as small effects and the high costs of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have led to underpowered studies. Here we report genome-wide association meta-analyses and replication for mean bilateral hippocampal, total brain and intracranial volumes from a large multinational consortium. The intergenic variant rs7294919 was associated with hippocampal volume (12q24.22; N = 21,151; P = 6.70 × 10(-16)) and the expression levels of the positional candidate gene TESC in brain tissue. Additionally, rs10784502, located within HMGA2, was associated with intracranial volume (12q14.3; N = 15,782; P = 1.12 × 10(-12)). We also identified a suggestive association with total brain volume at rs10494373 within DDR2 (1q23.3; N = 6,500; P = 5.81 × 10(-7)).
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jason L Stein
- Laboratory of Neuro Imaging, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
47
|
Fears SC, Scheibel K, Abaryan Z, Lee C, Service SK, Jorgensen MJ, Fairbanks LA, Cantor RM, Freimer NB, Woods RP. Anatomic brain asymmetry in vervet monkeys. PLoS One 2011; 6:e28243. [PMID: 22205941 PMCID: PMC3244392 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0028243] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2011] [Accepted: 11/04/2011] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Asymmetry is a prominent feature of human brains with important functional consequences. Many asymmetric traits show population bias, but little is known about the genetic and environmental sources contributing to inter-individual variance. Anatomic asymmetry has been observed in Old World monkeys, but the evidence for the direction and extent of asymmetry is equivocal and only one study has estimated the genetic contributions to inter-individual variance. In this study we characterize a range of qualitative and quantitative asymmetry measures in structural brain MRIs acquired from an extended pedigree of Old World vervet monkeys (n = 357), and implement variance component methods to estimate the proportion of trait variance attributable to genetic and environmental sources. Four of six asymmetry measures show pedigree-level bias and one of the traits has a significant heritability estimate of about 30%. We also found that environmental variables more significantly influence the width of the right compared to the left prefrontal lobe.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Scott C Fears
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, The Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States of America.
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
48
|
Dorsal striatal D2-like receptor availability covaries with sensitivity to positive reinforcement during discrimination learning. J Neurosci 2011; 31:7291-9. [PMID: 21593313 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0363-11.2011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Deviations in reward sensitivity and behavioral flexibility, particularly in the ability to change or stop behaviors in response to changing environmental contingencies, are important phenotypic dimensions of several neuropsychiatric disorders. Neuroimaging evidence suggests that variation in dopamine signaling through dopamine D(2)-like receptors may influence these phenotypes, as well as associated psychiatric conditions, but the specific neurocognitive mechanisms through which this influence is exerted are unknown. To address this question, we examined the relationship between behavioral sensitivity to reinforcement during discrimination learning and D(2)-like receptor availability in vervet monkeys. Monkeys were assessed for their ability to acquire, retain, and reverse three-choice, visual-discrimination problems, and once behavioral performance had stabilized, they received positron emission tomography (PET) scans. D(2)-like receptor availability in dorsal aspects of the striatum was not related to individual differences in the ability to acquire or retain visual discriminations but did relate to the number of trials required to reach criterion in the reversal phase of the task. D(2)-like receptor availability was also strongly correlated with behavioral sensitivity to positive, but not negative, feedback during learning. These results go beyond electrophysiological findings by demonstrating the involvement of a striatal dopaminergic marker in individual differences in feedback sensitivity and behavioral flexibility, providing insight into the neural mechanisms that are affected in neuropsychiatric disorders that feature these deficits.
Collapse
|
49
|
Lyn H, Pierre P, Bennett AJ, Fears S, Woods R, Hopkins WD. Planum temporale grey matter asymmetries in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), vervet (Chlorocebus aethiops sabaeus), rhesus (Macaca mulatta) and bonnet (Macaca radiata) monkeys. Neuropsychologia 2011; 49:2004-12. [PMID: 21447349 PMCID: PMC3151738 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2011.03.030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2010] [Revised: 03/17/2011] [Accepted: 03/19/2011] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Brain asymmetries, particularly asymmetries within regions associated with language, have been suggested as a key difference between humans and our nearest ancestors. These regions include the planum temporale (PT) - the bank of tissue that lies posterior to Heschl's gyrus and encompasses Wernicke's area, an important brain region involved in language and speech in the human brain. In the human brain, both the surface area and the grey matter volume of the PT are larger in the left compared to right hemisphere, particularly among right-handed individuals. Here we compared the grey matter volume and asymmetry of the PT in chimpanzees and three other species of nonhuman primate in two Genera including vervet monkeys (Chlorocebus aethiops sabaeus), rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) and bonnet macaques (Macaca radiata). We show that the three monkey species do not show population-level asymmetries in this region whereas the chimpanzees do, suggesting that the evolutionary brain development that gave rise to PT asymmetry occurred after our split with the monkey species, but before our split with the chimpanzees.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Heidi Lyn
- Department of Psychology, Agnes Scott College, Decatur, GA 30030
| | - Peter Pierre
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology and Department of Pediatrics, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC 27157
| | - Allyson J. Bennett
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology and Department of Pediatrics, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC 27157
| | - Scott Fears
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, California 90095
| | - Roger Woods
- Department of Neurology, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, California 90095
| | - William D. Hopkins
- Department of Psychology, Agnes Scott College, Decatur, GA 30030
- Division of Cognitive and Developmental Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, GA 30322
| |
Collapse
|
50
|
Woods RP, Fears SC, Jorgensen MJ, Fairbanks LA, Toga AW, Freimer NB. A web-based brain atlas of the vervet monkey, Chlorocebus aethiops. Neuroimage 2011; 54:1872-80. [PMID: 20923706 PMCID: PMC3008312 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2010.09.070] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2010] [Accepted: 09/26/2010] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Vervet monkeys are a frequently studied animal model in neuroscience research. Although equally distantly related to humans, the ancestors of vervets diverged from those of macaques and baboons more than 11 million years ago, antedating the divergence of the ancestors of humans, chimpanzees and gorillas. To facilitate anatomic localization in the vervet brain, two linked on-line electronic atlases are described, one based on registered MRI scans from hundreds of vervets (http://www.loni.ucla.edu/Research/Atlases/Data/vervet/vervetmratlas/vervetmratlas.html) and the other based on a high-resolution cryomacrotome study of a single vervet (http://www.loni.ucla.edu/Research/Atlases/Data/vervet/vervetatlas/vervetatlas.html). The averaged MRI atlas is also available as a volume in Neuroimaging Informatics Technology Initiative format. In the cryomacrotome atlas, various sulcal and subcortical structures have been anatomically labeled and surface rendered views are provided along the primary planes of section. Both atlases simultaneously provide views in all three primary planes of section, rapid navigation by clicking on the displayed images, and stereotaxic coordinates in the averaged MRI atlas space. Despite the extended time period since their divergence, the major sulcal and subcortical landmarks in vervets are highly conserved relative to those described in macaques.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Roger P Woods
- Ahmanson-Lovelace Brain Mapping Center, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA 90095-7085, USA.
| | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|