Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

What is Evolutionary History?02:35

What is Evolutionary History?

31.1K
Scientists record evolutionary history by analyzing fossil, morphological, and genetic data. The fossil record documents the history of life on Earth and provides evidence for evolution. However, both fossil and living organisms offer evidence that outlines Earth’s evolutionary history.
31.1K
The Evidence for Evolution02:55

The Evidence for Evolution

40.3K
Genetic variations accumulating within populations over generations give rise to biological evolution. Evolutionary changes can result in the formation of novel varieties and entire new species. These changes are responsible for the diverse forms of life inhabiting the planet. The evidence for evolution suggests that all living organisms descended from common ancestors.
40.3K
Synteny and Evolution02:31

Synteny and Evolution

3.0K
John H. Renwick first coined the term “synteny” in 1971, which refers to the genes present on the same chromosomes, even if they are not genetically linked. The species with common ancestry tend to show conserved syntenic regions. Therefore, the concept of synteny is nowadays used to describe the evolutionary relationship between species.
Around 80 million years ago, the human and mice lineages diverged from the common ancestor. During the course of evolution, the ancestral...
3.0K
Anatomy of the Brain: Major Regions01:20

Anatomy of the Brain: Major Regions

11.6K
The brain is the most complex organ in the human body. It consists of four main parts: the cerebrum, diencephalon, cerebellum, and brainstem.
The cerebrum is the largest section of the brain and divides into left and right hemispheres, separated by a deep fissure. The cerebral outer layer of grey matter — the cerebral cortex — comprises elevations called gyri and shallow groves called sulci. The inner portion of white matter includes long nerve fibers known as axons, which connect...
11.6K
Neuroplasticity01:01

Neuroplasticity

2.6K
Neuroplasticity reflects the brain's remarkable capacity to adapt and evolve, responding dynamically to learning, experiences, or injury by reorganizing its neural circuitry. This reorganization involves creating new neural connections and refining old ones through a series of biological processes that contribute to the brain's lifelong development and adaptability.
2.6K
Evolutionary Psychology01:20

Evolutionary Psychology

1.4K
Evolutionary psychology explores the origins of human behavior and mental processes by framing them within the context of natural selection, a theory famously propounded by Charles Darwin. This field asserts that many behaviors common across human societies — ranging from instinctive fear reactions to complex social interactions — arose as evolutionary adaptations. These adaptations enhanced the survival and reproductive success of our ancestors, thereby becoming embedded in the...
1.4K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Macroevolutionary brain scaling is a microevolutionary metaphenomenon.

Nature communications·2025
Same author

Human dexterity and brains evolved hand in hand.

Communications biology·2025
Same author

Humans may not have a uniquely enhanced sequence memory: sequence discrimination is facilitated by causal-logical framing in humans and chimpanzees.

Royal Society open science·2025
Same author

Meta-analysis of the red advantage in combat sports.

Scientific reports·2024
Same author

Hominin brain size increase has emerged from within-species encephalization.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2024
Same author

Measuring episodic memory and mental time travel: crossing the species gap.

Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences·2024
Same journal

Retraction Note: NSD2 targeting reverses plasticity and drug resistance in prostate cancer.

Nature·2026
Same journal

Enhanced B cell priming induces broadly neutralizing HIV-1 apex antibodies.

Nature·2026
Same journal

Vaccination elicits HIV broadly neutralizing antibodies in primates.

Nature·2026
Same journal

Child online safety needs more than social-media bans.

Nature·2026
Same journal

Ebola preparedness must start with ecosystems and before humans show symptoms.

Nature·2026
Same journal

AI tools can speed up thinking, but evidence still comes from the lab bench.

Nature·2026
See all related articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 5, 2026

Abbiategrasso Brain Bank Protocol for Collecting, Processing and Characterizing Aging Brains
12:28

Abbiategrasso Brain Bank Protocol for Collecting, Processing and Characterizing Aging Brains

Published on: June 3, 2020

18.2K

How did brains evolve?

Robert A Barton1

  • 1Department of Anthropology, University of Durham, UK. r.a.barton@durham.ac.uk

Nature
|January 24, 2002
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

This study questions conclusions about mammalian brain evolution, finding that the cerebrotype measure fails to detect key evolutionary patterns independent of brain size.

More Related Videos

Microdissection of Mouse Brain into Functionally and Anatomically Different Regions
08:06

Microdissection of Mouse Brain into Functionally and Anatomically Different Regions

Published on: February 15, 2021

53.4K
A Comparative Approach for Quantitative Cell Counting Studies in Widely Different Mammalian Brains
07:14

A Comparative Approach for Quantitative Cell Counting Studies in Widely Different Mammalian Brains

Published on: January 16, 2026

455

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 5, 2026

Abbiategrasso Brain Bank Protocol for Collecting, Processing and Characterizing Aging Brains
12:28

Abbiategrasso Brain Bank Protocol for Collecting, Processing and Characterizing Aging Brains

Published on: June 3, 2020

18.2K
Microdissection of Mouse Brain into Functionally and Anatomically Different Regions
08:06

Microdissection of Mouse Brain into Functionally and Anatomically Different Regions

Published on: February 15, 2021

53.4K
A Comparative Approach for Quantitative Cell Counting Studies in Widely Different Mammalian Brains
07:14

A Comparative Approach for Quantitative Cell Counting Studies in Widely Different Mammalian Brains

Published on: January 16, 2026

455

Area of Science:

  • Comparative neuroanatomy
  • Evolutionary biology
  • Paleontology

Background:

  • Three recent studies analyzed mammalian brain component volumes, yielding conflicting results.
  • Clark et al. proposed that cerebellum size is invariant and does not co-vary with neocortex size, and that cerebrotype measures reveal directional brain evolution.

Discussion:

  • This analysis challenges the invariance of cerebellum size across mammalian groups.
  • Evidence suggests the neocortex and cerebellum do co-vary, contradicting previous findings.
  • The cerebrotype measure's inability to detect size-independent brain architecture differences is highlighted.

Key Insights:

  • Cerebrotype measures may not accurately reflect evolutionary patterns or phylogenetic relationships.
  • The proposed invariance of cerebellum size is contested.
  • Co-variation between neocortex and cerebellum size is supported.

Outlook:

  • Re-evaluation of cerebrotype measures in evolutionary neuroanatomy is needed.
  • Further research should focus on size-independent metrics for brain evolution.
  • Understanding brain component scaling is crucial for evolutionary studies.