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 Experiment Videos

Evolution of cerebellum-like structures.

Curtis C Bell1

  • 1Neurological Sciences Institute, Oregon Health and Sciences University, Beaverton 97006, USA. bellc@ohsu.edu

Brain, Behavior and Evolution
|September 11, 2002
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

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

Sort by
Same author

Adaptive processing in electrosensory systems: links to cerebellar plasticity and learning.

Journal of physiology, Paris·2008
Same author

Morphological analysis of the mormyrid cerebellum using immunohistochemistry, with emphasis on the unusual neuronal organization of the valvula.

The Journal of comparative neurology·2008
Same author

Cerebellum-like structures and their implications for cerebellar function.

Annual review of neuroscience·2008
Same author

Synaptic plasticity and calcium signaling in Purkinje cells of the central cerebellar lobes of mormyrid fish.

The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience·2007
Same author

Anatomy of the posterior caudal lobe of the cerebellum and the eminentia granularis posterior in a mormyrid fish.

The Journal of comparative neurology·2007
Same author

Central control of dendritic spikes shapes the responses of Purkinje-like cells through spike timing-dependent synaptic plasticity.

The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience·2007
Same journal

"Mind Over Muscle": Neural and Biomechanical Signatures of Expertise in Early Stone Tool Use.

Brain, behavior and evolution·2026
Same journal

A step forward in encephalization: the virtual endocast of the Middle Pleistocene hominin from Ceprano, Italy.

Brain, behavior and evolution·2026
Same journal

Anatomical and Volumetric Description of the Baird's Beaked Whale (Berardius bairdii) brain from Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

Brain, behavior and evolution·2026
Same journal

Immunohistochemical Staining of the Brain of the Tuatara Sphenodon punctatus.

Brain, behavior and evolution·2026
Same journal

Macroevolutionary patterns of endocast lateralization in catarrhines and fossil hominins.

Brain, behavior and evolution·2026
Same journal

Phylogenetic patterns and genomic correlates of pronounced neocortical reduction in New World monkeys.

Brain, behavior and evolution·2026
See all related articles

The cerebellum and similar brain structures across vertebrates likely evolved through convergent evolution, utilizing a shared genetic-developmental program to process sensory information by removing predictable features.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Comparative Anatomy
  • Evolutionary Biology

Background:

  • All vertebrate brains possess a cerebellum, with many also featuring additional cerebellum-like structures.
  • These structures, found across diverse taxa, share histological similarities and functional principles.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the evolutionary origins and functional similarities of cerebellum-like structures in vertebrate brains.
  • To determine whether phylogenetic homology or evolutionary convergence best explains the observed similarities.

Main Methods:

  • Comparative analysis of brain structures across vertebrate taxa.
  • Review of physiological findings related to sensory processing in cerebellum-like structures.
  • Evaluation of evolutionary hypotheses, including phylogenetic homology and convergent evolution.

Related Experiment Videos

Main Results:

  • Cerebellum-like structures exhibit conserved organizational principles, including topographically organized sensory input and Purkinje-like cells.
  • Physiological data suggest these structures function to remove predictable sensory information.
  • Phylogenetic homology explains some similarities but fails to account for others, particularly among different types of cerebellum-like structures.

Conclusions:

  • Evolutionary convergence, driven by a conserved genetic-developmental program for cerebellar circuitry, is the most plausible explanation for the widespread occurrence and similarities of cerebellum-like structures.
  • The functional need for processing predictable sensory information likely constrained this convergent evolution across diverse vertebrate systems.