Related Experiment Videos
Linked regularities in the development and evolution of mammalian brains
1Department of Psychology, Uris Hall, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA.
Science (New York, N.Y.)
|June 16, 1995
Summary
Brain component sizes in mammals are predictable by brain size, with later-developing parts growing disproportionately. This suggests behavioral evolution may involve coordinated enlargement of the nonolfactory brain.
Area of Science:
- Comparative neuroanatomy
- Evolutionary biology
- Mammalian brain evolution
Background:
- Brain size varies significantly across mammal species.
- Understanding the relationship between brain size and component structure is crucial for evolutionary studies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between absolute brain size and the sizes of its components in mammals.
- To examine the conservation and implications of neurogenesis order in mammalian brain evolution.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of brain component sizes from 131 species of primates, bats, and insectivores.
- Statistical modeling to identify nonlinear functions predicting component size from absolute brain size.
Main Results:
- Brain component sizes are highly predictable from absolute brain size via a nonlinear function.
- Neurogenesis order is conserved across diverse mammals and correlates with relative structure enlargement.
- Disproportionately large growth occurs in late-generated brain structures.
Conclusions:
- The conserved order of neurogenesis suggests that selection for behavioral abilities likely results in coordinated enlargement of the nonolfactory brain.
- This finding provides insights into the macroevolutionary patterns of mammalian brains.