Interhemispheric gene expression differences in the cerebral cortex of humans and macaque monkeys

Gerard Muntané, Gabriel Santpere, Andrey Verendeev, William W. Seeley, Bob Jacobs, William D. Hopkins, Arcadi Navarro, Chet C. Sherwood

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

14 Scopus citations

Abstract

Handedness and language are two well-studied examples of asymmetrical brain function in humans. Approximately 90% of humans exhibit a right-hand preference, and the vast majority shows left-hemisphere dominance for language function. Although genetic models of human handedness and language have been proposed, the actual gene expression differences between cerebral hemispheres in humans remain to be fully defined. In the present study, gene expression profiles were examined in both hemispheres of three cortical regions involved in handedness and language in humans and their homologues in rhesus macaques: ventrolateral prefrontal cortex, posterior superior temporal cortex (STC), and primary motor cortex. Although the overall pattern of gene expression was very similar between hemispheres in both humans and macaques, weighted gene correlation network analysis revealed gene co-expression modules associated with hemisphere, which are different among the three cortical regions examined. Notably, a receptor-enriched gene module in STC was particularly associated with hemisphere and showed different expression levels between hemispheres only in humans.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)1-14
Number of pages14
JournalBrain Structure and Function
Volume222
Issue number7
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 1 2017
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Brain asymmetry
  • Brain evolution
  • Cerebral cortex
  • Gene networks
  • Language
  • WGCNA

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Anatomy
  • General Neuroscience
  • Histology

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