UNH Research Shows Nerve Cells Move Backward to Reposition Contributing to Brain Evolution_188体育app_188体育在线-平台官网

Robbin Ray ’82
Wed, 12 Mar 2025 14:30 -0400

DURHAM, N.H. — Researchers from the University of New Hampshire looked at the developmental process of the cerebral cortex —the outermost layer of the brain — and examined how neurons, or nerve cells, refine their positions in the? brain after birth. Their study shed light on the evolutionary transition from the three-layered cortex, considered an ancient structure, to the six-layered cortex, which is characteristic of higher mammals, including humans. The postnatal transition process has remained poorly understood, but this study provides the first evidence of a slow reverse movement of neurons that shift backward to reposition themselves. This process reshapes the six-layered neocortex, which is necessary for higher biological intelligence like learning, reasoning and memory.
“Imagine...