This story has broken in Australia and I like it that this new discovery is not found in any other primate.
"TESSA KOUMOUNDOUROS
22 NOV 2018
It turns out we humans may have an extra type of thinky bit that isn't found in other primates. A previously unknown brain structure was identified while scientists carefully imaged parts of the human brain for an upcoming atlas on brain anatomy.
Neuroscientist George Paxinos and his team at Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA) have named their discovery the endorestiform nucleus - because it is located within (endo) the inferior cerebellar peduncle (also called the restiform body). It's found at the base of the brain, near where the brain meets the spinal cord.
This area is involved in receiving sensory and motor information from our bodies to refine our posture, balance and movements.
"The inferior cerebellar peduncle is like a river carrying information from the spinal cord and brainstem to the cerebellum," Paxinos told ScienceAlert.
"The endorestiform nucleus is a group of neurons, and it is like an island in this river."
Neuroscientist Lyndsey Collins-Praino from Adelaide University, who was not involved in the study, told ScienceAlert that Paxinos' discovery is "intriguing".
"While one can speculate that the endorestiform nucleus may play a key role in [the functions of the inferior cerebellar peduncle], it is too early to know its true significance," she added.
Paxinos confirmed the existence of this brain structure while using a relatively new brain staining technique he developed to make images of the brain tissues clearer (and surely also prettier!) for the latest neuroanatomy atlas he has been working on.
These stains target cell products actively being made - chemicals in the brain such as neurotransmitters, providing a map of brain tissues. This helps to differentiate the neuron groups by their function - rather than just the traditional way of separating them by how the cells look - revealing what is known as the chemoarchitecture of the brain.
"The endorestiform nucleus is all too evident by its dense staining for [the enzyme] acetylcholinesterase, all the more evident because the surrounding areas are negative," Paxinos explained.
"It was nearly the case the nucleus discovered me, than the other way around."
Link to rest of story;
Neuroscientists Have Discovered a Previously Hidden Region in The Human Brain
This should be interesting, man a distinct species?
Regards Tony
"TESSA KOUMOUNDOUROS
22 NOV 2018
It turns out we humans may have an extra type of thinky bit that isn't found in other primates. A previously unknown brain structure was identified while scientists carefully imaged parts of the human brain for an upcoming atlas on brain anatomy.
Neuroscientist George Paxinos and his team at Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA) have named their discovery the endorestiform nucleus - because it is located within (endo) the inferior cerebellar peduncle (also called the restiform body). It's found at the base of the brain, near where the brain meets the spinal cord.
This area is involved in receiving sensory and motor information from our bodies to refine our posture, balance and movements.
"The inferior cerebellar peduncle is like a river carrying information from the spinal cord and brainstem to the cerebellum," Paxinos told ScienceAlert.
"The endorestiform nucleus is a group of neurons, and it is like an island in this river."
Neuroscientist Lyndsey Collins-Praino from Adelaide University, who was not involved in the study, told ScienceAlert that Paxinos' discovery is "intriguing".
"While one can speculate that the endorestiform nucleus may play a key role in [the functions of the inferior cerebellar peduncle], it is too early to know its true significance," she added.
Paxinos confirmed the existence of this brain structure while using a relatively new brain staining technique he developed to make images of the brain tissues clearer (and surely also prettier!) for the latest neuroanatomy atlas he has been working on.
These stains target cell products actively being made - chemicals in the brain such as neurotransmitters, providing a map of brain tissues. This helps to differentiate the neuron groups by their function - rather than just the traditional way of separating them by how the cells look - revealing what is known as the chemoarchitecture of the brain.
"The endorestiform nucleus is all too evident by its dense staining for [the enzyme] acetylcholinesterase, all the more evident because the surrounding areas are negative," Paxinos explained.
"It was nearly the case the nucleus discovered me, than the other way around."
Link to rest of story;
Neuroscientists Have Discovered a Previously Hidden Region in The Human Brain
This should be interesting, man a distinct species?
Regards Tony
