Gene Expression in the Evolution of the Human Brain

An exciting area of neuroscience research seeks to identify the key molecular changes that underlay the emergence of the modern human brain. In light of the remarkable similarity between most human and chimpanzee proteins and the fact that the majority of DNA sequence differences between the species exist in noncoding regions, researchers have begun to search for human adaptations in brain function at the level of the transcriptome. In this article, we review the results from these early studies and discuss some of the challenges that must be addressed to realize the full potential of this promising new avenue of research.