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Quantitative uniqueness of human brain evolution revealed through phylogenetic comparative analysis.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Miller, IF; Barton, RA; Nunn, CL
Published in: eLife
January 2019

While the human brain is clearly large relative to body size, less is known about the timing of brain and brain component expansion within primates and the relative magnitude of volumetric increases. Using Bayesian phylogenetic comparative methods and data for both extant and fossil species, we identified that a distinct shift in brain-body scaling occurred as hominins diverged from other primates, and again as humans and Neanderthals diverged from other hominins. Within hominins, we detected a pattern of directional and accelerating evolution towards larger brains, consistent with a positive feedback process in the evolution of the human brain. Contrary to widespread assumptions, we found that the human neocortex is not exceptionally large relative to other brain structures. Instead, our analyses revealed a single increase in relative neocortex volume at the origin of haplorrhines, and an increase in relative cerebellar volume in apes.

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Published In

eLife

DOI

EISSN

2050-084X

ISSN

2050-084X

Publication Date

January 2019

Volume

8

Start / End Page

e41250

Related Subject Headings

  • Primates
  • Phylogeny
  • Organ Size
  • Models, Biological
  • Humans
  • Brain
  • Bayes Theorem
  • Animals
  • 42 Health sciences
  • 32 Biomedical and clinical sciences
 

Citation

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Miller, I. F., Barton, R. A., & Nunn, C. L. (2019). Quantitative uniqueness of human brain evolution revealed through phylogenetic comparative analysis. ELife, 8, e41250. https://doi.org/10.7554/elife.41250
Miller, Ian F., Robert A. Barton, and Charles L. Nunn. “Quantitative uniqueness of human brain evolution revealed through phylogenetic comparative analysis.ELife 8 (January 2019): e41250. https://doi.org/10.7554/elife.41250.
Miller, Ian F., et al. “Quantitative uniqueness of human brain evolution revealed through phylogenetic comparative analysis.ELife, vol. 8, Jan. 2019, p. e41250. Epmc, doi:10.7554/elife.41250.

Published In

eLife

DOI

EISSN

2050-084X

ISSN

2050-084X

Publication Date

January 2019

Volume

8

Start / End Page

e41250

Related Subject Headings

  • Primates
  • Phylogeny
  • Organ Size
  • Models, Biological
  • Humans
  • Brain
  • Bayes Theorem
  • Animals
  • 42 Health sciences
  • 32 Biomedical and clinical sciences