One Step Closer to Understanding the Human Brain
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One step closer to understanding the human brain:
An international team of scientists led by researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden has launched a comprehensive overview of all proteins expressed in the brain, published today in the journal Science. The open-access database offers medical researchers an unprecedented resource to deepen their understanding of neurobiology and develop new, more effective therapies and diagnostics targeting psychiatric and neurological diseases.
[...] "As expected the blueprint for the brain is shared among mammals, but the new map also reveals interesting differences between human, pig and mouse brains," says Mathias Uhli(C)n, Professor at the Department of Protein Science at KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Visiting professor at the Department of Neuroscience at Karolinska Institutet and Director of the Human Protein Atlas effort.
The cerebellum emerged in the study as the most distinct region of the brain. Many proteins with elevated expression levels in this region were found, including several associated to psychiatric disorders supporting a role of the cerebellum in the processing of emotions.
[...] When comparing the neurotransmitter systems, responsible for the communication between neurons, some clear differences between the species could be identified.
"Several molecular components of neurotransmitter systems, especially receptors that respond to released neurotransmitters and neuropeptides, show a different pattern in humans and mice," says Dr. Jan Mulder, group leader of the Human Protein Atlas brain profiling group and researcher at the Department of Neuroscience at Karolinska Institutet. "This means that caution should be taken when selecting animals as models for human mental and neurological disorders."
Evelina Sjistedt, et. al. An atlas of the protein-coding genes in the human, pig, and mouse brain. Science, 2020; 367 (6482): eaay5947 DOI: 10.1126/science.aay5947
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