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Editorial
. 2023 Jul 10:12:e90017.
doi: 10.7554/eLife.90017.

Comparing mouse and human brains

Hovy Ho-Wai Wong  1 , Christina You Chien Chou  1   2 , Alanna Jean Watt  3 , Per Jesper Sjöström  1
Affiliations
Editorial

Comparing mouse and human brains

Hovy Ho-Wai Wong et al. Elife. .

Abstract

Inhibitory circuit motifs in the mouse brain and the human brain are strikingly similar.

Keywords: cerebral cortex; human; neural circuits; neuroscience; synaptic connections.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

HW, CC, AW, PS No competing interests declared

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.. Comparing the mouse brain and the human brain.
(A) The human brain is larger than the mouse brain, and also much more complex, with more neocortical invaginations and a greater number of specialized areas. (B) However, at the level of individual neuron types and their connections, mouse and human brains are similar. For example, Kim et al. found in the human brain a circuit motif that includes an excitatory neuron called a pyramidal cell, and an inhibitory interneuron – either a Pvalb cell or a Sst cell. The rapid and high release of neurotransmitters at the synapse between the pyramidal cell and the Pvalb cell leads to early-onset inhibition (green trace), while the low and gradually ramped-up release of neurotransmitters at the synapse with the Sst cell leads to late-onset inhibition (blue trace). Since the mouse and human brain share these circuit motifs, the mouse brain may serve as a good model of the human brain.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment on

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