Recent studies have provided
evidence that the social behavior and emotions that make us “human” can be reduced
to the cellular level. Von Economo neurons (VENs) are rare brain cells that
have been found to concentrate in the frontal regions in brains of highly
social and evolved species such as great apes, macaque monkeys, and humans. These
neurons receive neurotransmitters that are often linked to social and emotional bonding behaviors such as
dopamine, serotonin, and vasopressin.
Tamar Gefen gave a talk at Loyola
University Chicago on her study published in the Journal of Neuroscience in 2015 titled "Morphometric and Histologic Substrates of Cingulate Integrity in Elders with Exceptional Memory Capacity". Her research focused on a particular group of older people known as “SuperAgers”,
individuals over the age of 80 that perform memory retrieval tasks as well as
or better than average 50-60 year olds. They are called “SuperAgers” because it
was assumed that these individuals somehow avoided the degenerative effects of
aging on memory function. One finding of the Gefen et al study is that SuperAgers
showed significantly higher density of VENs in their anterior cingulate cortex than average
elderly controls, giving rise to the idea that these neurons somehow contribute
to the outstanding memory performance of SuperAgers. During her talk, Gefen commented that a
majority of the SuperAgers she worked with shared an exuberant, extroverted
personality type. Studies have suggested that this is more than just a
coincidence.
Often in neuroscience,
functionality of a specific part of the human brain is discovered through studying
patients that suffer deficits or lesions in that area. In a 2006 study led by
William W Seeley published in the journal Annals
of Neurology, brains of individuals that suffered from frontotemporal
dementia (FTD) were examined. This research found a selective loss of VENs in
FTD individuals of about 69% compared to individuals with Alzheimer’s disease
and control individuals with no dementia. All FTD patients
experienced significant changes in social behavior and emotions following
diagnosis. This change may be indicative of a distinct relation
between social behaviors and VENs. There is much research to be done on Von
Economo neurons in order to hone in on the evolutionary benefits of these
unique cells.
Citations:
Images:
http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/multimedia/archive/00508/9680e44e-81fe-11e3-_508751c.jpg
http://www.mentalhealthy.co.uk/sites/default/files/Depositphotos_10392971_XS.jpg
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.. "Neurons Targeted By Dementing Illness May
Have Evolved For Complex Social Cognition." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily,
26 December 2006.
<www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/12/061222090935.htm>.
Gefen, T., Peterson, M.,
Papastefan, S. T., Martersteck, A., Whitney, K., Rademaker, A., . . . Geula, C.
(2015). Morphometric and Histologic Substrates of Cingulate Integrity in Elders
with Exceptional Memory Capacity. Journal of Neuroscience, 35(4),
1781-1791. doi:10.1523/jneurosci.2998-14.2015
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