Human brain evolution is associated with expansion and folding of the neocortex. Increased diversity in neural progenitor (NP) populations (such as basally located radial glia [RG], which reside in an enlarged outer subventricular zone [OSVZ]) likely contributes to this evolutionary expansion, although their characteristics and relative contributions are only partially understood. Through single-cell transcriptional profiling of sorted human NP subpopulations, we identified the primate-specific TMEM14B gene as a marker of basal RG. Expression of TMEM14B in embryonic NPs induces cortical thickening and gyrification in postnatal mice. This is accompanied by SVZ expansion, the appearance of outer RG-like cells, and the proliferation of multiple NP subsets, with proportional increases in all cortical layers and normal lamination. TMEM14B drives NP proliferation by increasing the phosphorylation and nuclear translocation of IQGAP1, which in turn promotes G1/S cell cycle transitions. These data show that a single primate-specific gene can drive neurodevelopmental changes that contribute to brain evolution.

中文翻译：

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灵长类特定基因TMEM14B标记径向Rad神经胶质细胞并促进皮层扩张和折叠。

人脑进化与新皮层的扩张和折叠有关。尽管增加了神经祖细胞（NP）种群的多样性（例如位于扩大的脑室下区[OSVZ]的基底定位的放射状神经胶质[RG]），但可能有助于这种进化的扩展，尽管它们的特征和相对贡献仅被部分理解。通过排序的人类NP亚群的单细胞转录谱，我们确定了灵长类特异性TMEM14B基因作为基础RG的标记。TMEM14B在胚胎NP中的表达诱导出生后小鼠的皮质增厚和回旋。这伴随着SVZ的扩张，外部RG样细胞的出现以及多个NP子集的增殖，所有皮质层和正常覆膜均成比例增加。TMEM14B通过增加IQGAP1的磷酸化和核易位来驱动NP增殖，进而促进G1 / S细胞周期转变。这些数据表明，单个灵长类特异性基因可以驱动神经发育变化，从而促进大脑进化。