Subventricular zone radial glial cells maintain inhibitory neuron production in the human brain

The number and diversity of inhibitory neurons (INs) increased substantially during mammalian brain evolution. However, the generative mechanisms of the vast repertoire of human INs remain elusive. We performed spatial and single-cell transcriptomics of human medial ganglionic eminence (hMGE), a pivotal source of cortical and subpallial INs, and built the trajectories of hMGE-derived cells during brain development. We identified spatiotemporally and molecularly segregated progenitor cell populations fated to produce distinct IN types. We uncovered an evolutionarily distinct progenitor cell type in the hMGE subventricular zone that maintained the production of INs and glial cells throughout human brain development. Our findings reveal evolutionarily distinct features of IN generation and shed light on the distinct mechanisms underlying human brain development.

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Publication Details

Journal
Science
Published
2026-01-15
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adw1803
Citations
1
Primary Topic
Neurogenesis and neuroplasticity mechanisms
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
25.18
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article

Subventricular zone radial glial cells maintain inhibitory neuron production in the human brain

Longzhong Jia, Lianyan Li, Li Gu, Hanqing Hou et al.
1 citations
Science
Neurogenesis and neuroplasticity mechanisms
25.18
article

Subventricular zone radial glial cells maintain inhibitory neuron production in the human brain

Longzhong Jia, Lianyan Li, Li Gu, Hanqing Hou, Yiming Yan, X. Li, Linhe Xu, Mingchao Yan, Chenyi He, Ruijuan Liang, Wei Huang, Yashan Dang, Weirong Zhang, Jianbin Guo, L C Zhu, Borui Shang, Zhiyan Liao, Yuhan Zhou, Zhen Long, Da Mi, Yuyan Zeng
article en
1 citations

Abstract

The number and diversity of inhibitory neurons (INs) increased substantially during mammalian brain evolution. However, the generative mechanisms of the vast repertoire of human INs remain elusive. We performed spatial and single-cell transcriptomics of human medial ganglionic eminence (hMGE), a pivotal source of cortical and subpallial INs, and built the trajectories of hMGE-derived cells during brain development. We identified spatiotemporally and molecularly segregated progenitor cell populations fated to produce distinct IN types. We uncovered an evolutionarily distinct progenitor cell type in the hMGE subventricular zone that maintained the production of INs and glial cells throughout human brain development. Our findings reveal evolutionarily distinct features of IN generation and shed light on the distinct mechanisms underlying human brain development.

ScienceVol. 391(6782)
Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN), Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College (CN), Peking Union Medical College Hospital (CN), Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology (CN), Shandong Provincial Hospital (CN), Center for Life Sciences (CN), Shandong First Medical University (CN), Tsinghua University (CN)
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Neurogenesis and neuroplasticity mechanisms
25.18
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