Unveiling the Human Brain’s Hidden Secrets

Explore the groundbreaking human brain atlas, revealing 3,300 brain cell types. A transformative leap in neuroscience, unlocking the secrets of the mind’s inner workings.

A monumental achievement in neuroscience, scientists have revealed an extraordinary “atlas” of the human brain, featuring an intricate map of 3,300 distinct brain cell types, a substantial proportion of which remained undiscovered until now. This pioneering research, presented across three journals – Science, Science Advances, and Science Translational Medicine, transcends a mere atlas. It symbolizes a breakthrough, offering an unparalleled view into brain microstructures that were previously obscured to science.

Conducted under the aegis of the National Institutes of Health’s BRAIN Initiative Cell Census Network (BICCN), this endeavor embarked in 2017. The audacious objective of the BICCN is to compile an exhaustive inventory of cells residing in the brains of mice, humans, and nonhuman primates, including monkeys. Encompassed within this catalog are neurons, the nerve cells transmitting messages via chemical and electrical signals, and a comparable number of non-neuronal cells. Among the non-neuronal cells are glia, a group responsible for providing structural support, nourishment, insulation to neurons, and modulating their signal transmission. The human brain boasts approximately 86 billion neurons, with a slight margin of error, and an additional 84 billion or so non-neuronal counterparts.

Breaking new ground, the BICCN human brain atlas harnessed avant-garde techniques, primarily employed in animal studies. These techniques encompass transcriptomics, an extensive analysis of RNA within individual cells, a genetic molecule containing instructions for protein synthesis and other pivotal functions. Epigenomics, another critical method used, delves into the chemical tags adorning DNA, governing gene utilization. Within the BICCN, individual studies contained data from hundreds of thousands to millions of brain cells.

Yet, this human brain atlas represents a preliminary draft. In the foreseeable future, scientists aspire to unravel the roles played by these newfound brain cells, many of which reside in the brain’s enigmatic depths, including the brainstem. Additionally, they seek to decipher how gene activity within distinct cells influences the development of neurological disorders. As succinctly stated by Science, “If we want to understand what makes us human and the mechanisms responsible for the development of neurological disorders, we first need to have a deep knowledge of the human brain at the cellular level, which is exactly what this collection of papers from the BICCN is about.” This remarkable achievement propels us closer to understanding the intricate workings of the human brain, unveiling secrets that hold the key to our understanding of what makes us uniquely human and the mysteries of neurological conditions.