The mammalian cerebellum has long been associated almost exclusively with motor control, yet recent studies indicate that it also contributes to many higher brain functions. An international research team led by Prof. Dr. Henrik Kaessmann from the Center for Molecular Biology of Heidelberg University (ZMBH) has now decoded the genetic programs that control the development of cerebellar cell types before and after birth. The molecular biologists compared data from the mouse cerebellum with corresponding data from the opossum, revealing fundamental gene regulatory networks that must have already formed in the early stage of mammalian evolution more than 160 million years ago. The study was carried out in close collaboration with Prof. Dr. Stefan Pfister of the Hopp Children’s Cancer Center Heidelberg (KiTZ).
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Source: Phys.org