Did a Copying Mistake Make Humans So Smart?

A copyediting error appears to be responsible for critical features of the human brain that distinguish us from our closest primate kin, new research finds. When tested out in mice, researchers found this “error” caused the rodents’ brain cells to move into place faster and enabled more connections between brain cells.When any cell divides, it first copies its entire genomeDuring this process, it can make errors. The cell usually fixes errors in the DNA. But when they aren’t fixed, they become permanent changes called mutations, which are sometimes hurtful and sometimes helpful, though usually innocuous.
The researchers studied one specific gene, called SRGAP2, which they think has been duplicated at least twice during the course of human evolution, first about 3.5 million years ago and then again about 2.5 million years ago.The second, more recent, duplication seems to be incomplete, with only part of the gene being duplicated. The researchers think this partially duplicated gene is able to interfere with the actions of the original, ancestral copy of SRGAP2. When the researchers added  the partially duplicated gene copy to the mouse genome (mice don’t normally have it) it seemed to speed the migration of brain cells during development, which makes brain organization more efficient.These cells that expressed the incomplete duplication of SRGAP2 also had more “spines” — knoblike extensions on the cell surface that connect with other brain cells, which make them look more like human brain cells.
Interestingly, the incomplete copy of the gene seems to have showed up just as the extinct hominin Australopithecus made room for the genus Homo, which led to modern humans. That’s also when the brains of our ancestors began to expand and when dramatic changes in cognitive abilities are likely to have emerged.