Ancient Viruses May Make Our Brains Smarter

Could viruses make us smarter? Scientists have examined inherited viruses that are millions of years old and have found that they play an important role in building up the complex networks that characterize the human brain.

In this latest study, the researchers looked at studies of neural stem cells. This revealed that these cells use a particular molecular mechanism to control the activation processes of the retroviruses. The findings provided scientists with a complex insight into the innermost workings of the most basal functions of the nerve cells.

In fact, the scientists found that retroviruses seem to play a central role in the basic functions of the brain, more specifically in the regulation of which genes are to be expressed, and when. These findings, in particular, indicate that over the course of evolution, the viruses took an increasingly firm hold on the steering wheel in our cellular machinery.

"We have been able to observe that these viruses are activated specifically in the brain cells and have an important regulatory role," said Johan Jakobsson, one of the researchers, in a news release. "We believe that the role of retroviruses can contribute to explaining why brain cells in particular are so dynamic and multifaceted in their function. It may also be the case that the viruses' more or less complex functions in various species can help us to understand why we are so different."

The findings reveal a bit more about the evolution of the human brain. Yet it also could pave the way for further studies.

"I believe that this can lead to new, exciting studies on the diseases of the brain," said Jakobsson. "Currently, when we look for genetic factors linked to various diseases, we usually look for the genes we are familiar with, which make up a mere two percent of the genome. Now we are opening up the possibility of looking at a much larger part of the genetic material which was previously considered unimportant."

The findings are published in the journal Cell Reports.

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