New research suggests that some neurological diseases, like schizophrenia, might be a by-product of our brain evolving to thier current size.
New research suggests that some neurological diseases, like schizophrenia, might be a by-product of our brain evolving to thier current size.
The research was done in collaboration from scientists from Cambridge, Leipzig and Shanghai. They were led by Philipp Khaitovich, from the Max-Planck-Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology.
The scientists compared human brains with chimpanzee and rhesus monkeys, healthy gray matter against those with schizophrenia.
They found that the genes that were altered during schizophrenia, especially the ones related to energy metabolism, were the ones that changed during evolution. The rapid growth of our brains, and the energy required to sustain that brain power, may have pushed our craniums to the limit of their capabilities, conclude the scientists.