Human and chimpanzee shared and divergent neurobiological systems for general and specific cognitive brain functions

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Martijn P. van den Heuvel, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam; Dirk Jan Ardesch, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam; Lianne H. Scholtens, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam; Siemon C. de Lange, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam; Neeltje E. van Haren, Utrecht University; Iris E.C. Sommer, University of Groningen; Udo Dannlowski, University of Münster; Jonathan Repple, Goethe University; Todd M. Preuss, Emory University; William D. Hopkins, University of Texas, Bastrop; James K Rilling, Emory University
• Language: English
• Date: 2023-05-22
• Publisher: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
• Publication Version: Final Published Version
• Copyright Statement: © 2023 the Author(s). Published by PNAS.
• License: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International
• Final Published Version (URL): https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2218565120
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: Neuroscience
• Volume: 120
• Issue: 22
• Start Page: e2218565120
• Grant/Funding Information: This study has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program (Grant agreement ERC-COG No. 101001062 [to M.P.v.d.H.], the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (VIDI Grant No. 452-16-015 [to M.P.v.d.H.], ALW open Grant No. ALWOP.179 [to M.P.v.d.H.], ZonMw Open Competition Grant REMOVE 09120011910032 [supporting S.C.d.L.] and the NWO Gravitation project BRAINSCAPES: A roadmap from neurogenetics to neurobiology (024.004.012). This research was also supported by the NIH’s Office of the Director, Office of Research Infrastructure Programs, P51OD011132.
• Keywords: intelligence; MRI; brain; evolution; connectome
• Research Categories: Biology, Neuroscience

Abstract

A long-standing topic of interest in human neurosciences is the understanding of the neurobiology underlying human cognition. Less commonly considered is to what extent such systems may be shared with other species. We examined individual variation in brain connectivity in the context of cognitive abilities in chimpanzees (n = 45) and humans in search of a conserved link between cognition and brain connectivity across the two species. Cognitive scores were assessed on a variety of behavioral tasks using chimpanzee- and human-specific cognitive test batteries, measuring aspects of cognition related to relational reasoning, processing speed, and problem solving in both species. We show that chimpanzees scoring higher on such cognitive skills display relatively strong connectivity among brain networks also associated with comparable cognitive abilities in the human group. We also identified divergence in brain networks that serve specialized functions across humans and chimpanzees, such as stronger language connectivity in humans and relatively more prominent connectivity between regions related to spatial working memory in chimpanzees. Our findings suggest that core neural systems of cognition may have evolved before the divergence of chimpanzees and humans, along with potential differential investments in other brain networks relating to specific functional specializations between the two species.