hearty HAR HAR: brain genes in humans

a new study from ucsc shows that a gene active during cortical development in humans is a lot different from its counterparts in other mammals. HAR1F, active in Cajal-Retzius cells during development and possibly interacting with the protein reelin (involved with cortical layering), was recently identified in a non-coding region of human DNA: it had changed forms 18 times compared with its analogue in chimps. meanwhile, it (and a second, related HAR gene) are virtually identical in non-human mammals. the hunt for what makes our brains so special is taken up with equal fervor in computational biology and theology, and, as always, the findings in one don't by necessity negate the claims of the other...

see the original article, or nature's reader-friendly intro, or the BBC coverage.