Comprehensive Brain Atlas Uncovers Unique Neurons Behind Complex Information Processing

Since their discovery more than 100 years ago, von Economo neurons (VENs) have been linked to higher cognitive functions, including social cognition and emotional awareness, as well as neurological and psychiatric disorders such as frontotemporal dementia, autism spectrum disorders, and schizophrenia. However, their molecular identity and functional properties have remained largely unknown.

In this study, published in Nature Cell Biology, researchers in the lab of Dr. Xiaolong Jiang, principal investigator at the Duncan Neurological Research Institute and associate professor in the departments of neuroscience and ophthalmology at Baylor College of Medicine, along with colleagues combined Patch-seq, single-cell transcriptomics, and octuple simultaneous whole-cell recordings to generate a comprehensive cellular atlas of the macaque insular cortex, a brain region highly enriched in VENs. This integrative approach revealed the cellular diversity and specialization of the insular cortex, defining its cell types, connectivity patterns, signal-processing strategies, and metabolic characteristics. In particular, we identified two transcriptionally distinct VEN subtypes, characterized their intrinsic electrophysiological properties, and demonstrated that VENs employ a specialized signal-processing strategy that distinguishes them from neighboring pyramidal neurons.

Together, these findings provide the first integrated molecular and functional characterization of primate VENs, establishing a foundational framework for understanding their roles in higher cognition and long-range cortical communication. The study also offers new insights into the cellular mechanisms underlying neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders in which VENs are selectively vulnerable.