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BRAIN Initiative Team Releases First Cross-Species Developmental Brain Cell Atlases

NIH BRAIN-funded datasets provide an open blueprint for probing neurodevelopmental mechanisms.

Overview

  • In a coordinated package of 12 Nature-family papers, researchers chart when, where, and how brain cell types emerge during development across mammals.
  • Single-cell, spatial, and lineage-resolved methods produced atlas-scale datasets, including a 1.2 million–cell analysis of telencephalic GABAergic neurons and trajectories for 770,000 cells in mouse visual cortex.
  • The studies show that many neuronal subtypes continue to form after birth, with sensory experience—such as vision—strongly linked to area identity and maturation.
  • Findings highlight long-range migration and prolonged postnatal development of inhibitory interneurons implicated in cognition, decision-making, and emotion.
  • Authors present the open resources as foundational tools for investigating neurodevelopmental disorders, with work supported by the NIH BRAIN Initiative.