A cellular map reveals how Down syndrome affects prenatal brain development
A study published in Science analyzed more than 100,000 human neocortical cells from weeks 13 to 23 of gestation, when cortical neurons are generated. The samples came from 26 donors, some with and others without Down syndrome. Using single-cell genomics, they observed how trisomy 21 disrupts the developmental sequence of various types of neurons, which could explain subsequent differences in cognition. A second study in the same journal, which examines the postnatal brains of children with Down syndrome, finds that many of these changes persist into childhood. The authors note that their study will not have short-term clinical applications, but they hope it can be used to develop specific drugs or create gene therapies.
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