Smaers Jeroen B
Department of Anthropology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA.
Prog Brain Res. 2014;210:193-216. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-444-63356-9.00008-X.
The purpose of this contribution is to explore how macroevolutionary studies of the cerebellum can contribute to theories on cerebellar function and connectivity. New approaches in modeling the evolution of biological traits have provided new insights in the evolutionary pathways that underlie cerebellar evolution. These approaches reveal patterns of coordinated size changes among brain structures across evolutionary time, demonstrate how particular lineages/species stand out, and what the rate and timing of neuroanatomical changes were in evolutionary history. Using these approaches, recent studies demonstrated that changes in the relative size of the posterior cerebellar cortex and associated cortical areas indicate taxonomic differences in great apes and humans. Considering comparative differences in behavioral capacity, macroevolutionary results are discussed in the context of theories on cerebellar function and learning.
本文的目的是探讨小脑的宏观进化研究如何有助于形成关于小脑功能和连接性的理论。生物性状进化建模的新方法为小脑进化的潜在进化途径提供了新的见解。这些方法揭示了不同进化时期大脑结构间协调的大小变化模式，展示了特定谱系/物种的突出之处，以及进化史上神经解剖学变化的速率和时间。利用这些方法，最近的研究表明，小脑后皮质及相关皮质区域相对大小的变化表明了大猩猩和人类在分类学上的差异。考虑到行为能力的比较差异，我们在小脑功能和学习理论的背景下讨论宏观进化的结果。
