Matching developmental timelines of fish, frog, mouse and human brains.
- 1Research Institute for Veterinary Science, College of Veterinary Medicine, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
- 2Department of Anatomy, Brain Research Institute, Brain Korea 21 Project for Medical Science, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Abstract
The overall structure and development of the central nervous system (CNS) are highly conserved among vertebrates. Peak neurogenesis generally precedes the main wave of astrogliogenesis; exuberant synapses are formed and pruned during critical periods; and the neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) shifts from depolarizing to hyperpolarizing as the brain matures. The sequence of these key developmental events is broadly similar across vertebrate model organisms, including mouse, Xenopus, and zebrafish. Despite this overall similarity, the relative duration of each event varies substantially, and key events such as live birth in mammals do not occur in fish or frogs. These differences must be considered when translating findings from one species to another. In this review, we compare several developmental events that are relevant to modeling human diseases in animal models, including microglial colonization and blood-brain barrier formation. We also present comparative developmental timelines as a resource for translational neuroscience research.
Related
- Open Dataset of Developmental Timelines for Corresponding Milestones in Mice, Rats, and Humans
- Proteasome-dependent protein degradation shapes developmental tempo in mouse and human neural progenitors
- The Choreography of Coupled Brains: Coordinated Movement and Multi-Scale Neural Synchrony in Musical Theater for Individuals with Developmental Disabilities
- Divergence in neurodivergent brains: mapping the relationship between developmental trajectories in functional connectivity and clinical outcomes
- A language network in the individualized functional connectomes of 1199 human brains doing arbitrary tasks
BibTeX
@article{park2026matching,
title = {{Matching developmental timelines of fish, frog, mouse and human brains.}},
author = {Hyun Jung Park and Hosung Jung},
journal = {Animal cells and systems},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1080/19768354.2026.2742604},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42898804},
note = {CC BY-NC},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Matching developmental timelines of fish, frog, mouse and human brains.
AU - Hyun Jung Park
AU - Hosung Jung
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/16
JO - Animal cells and systems
DO - 10.1080/19768354.2026.2742604
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42898804
AB - The overall structure and development of the central nervous system (CNS) are highly conserved among vertebrates. Peak neurogenesis generally precedes the main wave of astrogliogenesis; exuberant synapses are formed and pruned during critical periods; and the neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) shifts from depolarizing to hyperpolarizing as the brain matures. The sequence of these key developmental events is broadly similar across vertebrate model organisms, including mouse, Xenopus, and zebrafish. Despite this overall similarity, the relative duration of each event varies substantially, and key events such as live birth in mammals do not occur in fish or frogs. These differences must be considered when translating findings from one species to another. In this review, we compare several developmental events that are relevant to modeling human diseases in animal models, including microglial colonization and blood-brain barrier formation. We also present comparative developmental timelines as a resource for translational neuroscience research.
SN - 1976-8354
SN - 2151-2485
ER -