Through Tanguy Vallée
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A new study points to the astonishing similarities between our brains … and our testicles. The two organs, despite very different functions, share many similarities.
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When we ask which human organ shares the most similarities with our brain, most of us would tend to point to the intestine, moreover often referred to as the “second brain” because of the large number of neuronal connections that are involved. are there.
But according to a study conducted by researchers at the University of Aveiro in Portugal and the University of Birmingham in the United Kingdom, and published Wednesday, June 2 in the journal Open Biology, surprising common points would also exist between our brain … and our testicles.
Brain and testicles, unexpected commonalities
This in itself is not really a surprise: previous research had already pointed out the possible links between intelligence and the quality of sperm, or between aspermia and mental disorders, note the site Science Alert, who relayed this work.
As part of this study, the researchers compared the proteins of cells from 33 organs of the body. As a result, the brain and testes share 13,442 proteins in common, more than any other organ observed.
These proteins play a role in the development and in the cellular communication of the two organs, the researchers went further in their analysis and found other similarities: the brain and the testes are very energy-consuming organs, one because of the cognitive tasks it has to perform, the other for the continued production of sperm.
The two organs, isolated from the rest of the body by the blood-brain barrier and the blood-testicular barrier respectively, also function quite similarly. Neurons, like cells in the testes, practiceexocytose, a process by which the cell releases large biomolecules across its membrane. This allows brain cells to communicate with each other, and sperm to fertilize an egg.
The speciation process involved?
But why do the brain and testes share so much in common? researchers suspect that the cause of these similarities is the involvement of the two organs in the speciation process, the evolutionary phenomenon by which new living species are formed from common ancestors.
Researchers point to 60 genes unique to humans, many of which are found in the brain and testes. “The higher expression levels in the cerebral cortex and testes suggest that these genes may contribute phenotypic characteristics exclusive to humans, such as improved cognitive abilities.”, wrote the team.
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