Researchers identify separate progenitors for the brain's front and back regions

Stanford researchers identified two mutually exclusive progenitor-cell populations that develop into different regions of the human brain, challenging the model that one progenitor gives rise to the entire organ. Cells expressing Otx2 form the forebrain and midbrain, while cells expressing Gbx2 form the hindbrain. The distinction gives researchers a way to grow hindbrain neurons in a laboratory dish and study their functions, which could support research into ALS and spinal muscular atrophy. The findings concern developmental origins and laboratory cell production; the broader claim that two ancient nervous systems merged during evolution remains the researchers' interpretation.