Identifying Human Cortical Cell Types

This lecture focuses on identifying human cortical cell types using RNA-Seq data from nuclei collected from specific layers and regions of the cortex, targeting Von Economo neurons and Neurogliaform cells. The instructor discusses the clustering of cells, mapping them to reported human cortical neuron types, and the diversity found among excitatory and inhibitory neurons. The lecture also covers the transcriptomic signature of Von Economo neurons, potential conservation in monkey cortex, and the enrichment of cell types in different cortical layers. Additionally, the lecture explores the multi-modal characterization of human cell types and future research directions, including investigating cell type diversity across the cortex, evolutionary aspects, and implications for neurological diseases.