Other Appointments/Positions

Adjunct Associate Professor of Anthropology, Emory University

Associate Research Professor of Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University

Pathology Division(s):
Experimental Pathology

Email Address:
tpreuss@emory.edu

Education:

BA, Psychology   Haverford College, - 1980

MPhil, Biol. Anthropology   Yale University, - 1982

PhD, Biol. Anthropology   Yale University, - 1990

Postdoc, Biol. Psychology   Vanderbilt University, 1990 - 1995

Research Interests:

- Neuroanatomy / Neurohistology / Biomedical imaging / Aging
My laboratory investigates the evolutionary specializations of the human brain. Identifying these specializations is critical for understanding how the human brain supports our unique cognitive abilities and why humans are peculiarly vulnerable to neurodegenerative diseases. We want to know, for example, the extent to which the evolutionary expansion of the human brain was accompanied by the addition of new cortical areas or by the enlargement and internal reorganization of existing areas, and how these changes are related to specializations of cogntion. We also want to understand how the human brain was modified in response to selection for a long life span. For example, how are human neocortical neuronswhich are generated before birth and not replaced during lifeable to survive and function through eight or more decades? Why does Alzheimer's disease occur naturally only in humans? We address questions like these by comparing human brains to those of chimpanzeesthe animals to which humans are most closely relatedand to other nonhuman primates. Within this basic comparative framework, we employ multiple investigative methodologies to identify human specializations at multiple levels of organization: genomic and molecular biological techniques to identify evolutionary changes in gene and protein expression, histological techniques to localize expression changes to specify cell types and cell compartments, and neuroimaging techniques to identify evolutionary changes in connectivity and cerebral morphology.

Honors / Awards:

Kavli Frontiers Fellow, National Academy of Sciences Frontiers of Science Program, 2005-2007

Selected Publications:

Published and Accepted Research Articles -

Parr LA, Hecht E, Barks SK, Preuss TM, Votaw JR (2009) Face processing in the chimpanzee brain. Curr Biol 19:50-53. PMID: 19097899

Rilling JK, Glasser MF, Preuss TM, Ma X, Zhao T, Hu X, Behrens TEJ (2008) The evolution of the arcuate fasciculus revealed with comparative DTI. Nature Neuroscience. PMID: 18344993

Rosen RF, Farberg AS, Gearing M, Dooyema J, Long PM, Anderson DC, Davis-Turak J, Coppola G, Geschwind DH, Pare JF, Duong TQ, Hopkins WD, Preuss TM, Walker LC (2008) Tauopathy with paired helical filaments in an aged chimpanzee. J Comp Neurol 509:259-270. PMID: 18481275

Sherwood CC, Raghanti MA, Simpson CD, Bonar CJ, de Sousa AA, Preuss TM, Hof PR. 2007. Scaling of inhibitory interneurons in areas V1 and V2 of anthropoid primates as revealed by calcium-binding protein immunohistochemistry. Brain Behav Evol, 69: 276-195.

Rilling JK, Barks SK, Parr LA, Preuss TM, Faber TL, Pagnoni G, Bremner JD, Votaw JR (2007) A comparison of resting-state brain activity in humans and chimpanzees. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 104:17146-17151. PMID: 17940032

Preuss, T.M. (2007) Who's afraid of Homo sapiens? Journal of Biomedical Discovery and Collaboration (in press).

Stepniewska I, Preuss TM, Kaas JH (2007) Thalamic connections of the dorsal and ventral premotor areas in New World owl monkeys. Neuroscience 147:727-745. PMID: 17570597

C¿ceres, M., Suwyn, C., Maddox, M., Thomas, J.W., and Preuss, T.M. (2007) Increased expression of two synaptogenic thrombospondins in human brain evolution. Cerebral Cortex, in press.

Stepniewska, I., Preuss, T.M., and Kaas, J.H. (2006) Ipsilateral cortical connections of dorsal and ventral premotor areas in New World owl monkeys. Journal of Comparative Neurology, 495: 691-708.

Cola, M.G., Seltzer, B., *Preuss, T.M., and *Cusick, C.G. (2005) Neurochemical organization of the chimpanzee inferior pulvinar complex. Journal of Comparative Neurology, 484: 299-312 (*co-last authors)

Marqu¿s-Bonet, T., C¿ceres, M., Bertranpetit, J., Preuss, T.M., Thomas, J.W, and Navarro, A. (2004) Genomic distribution of gene expression divergence in humans and chimpanzees. Trends in Genetics 20: 524-9.

Preuss TM, Caceres M, Oldham MC, Geschwind DH. 2004. Human brain evolution: Insights from microarrays. Nature Rev Genetics 5(11):850-860.

C¿ceres, M., Lachuer, J, Zapala, M.A., Redmond, J.C., Kudo, L, Geschwind, D.H., Lockhart, D.J., Preuss, T.M., and Barlow, C. (2003) Elevated transcript levels distinguish the human from non-human primate brains. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences U.S.A., 100: 1330-1335.

Preuss, T.M., and Coleman, G.Q. (2002) Human-specific organization of primary visual cortex: Alternating compartments of dense Cat-301 and calbindin immunoreactivity in layer 4A. Cerebral Cortex, 12: 671-691

Hackett, T.A., Preuss, T.M., and Kaas, J.H. (2001) Architectonic identification of the core region in auditory cortex of macaques, chimpanzees, and humans. Journal of Comparative Neurology, 441:197-222.

Preuss, T.M., Qi, H.-X., and Kaas, J.H. (1999) Distinctive compartmental organization of human primary visual cortex. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences U.S.A., 96:11601-11606.

Qi, H.-X., Jain, N., Preuss, T.M., and Kaas, J.H. (1999) Inverted pyramidal neurons in chimpanzee sensorimotor cortex are revealed by immunostaining with monoclonal antibody SMI-32. Somatosensory and Motor Research, 16: 49-56.

Preuss, T.M., Gray, D., and Cusick, C.G. (1998) Subdivisions of the motor and somatosensory thalamus of primates revealed with Wisteria floribunda agglutinin histochemistry. Somatosensory and Motor Research, 15: 211-219.

Preuss, T.M., Stepniewska, I., Jain, N., and Kaas, J.H. (1997) Multiple divisions of macaque precentral motor cortex identified with neurofilament antibody SMI-32. Brain Research, 767: 148-153.

Rosa, M., Casagrande, V.A., Preuss, T., and Kaas, J.H. (1997) Visual field representation in striate and prestriate cortices of a prosimian primate (Galago garnetti). Journal of Neurophysiology, 77: 3193-3217.

Preuss, T.M., Stepniewska, I., and Kaas, J.H. (1996) Movement representation in the dorsal and ventral premotor areas of owl monkeys: A microstimulation study. Journal of Comparative Neurology, 371: 649-676.

Preuss, T.M., and Kaas, J.H. (1996) Cytochrome oxidase "blobs" and other characteristics of primary visual cortex in a lemuroid primate, Cheirogaleus medius. Brain, Behavior and Evolution, 47: 103-112.

Preuss, T.M., and Kaas, J.H. (1996) Parvalbumin-like immunoreactivity of layer V pyramidal cells in the motor and somatosensory cortex of adult primates. Brain Research 712: 353-357.

Preuss TM. 1995. Do rats have prefrontal cortex? The Rose-Woolsey-Akert program reconsidered. J Cogn Neurosci, 7:1-24.

Povinelli DJ, Preuss TM. 1995. Theory of mind: evolutionary history of a cognitive specialization. Trends Neurosci 18:418-424.

Stepniewska I, Preuss TM, Kaas JH. 1994. Thalamic connections of the primary motor cortex (M1) of owl monkeys. J Comp Neurol 349(4):558-582.

Stepniewska I, Preuss TM, Kaas JH. 1994. Architectonic subdivisions of the motor thalamus of owl monkeys: Nissl, acetylcholinesterase, and cytochrome oxidase patterns. J Comp Neurol 349(4):536-557.

Jain N, Preuss TM, Kaas JH. 1994. Subdivisions of the visual system labeled with the Cat-301 antibody in tree shrews. Vis Neurosci 11(4):731-741.

Stepniewska I, Preuss TM, Kaas JH. 1993. Architectonics, somatotopic organization, and ipsilateral cortical connections of the primary motor area (M1) of owl monkeys. J Comp Neurol 330(2):238-271.

Preuss TM, Beck PD, Kaas JH. 1993. Areal, modular, and connectional organization of visual cortex in a prosimian primate, the slow loris (Nycticebus coucang). Brain Behav Evol 42(6):321-335.

Preuss TM, Goldman-Rakic PS. 1991. Architectonics of the parietal and temporal association cortex in the strepsirhine primate Galago compared to the anthropoid primate Macaca. J Comp Neurol 310(4):475-506.

Preuss TM, Goldman-Rakic PS. 1991. Ipsilateral cortical connections of granular frontal cortex in the strepsirhine primate Galago, with comparative comments on anthropoid primates. J Comp Neurol 310(4):507-549.

Preuss TM, Goldman-Rakic PS. 1991. Myelo- and cytoarchitecture of the granular frontal cortex and surrounding regions in the strepsirhine primate Galago and the anthropoid primate Macaca. J Comp Neurol 310(4):429-474.

Preuss TM, Goldman-Rakic PS. 1989. Connections of the ventral granular frontal cortex of macaques with perisylvian premotor and somatosensory areas: anatomical evidence for somatic representation in primate frontal association cortex. J Comp Neurol 282(2):293-316.

Preuss TM, Goldman-Rakic PS. 1987. Crossed corticothalamic and thalamocortical connections of macaque prefrontal cortex. J Comp Neurol 257(2):269-281.

Preuss TM. 1982. The face of Sivapithecus indicus: description of a new, relatively complete specimen from the Siwaliks of Pakistan. Folia Primatol (Basel) 38(3-4):141-157.

Book Chapters -

Preuss TM (2009) The cognitive neuroscience of human uniqueness. In: The Cognitive Neurosciences. Fourth Edition. (Gazzaniga MS, ed). Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. In press.

Preuss TM (2009) Reinventing primate neuroscience for the 21st century. In: Primate Neuroethology (Platt ML, Ghazanfar AA, eds), Oxford: Oxford University Press. In press.

Bunge S, Preuss TM (2009) Evolutionary and developmental issues in cognitive neuroscience. In: Encyclopedia of Behavioral Neuroscience (Koob G, Thompson RF, Le Moal M, eds), Oxford: Elsevier. In press.

Kaas JH, Preuss TM (2008) Human brain evolution. In: Fundamental Neuroscience, Third Edition (Squire LR, Berg D, Bloom FE, du Lac S, Ghosh A, Spizer NC, eds), pp 1019-1037. Amsterdam: Academic Press.

Qi H-X, Preuss TM, Kaas JH (2008) Somatosensory areas of the cerebral cortex: Architectonic characteristics and modular organization. In: The Senses: A Comprehensive Reference, Vol. 6, Somatosensation (Gardner EP, Kaas JH, eds), pp 143-170. London: Elsevier.

Preuss, T.M. (2007) Evolutionary specializations of primate brain organization. In M. Ravosa and M. Dagosto (Editors): Primate Origins. New York: Kluwer, pp 625-675.

Preuss TM. 2007. Primate brain evolution in phylogenetic context. In: Kaas JH, Preuss TM, editors. Evolution of Nervous Sytems Vol 4: Primates. Oxford: Elsevier, pp 1-34.

Povinelli, D.J., Prince, C.G., and Preuss, T.M. (2005). Parent-offspring conflict and the development of social understanding. In: Carruthers, P., Laurence, S., Stich, S., editors. The Innate Mind: Structure and Content: Oxford University Press.

Preuss, T.M. (2004) Specializations of the human visual system  the monkey model meets human reality. In J.H. Kaas and C.E. Collins (Editors): The Primate Visual system. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, pp. 231-259.

Preuss, T.M. (2004) What is it like to be a human? In M.S. Gazzaniga (ed): The Cognitive Neurosciences. Third Edition. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, pp. 5-22.

Kaas, J.H., and Preuss, T.M. (2003) Human brain evolution. In F.E. Bloom, S.C. Landis, J.L. Roberts, L.R. Squire, and M.J. Zigmond (Senior Editors): Fundamental Neuroscience (Second Ed.) San Diego: Academic Press, pp. 1147-1166.

Preuss, T.M. (2001) The discovery of cerebral diversity: An unwelcome scientific revolution. In D. Falk and K. Gibson (eds.): Evolutionary Anatomy of the Primate Cerebral Cortex. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 138-164.

Preuss, T.M. (2000) What's human about the human brain? In M.S. Gazzaniga (ed): The New Cognitive Neurosciences. Second Edition. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, pp. 1219-1234.

Preuss, T.M., and Kaas, J.H. (1998) Human brain evolution. In F.E. Bloom, S.C. Landis, J.L. Roberts, L.R. Squire, and M.J. Zigmond (Senior Editors): Fundamental Neuroscience, San Diego: Academic Press, pp. 1283-1311.

Preuss, T.M. (1995) The argument from animals to humans in cognitive neuroscience. In M.S. Gazzaniga (ed): The Cognitive Neurosciences. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, pp. 1227-1241. [Reprinted in M.S. Gazzaniga (ed): Cognitive Neuroscience: A Reader. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers, 2000].

Preuss TM. 1993. The role of the neurosciences in primate evolutionary biology: Historical commentary and prospectus. In: MacPhee RDE, editor. Primates and their Relatives in Phylogenetic Perspective. New York: Penum. p 333-362.

Kaas JH, Preuss TM. 1993. Archontan affinities of the primate brain as reflected in the nervous system. In: Szalay FS, Novacek MJ, McKenna MC, editors. Mammalian Phylogeny: Placentals. New York: Springer Verlag. p 115-128.

Books Edited and Written -

Kaas JH, Preuss TM, editors. 2007. Evolution of Nervous Systems, Vol. 4: The Evolution of Primate Nervous Systems. Oxford: Elsevier.

Preuss, T.M., editor (2000) The Diversity of Mammalian Cortical Organization. Special symposium edition. Brain, Behavior and Evolution, 55: 279-348. (Also published as separatum by Karger, Basel).