Researchers from Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics have been examining the expansion of the brain during evolution for many years. In 2015, researchers found that a gene named ARHGAP11B causes the brain stem cells to form a larger pool of stem cells. This increases the production of neurons, which paves the way to a bigger brain. However, the working mechanism of ARHGAP11B was still unknown. Now Researchers have uncovered that ARHGAP11B protein is located in the mitochondria, a tiny cellular structure that generates most of the cell’s source of chemical energy. Mitochondria generate chemical energy by a metabolic pathway called glutaminolysis. An increase in glutaminolysis rapidly produces the cells that pose the characteristics of tumor cells.
