Von Economo neuron

Von Economo neurons, also called spindle neurons, are a specific class of mammalian cortical neurons characterized by a large spindle-shaped soma (or body) gradually tapering into a single apical axon (the ramification that transmits signals) in one direction, with only a single dendrite (the ramification that receives signals) facing opposite. Other cortical neurons tend to have many dendrites, and the bipolar-shaped morphology of von Economo neurons is unique here.

Von Economo neurons are found in two very restricted regions in the brains of hominids (humans and other great apes): the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and the fronto-insular cortex (FI) (which each make up the salience network). In 2008, they were also found in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex of humans. Von Economo neurons are also found in the brains of a number of cetaceans, and to a lesser extent in macaque monkeys, raccoons, the white-tailed deer, the pygmy hippopotamus, as well as domestic sheep and cows. VENs are also present in both African and Asian elephants, but are restricted to the anterior cingulate cortex of the Asian elephant and the anterior insula, frontal pole, and dorsolateral frontal region of the African elephant. The appearance of von Economo neurons in distantly related clades suggests that they represent convergent evolution of specialized pyramidal neurons in response to hitherto unidentified selective forces.

Von Economo neurons were discovered and first described in 1925 by Austrian psychiatrist and neurologist Constantin von Economo (1876–1931).