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So almost all modern humans carry a version of NOVA1 gene that differs by a single DNA based pair from the version found in the anterful. And earlier work showed that swapping the modern NOVA with an older variant in the miniature brain model called organoids caused a dramatic change in brain structure and connectivity among the neurons. To test whether the Latinx border might have shaped the genetic shift, researchers created brain organoids with both modern and ancestral NOVA1 variants, exposing them to lead and monitoring the growth of the cortical and thalmic neurons.