Comparative primate transcriptomics identifies a ZNF90/OVOL2 regulatory axis shaping human neural progenitor cell dynamics

Understanding the behavior of human neural progenitor cells (NPCs) requires comparative characterization of their transcriptomic landscape, particularly through comparisons with closely related primate species. The rhesus macaque represents a key non-hominoid outgroup for such analyses, and several representative transcriptomic datasets are now available. Here, we compare genes enriched in human NPCs with those enriched in rhesus macaque NPCs and found that human NPC-enriched genes are associated with gene programs supporting radial glial identity and proliferative capacity, as well as functions related to sister chromatid segregation. This analysis identified two zinc-finger transcription factors for functional investigation: the ape-specific ZNF90 and the highly conserved OVOL2. By analysing their genome-wide binding, transcriptional output, and cellular effects in cerebral organoids, we uncovered a previously uncharacterized regulatory axis with divergent but partially overlapping effects that converge on apical progenitor (AP) maintenance. Together, our findings support a model in which lineage-specific / evolutionarily young transcription factor become integrated into a conserved developmental gene regulatory network, generating novel NPC dynamics during primate corticogenesis.