Molecular mechanisms: Oxytocin boosts brain signals
Oxytocin may enhance brain signaling by increasing the strength of the signals and minimizing background noise, according to a study published 4 August in Nature.
Oxytocin may enhance brain signaling by increasing the strength of the signals and minimizing background noise, according to a study published 4 August in Nature.
A new method, described 5 June in Neuron, allows researchers to tag only those neurons that are active during the following 12-hour time window.
Researchers can shut down or trigger compulsive behaviors in mice by using light to target certain brain circuits, according to two studies published 7 June in Science.
Researchers can use light to activate certain proteins that receive signals at the junctions between neurons and that are key targets for fragile X syndrome therapies, according to a study published in the April issue of Nature Neuroscience.
A light-emitting device implanted in a mouse brain can activate neurons wirelessly, allowing researchers to control and observe the mouse’s behavior, according to a report published 12 April in Science.
In 2003, John Rubenstein and Michael Merzenich first described the theory, now popular in autism, that the disorder reflects an imbalance between excitation and inhibition in the brain. Takao K. Hensch and Parizad M. Bilimoria review the paper and its impact on the field.
In a video interview at the 2012 Society for Neuroscience annual meeting, Edward Boyden discusses new tools his lab is developing to refine optogenetics techniques.
After nine long years, the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting is returning to New Orleans. And SFARI.org’s reporters are ready to deliver the best advances in autism research that emerge.
An innovative technique that uses waves of light to silence brain signaling in live animals can affect subsequent neuronal signals, according to a study published 24 June in Nature Neuroscience.
Understanding the function of neuronal circuits, specifically microcircuits in the prefrontal cortex and elsewhere in the brain, will play a major role in translating research findings into new autism treatments, says Vikaas Sohal.