Neuroscience

The ever-changing brain: Shining a light on synaptic plasticity

Synapses allow neurons to communicate with one another. In the synapse, one neuron emits chemical messengers called neurotransmitters, and an adjacent neuron receives them using tiny structures called receptors. A specific ...

Immunology

The immune system: T cells are built for speed

Without T cells, we could not survive. They are a key component of the immune system and have highly sensitive receptors on their surface that can detect pathogens. The exact way that these receptors are distributed over ...

Neuroscience

Scientists chart how brain signals connect to neurons

Scientists at Johns Hopkins have used supercomputers to create an atomic scale map that tracks how the signaling chemical glutamate binds to a neuron in the brain. The findings, say the scientists, shed light on the dynamic ...

Oncology & Cancer

How blood vessels slow down and accelerate tumor growth

Cancer cells have an enormous need for oxygen and nutrients. Therefore, growing tumors rely on the simultaneous growth of capillaries, the fine branching blood vessels that form their supply network. The formation of new ...

Medical research

The Big Pore Theory could cure chronic pain

Cornell University researchers have produced for the first time an image of P2X7, a receptor associated with chronic pain. Visualizing the shape of the receptor has also allowed them to make a second groundbreaking discovery: ...

Neuroscience

How the brain reacts to sleep deprivation

In a new study, scientists from Forschungszentrum Jülich together with partners from the German Aerospace Center (DLR) have investigated the molecular changes with which the human brain reacts to exceptionally long wake ...

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