Neuroscience

New theory of synapse formation in the brain

The human brain keeps changing throughout a person's lifetime. New connections are continually created while synapses that are no longer in use degenerate. To date, little is known about the mechanisms behind these processes. ...

Alzheimer's disease & dementia

Stress hormone could trigger mechanism for the onset of Alzheimer's

(Medical Xpress)—A chemical hormone released in the body as a reaction to stress could be a key trigger of the mechanism for the late onset of Alzheimer's disease, according to a study by researchers at Temple University.

Neuroscience

Static synapses on a moving structure: Mind the gap!

In biology, stability is important. From body temperature to blood pressure and sugar levels, our body ensures that these remain within reasonable limits and do not reach potentially damaging extremes. Neurons in the brain ...

Neuroscience

Call-and-response circuit tells neurons when to grow synapses

Brain cells called astrocytes play a key role in helping neurons develop and function properly, but there's still a lot scientists don't understand about how astrocytes perform these important jobs. Now, a team of scientists ...

Neuroscience

Super-clear synapses at super resolutions

Researchers at the RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology (CDB) in Japan have developed a way to obtain super-resolution 3-D images of delicate structures deep in the brain. Published in Cell Reports, the work describes a ...

Neuroscience

Balancing connections for proper brain function

Neuropsychiatric conditions such as autism, schizophrenia and epilepsy involve an imbalance between two types of synapses in the brain: excitatory synapses that release the neurotransmitter glutamate, and inhibitory synapses ...

Neuroscience

Brain 'noise' keeps nerve connections young

Neurons communicate through rapid electrical signals that regulate the release of neurotransmitters, the brain's chemical messengers. Once transmitted across a neuron, electrical signals cause the juncture with another neuron, ...

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