Tag: "neuron" at biology news

Penn researchers link cell's protein recycling systems

...eneration in several mouse models, including motor neuron disease, Parkinson’s disease, and Huntington’s disease. They are also attempting to identify pharmacologic approaches to augmenting HDAC6 activity....

A first -- Hebrew University scientist observes brain cell development in 'real time'

...he dendrites are the string-like extensions of the neuron that spread out to reach other neurons and serve a...yed by Dr. Mizrahi in his research was the newborn neuron population which develops into the olfactory bulb of adult mice, providing them with a sense of smel...

How brain pacemakers erase diseased messages

...ng brain cell. The researchers then gave the model neuron the pathological pattern of activity seen in people with tremors, assembled a group of these model cells and watched what would happen when the cells were electrically stimulated at various rates and intensities. In addition to showing how the the...

Newborn neurons like to hang with the 'in' crowd

...ring, receiving nerve fiber or dendrite. A typical neuron sports about 7,000 synapses through which it stays in touch with roughly 1,000 other cells. But just how young neurons make their presence known and hook up with already well-connected elders has been unclear. "If you have hopes that one day neuro...

Left-right wiring determined by neural communication in the embryonic worm

...stem that dissolves as the worm develops. Every neuron in the adult C. elegans has been mapped and named. Handedness researchers are particularly interested in two olfactory neurons, AWCON and AWCOFF, one each on the left and right side of the worm's body. AWCON has one set of responsibilities, while AWC...

Rare cell prevents rampant brain activity

...ism that might explain how the most common type of neuron in the cerebral cortex ?the pyramid cell ?is prevented from becoming over-activated. Their results show that a rarer cell type that links collections of pyramid cells ?called a Martinotti cell ?acts as a kind of safety device. When a Martinotti cell ...

2 brains -- 1 thought

.... Already in a network of 1000 neurons (where each neuron can be connected to any other) there are a million...hibiting or an activating effect on the downstream neuron and, in addition to this, can differ in its intensity and reaction time. The entirety of all possibl...

A 'traffic light' for neurons means 'go' for improving brain research

...show that altered activity in a particular kind of neuron underlies symptoms, for example, this insight will...cations The most direct application of optical neuron control is to begin experimenting with neural circuits to determine why unhealthy ones fail and how ...

Mechanism of nicotine's learning effects explored

...clude the strength of the connections by which one neuron triggers another. Huibert Mansvelder and colleague...eurotransmitters are the chemical signals that one neuron launches at another to trigger a nerve impulse in the receiving neuron. In their studies, Mansvel...

Glucose triggers brain cell death in rats after hypoglycemic coma

...earchers then discovered that oxidative stress and neuron death were prevented when the rats were given an inhibitor of NADPH oxidase, indicating a key role for this enzyme. "It is well-established that mitochondria can be a source of oxidative stress," says Swanson. "But in this setting, oxidative str...

When your brain talks, your muscles don't always listen

...allest controllable unit consists of an individual neuron and the muscle fibers it stimulates. We believe that our research is very important to our understanding of motor-control mechanisms in general and impaired control in patient populations." Shedding light on the communication between neurons and m...

Is there a pilot in the insect?

... recent version weighs only 0.2 grams. This is the neuron that does most of the work on board the microhelicopter. The optic flow regulator helps explain how an insect manages to fly, even in unfavorable wind conditions, without measuring its ground height, groundspeed or descent speed, in other words wit...

Scientists to track impact of Asian dust and pollution on clouds, weather, climate change

...a future where brain injuries, spinal cord damage, neuron loss in Alzheimer’s disease, or even depression are treated by fiber optics delivering light to genetically defined populations of nerve cells....

Common algae helps illustrate mammalian brain electrical circuitry

...a future where brain injuries, spinal cord damage, neuron loss in Alzheimer’s disease, or even depression are treated by fiber optics delivering light to genetically defined populations of nerve cells....

How genetic malfunction causes a form of retardation

...rchers observed in the animals?brains increases in neuron density and percentage, as well as a large decrease in glial cells called astrocytes. “Little is known about how genetic perturbations lead to mental retardation,?wrote Miller and colleagues. “Here, we have identified a signaling protein, SHP-2, t...

UCLA/Toronto researchers unlock key to memory storage in brain

... that a protein called CREB controls the odds of a neuron playing a role in memory formation. The April 20 ...tists tracked a genetic marker that reveals recent neuron activity. When the team examined the animals' amygdalas after the experiment, they found substantia...

The origin of the brain lies in a worm

...ulatory genes expressed, which endow every type of neuron with a specific molecular fingerprint. Comparing t...nd Platynereis. Corresponding regions give rise to neuron types with similar molecular fingerprints and these neurons also go on to form the same neural struc...

Largest genomic search finds genes that may contribute to autism

...cine at the UW. "It is a protein that enables one neuron to contact another neuron. Often you don't have any idea of what a gene does, but in this case we know neurexin 1 is involved at sites where the neurotransmitter glutamate is released. Glutamate is a brain chemical that has been previously implicate...

Conceptualizing a cyborg

...n in a bioreactor. Axons sprout out to connect the neuron populations on each plate. The plates are then slowly pulled apart over a series of days, aided by a precise computer-controlled motor system, until they reached a desired length. For the interface, one of the plates is an electrical microchip....

Experience affects new neuron survival in adult brain; study sheds light on learning, memory

...l period for experience-induced enhancement of new neuron survival in the hippocampus," says Elizabeth Gould...covered that the enriched experience increased new neuron survival and that more new neurons were activated by re-exposure to the same environment. To determ...

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