At first glance, the mice in Pierre Vanderhaeghen’s lab in Leuven, Belgium, seem unremarkable. But inside their tiny heads, their cerebral cortex contains a mix of mouse and human neurons at two stages of development: Their native synapses are fully mature, but the connections formed from human cells are delayed and comparable to those of […]
Neural progenitor cells exist in the adult human hippocampus all the way into old age, a new transcriptomics study published today in Science suggests. The results strengthen the claim that adults can form new neurons, according to the team behind the work. But not everyone is convinced that the study shows progenitors are prevalent enough […]
Talking is easy; Real communication is much harder. In my daily communication, I feel like I’m captaining the Titanic, hitting the iceberg and abandoning ship, only to return and raise the sunken boat from the icy, deep ocean with all my emotional strength… again… and again…. Despite my best efforts, I keep making similar mistakes, […]
That’s a wrap: Mice that produce high levels of the molecule 4EPS (top) have atypically sparse brain myelin — the fatty substance that sheathes axons and conducts neuronal signals — compared with controls (bottom). Mice chemically coaxed to produce high levels of an autism-linked gut molecule have anxiety-like behavior and unusual patterns of brain connectivity, […]
ADHD emotions are not only unstable and mercurial; they overlap, butt heads, and fight for our attention. Those of us with ADHD can feel a dozen emotions in an afternoon. We can also feel immature, out of control, and ashamed at the same time. The fight to rein in our emotions is emotionally and physically […]
Since sensory differences became part of the diagnostic criteria for autism in 2013, more and more autism researchers have been drawn to the thalamus, the egg-shaped sensory relay station deep in the brain. The surge of interest has created an argument for the thalamus as an important sensory filter that may function differently in autism, […]
I get stuck a lot. Stuck between getting up and staying in bed. Between washing up and not. Between break and pushing forward. For a long time, I confused myself by relying on fear, shame, and negative self-talk. I have to get up because if I’m late for school everyone will judge me. I have […]
Short circuit: Several genes linked to autism (top) and schizophrenia (bottom) are highly expressed in the thalamus of mice and, when mutated, appear to cause memory problems. Silencing multiple genes associated with autism or schizophrenia in the thalami of mice increases neuronal excitability there and leads to memory problems reminiscent of those in people with […]
Neurons are forever trapped in a dance, adjusting their signals to keep up with new information. When the cells change their speed, they have to maintain a delicate balance: if they increase the excitatory signals too much, it can lead to seizures; too much inhibition can lead to depressive or catatonic states. Neurons achieve this […]
Social Studies: Mice in the autism model have atypical social behavior, possibly due to the way their brain processes the feeling of “self”. Photo by Rick Dahms A mutation in a gene associated with autism disrupts the brain’s ability to differentiate between itself and others, according to a new study in mice. Correcting the mutation […]
