In the brain, highly specific connections called synapses link nerve cells and transmit electrical signals in a targeted manner. Despite decades of research, how synapses form during brain development ...

Adolescence is widely thought to be a time when the brain trims away excess neural connections, refining circuits through synaptic pruning. New research now suggests this view may be incomplete.

The human brain's remarkably prolonged development is unique among mammals and is thought to contribute to our advanced learning abilities. Disruptions in this process may explain certain ...

By simply "sprinkling" this probe on top, active synapses will visibly light up so that researchers can clearly observe how living brain cells communicate—all within 10 seconds. This research gives us ...

When thinking, the human brain performs a true masterpiece of information processing: around 100 billion neurons communicate with each other via approximately 100 trillion connections. An ...

A dendrite – an extension of a neuron - from a 12-month-old human cerebral cortex neuron, grown from human stem cells and transplanted into a mouse cerebral cortex. Two human-specific genes, SRGAP2B ...

Co-written with Jai Liester. Silent synapses represent one of neuroscience's most fascinating discoveries—connections between neurons that lie dormant until activated by specific triggers. These ...

The way the brain develops can shape us throughout our lives, so neuroscientists are intensely curious about how it happens. A new study by researchers in The Picower Institute for Learning and Memory ...

Functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs), including irritable bowel syndrome, functional dyspepsia, and chronic visceral pain syndromes, affect a ...