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Deficits in developmental synaptic pruning are frequently observed in autism. Here the authors demonstrate molecular pathways shared by pruning and long-term depression (LTD), a synaptic memory mechanism in adult brains that is dysregulated in autism. Thus, autism-related pruning deficits may result from the inability to weaken or disconnect inefficient synapses.
The study of the mechanisms controlling RNA metabolism in neurons represents a new frontier in the understanding of gene–environment interactions and how they regulate brain function. In this Perspective, the authors describe the recent surge in newly identified epitranscriptomic processes and highlight their potential importance in coordinating the molecular underpinnings of cognition and memory.
A number of higher cognitive processes are linked to dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC), yet its overall functions remain elusive. The authors discuss convergent findings suggesting it is part of a mechanism for tracking and evaluating reward environments in order to implement learning, search and goal-driven persistence.
The authors propose that dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) performs a cost/benefit analysis to specify how best to allocate cognitive control. They describe why this theory accounts well for dACC’s role in decision-making, motivation and cognitive control, including its observed role in foraging choice settings.
Sound information travels from auditory cortex to lateral amygdala, but a newly identified pathway runs in the opposite direction. It undergoes plasticity and is required for memory recall during auditory fear conditioning.
In vivo imaging of the spinal cord provides insights into the coding of skin temperature. Intriguingly, while heat-responsive dorsal horn neurons encode absolute temperatures, cold-responsive neurons report relative drops.
Even before a child learns to read, the future location of his or her letter-processing area can be predicted from its connections to the rest of the brain. Reading acquisition thus piggybacks on a pre-existing brain circuit.
The inability of adults to retrieve episodic memories of infancy is referred to as infantile amnesia. A study now provides one of the first explanations of the neurobiological mechanisms underlying this phenomenon.
Extracellular electrophysiology and calcium imaging are powerful methods for recording neuronal populations. Yet both methods are subject to confounds that, if not accounted for, could lead to erroneous scientific conclusions. The authors discuss these confounds, strategies for identifying and ameliorating them, and potential research that could accurately calibrate population recording.
Ji et al. review emerging microscopy technologies that enable large-volume imaging of neural circuits. Focusing on two-photon fluorescence microscopy, they explored critical factors that limit imaging speed and restrict image volume, and also discuss three-dimensional imaging methods and their applications in rapid volume imaging of neural activity.
Given recent advances in genome engineering technology like CRISPR and the difficulty of modeling human diseases in rodents, transgenic nonhuman primates may be used to develop etiologically relevant models of disease. This perspective by Guoping Feng et al. highlights the technological advances, potential challenges and opportunities these models present to furthering our understanding of disease.
Although single-cell gene expression profiling has been possible for the past two decades, a number of recent technological advances in microfluidic and sequencing technology have recently made the procedure much easier and less expensive. Awatramani and colleagues discuss the use of single-cell gene expression profiling for classifying neuronal cell types.
This paper describes an integrated approach for neuroimaging data acquisition, analysis and sharing. Building on methodological advances from the Human Connectome Project (HCP) and elsewhere, the HCP-style paradigm applies to new and existing data sets that meet core requirements and may accelerate progress in understanding the brain in health and disease.
Genetically encoded indicators of neuronal activity have diversified and improved in performance in recent years, becoming essential tools for neuroscientists. Lin and Schnitzer review indicators for pH, neurotransmitter, voltage and calcium, with an emphasis on quantifying key indicator attributes and relating them to their applications in neuroscience.
During cocaine withdrawal, a shift in the balance between excitatory and inhibitory inputs from globus pallidus to lateral habenula may activate habenula and contribute to the aversive 'crash' state.
In the twenty-first century, microglia came of age. Their remarkable ontogeny, unique functions and gene expression profile, process motility, and disease relevance have all been highlighted. Neuroscientists interested in microglia encounter an obsolete concept, M1/M2 polarization, suggesting experimental strategies that produce neither conceptual nor technical advances. Ransohoff's Perspective argues against applying this flawed paradigm.
Injured mouse retinal ganglion cells, upon a combination of treatments, can regrow their axons along the entire optic pathway and re-establish connections with their correct brain targets. This can partially restore function.
Orientation selectivity in visual cortex is not simply the result of linear input summation. Instead, selectivity is enhanced by nonlinear dendritic transformation of spatially clustered, cotuned synaptic inputs.
Early nicotine exposure during brain development may cause long-lasting neurobiological and behavioral alterations in adulthood. Jung et al. present insights into the mechanisms mediating these developmental changes.
