Reviews & Analysis

During a binary choice task, neuronal activity in monkey orbitofrontal cortex alternated between two network states. The internal dynamics revealed by a linear decoder correlated with the reaction time and with the eventual choice.

In this Perspective the authors provide a comparison of recent neurophysiological findings on the pathophysiology of three major movement disorders: Huntington's disease, l-DOPA-induced dyskinesia and dystonia. Both clinical and preclinical studies show that these hyperkinetic disorders share mechanisms underlying synaptic scaling and synaptic plasticity alterations in the basal ganglia–thalamo-cortical network.

Researchers show that orbitofrontal neurons perform the same value-related computations across different decisions. Value computations are therefore a critical feature around which orbitofrontal representations are organized.

Our understanding of faces reflects both our perception of their facial features and our social knowledge. This interaction of stereotypes and vision can be observed in brain signals in fusiform gyrus and orbitofrontal cortex.

The brain cancer glioblastoma relies on aberrant epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFRvIII) signaling for tumorigenesis. An essential co-receptor and feed-forward circuit maintain signaling in this deadly disease.

In high-throughput electron microscopy, a simple method to reduce artifacts helps reveal the architecture of circuits in the developing zebrafish olfactory bulb.

Pericytes are vascular mural cells embedded in the basement membrane of brain microvessels that, in the CNS, are uniquely positioned in the neurovascular unit between endothelial cells, astrocytes and neurons. Here the authors examine the key signaling pathways between pericytes and their neighboring cells regulating CNS functions in health and disease.

Hypothalamic Agouti-related peptide (AgRP)-expressing neurons promote feeding via inhibitory mechanisms. A downstream target in the medial amygdala both mediates feeding and modulates risk-taking and defensive behaviors in the face of starvation.

Connectivity patterns of neocortex exhibit several odd properties: for example, most neighboring excitatory neurons do not connect, which seems curiously wasteful. Brunel's elegant theoretical treatment reveals how optimal information storage can naturally impose these peculiar properties.

The prefrontal cortex supports the expression and inhibition of fear- and reward-related behaviors. These dualities are attributable to discrete functional domains making up this brain region, which allow it to stimulate or inhibit behavior depending on an organism's experiences. The authors review evidence that supports, or refutes, this “go/stop” function.

The neurobiology of social behavior is highly complex and defects are present in several mental illnesses. Here Barak and Feng discuss neurobiological aspects of two neuropsychiatric disorders presenting opposite social behavior abnormalities, autism spectrum disorder and Williams syndrome.

A study reports mutations in a histone methyltransferase gene, SETD1A, in schizophrenia patients and demonstrates that tens of thousands of people must be screened to provide robust evidence of a gene's involvement in schizophrenia.

Inhibitory optogenetic tools prevent action potential generation during illumination. A study explores the possibility of squelching already propagating action potentials locally at axon terminals before they trigger neurotransmitter release.

Master circadian clocks in discrete neurons trigger profound daily changes in brain states, such as sleep and wake states. A study now finds a circuit through which these pacemakers act to control daily behavioral rhythms in Drosophila.

In this Perspective, Murray Sherman discusses connectivity in the thalamocortical system, including the evidence that cortical areas are connected in parallel by direct and transthalamic pathways. Because thalamus receives inputs that form collaterals with subcortical motor regions, the author suggests that it may relay efference copy information.

In this Review, a collaboration of leading experts in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) research present the state of the field regarding the use patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells to generate motor neurons in vitro. Motor neuron characterization, including transcriptomics, molecular markers, neuron function and electrophysiology, are discussed in the context of maturation and disease.

Refinement of genetic variants within the major histocompatibility complex reveals three distinct genetic influences on schizophrenia risk and sheds light on the disease's neurobiology.

A clinical trial inspired and guided by optogenetics experiments in rodents reports the outcome of targeted transcranial magnetic stimulation in patients suffering from cocaine addiction.