Latest Inhibitory postsynaptic potential Stories
RUB scientists decipher the role of calcium signals Bochum's neurobiologists have found that certain receptors for the neurotransmitter glutamate determine the architecture of nerve cells in the developing brain. Individual receptor variants lead to especially long and branched processes called dendrites, which the cells communicate with. The researchers also showed that the growth-promoting property of the receptors is linked to how much calcium they allow to flow into the cells....
20 mouse lines provide views of cortical GABA neurons not previously possible A team of neuroscientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) has succeeded in creating what amounts to a GPS system for locating and tracking a vital class of brain cells that until now has eluded comprehensive identification, particularly in living animals. The cells in question are the class of neurons that release the neurotransmitter called GABA (gamma aminobutyric acid). GABA neurons function to...
Excitation and inhibition remain balanced, even when the brain undergoes reorganization Every second, the brain's nerve cells exchange many billions of synaptic impulses. Two kinds of synapses ensure that this flow of data is regulated: Excitatory synapses relay information from one cell to the next, while inhibitory synapses restrict the flow of information. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology in Martinsried could now show, in cooperation with colleagues from the Ruhr...
'Can you hear me now?' Researchers detail how neurons decide how to transmit informationThere are billions of neurons in the brain and at any given time tens of thousands of these neurons might be trying to send signals to one another. Much like a person trying to be heard by his friend across a crowded room, neurons must figure out the best way to get their message heard above the din.Researchers from the Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, a joint program between Carnegie Mellon...
In the cerebral cortex, the balance between excitation (pyramidal neurons) and inhibition (interneurons) is thought to be mediated by the primary mode of neuronal communication: "all-or-none" action potentials, or spikes. However, Dr. Yousheng Shu's research group at the Institute of Neuroscience of Chinese Academy of Sciences has discovered a new strategy by which the cortex can maintain this balance, by showing that the amount of inhibition depends on the membrane potentials (Vm)...
An unexpected discovery by UCLA life scientists holds promise for the future development of treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder and other anxiety disorders, and potentially for Alzheimer's disease and other memory-impairment diseases. The researchers, led by UCLA professor of psychology Michael Fanselow, have discovered what may be a completely unexplored drug target for the treatment of anxiety disorders. The research is published Jan. 7 in the journal Science. Normally, when...
How GABA transmission regulates synaptic adhesion at developing inhibitory synapsesNewly published research led by Professor Z. Josh Huang, Ph.D., of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) sheds important new light on how neurons in the developing brain make connections with one another. This activity, called synapse validation, is at the heart of the process by which neural circuits self-assemble, and is directly implicated in pathology that gives rise to devastating neurodevelopmental...
The brain works because 100 billion of its special nerve cells called neurons regulate trillions of connections that carry and process information. The behavior of each neuron is precisely determined by the proper function of many genes.In 1999, Baylor College of Medicine researcher Dr. Huda Zoghbi, and her colleagues identified mutations in one of these genes called MeCP2 as the culprit in a devastating neurological disorder called Rett syndrome. In new research in mice published in the...
Inhibiting certain brain cells sharpens animal's response to small and quick visual stimuliBetween alerting us to danger and allowing us to spot prey, vision keeps many animals, including humans, alive. But exactly how does this important sense work, and why is it easier for us to spot movement of small objects in our field of vision, than to notice other things? The complexity of the neural network that supports vision has long baffled scientists.Now, with a new technology and support from...
ApoE4 causes GABAergic interneuron impairment, leading to learning and memory deficitsAlzheimer's disease (AD) is an extremely complicated disease. Several proteins seem to be involved in its cause and progression. For example, the lipid-transport protein apolipoprotein E4 (apoE4) is the major genetic risk factor for AD, and apoE4 carriers account for 65󈞼% of all Alzheimer's cases, but exactly how apoE4 contributes to the disease is unclear.Scientists at the Gladstone Institutes of...
