Nervous System

The nervous system is an organ system containing a network of specialized cells called neurons that coordinate the actions of an animal and transmit signals between different parts of its body. In most animals the nervous system consists of two parts, central and peripheral. The central nervous system contains the brain and spinal cord.

Cancer and the Nervous System: Tumor Growth, Metastasis, and Neurobiology

Cancer neuroscience reveals a bidirectional relationship in which neural circuits, neurotransmitters, neurotrophic factors, and immune signaling can shape tumor growth, invasion, and metastasis. Tumors can, in turn, remodel nerves and exploit neural pathways, creating new opportunities and challenges for cancer therapy.

Bioelectronic Medicine: Hacking Nervous System Signals for Therapeutic Benefits

Pathology of the Nervous System

The Impact of Hormones on the Nervous System

What is the Nervous System?

Function of the Nervous System

What are Schwann Cells?

Development of the Nervous System

Latest Nervous System News and Research

Kidney rhythm mismatch linked to dangerous nighttime high blood pressure

Most people's blood pressure falls by 10 to 20 per cent while they sleep, giving the heart and blood vessels a chance to recover. But for some people, that nighttime dip never happens.

24 Sep 2026

Advances in chemistry and delivery are taking oligonucleotide medicines beyond rare diseases

A review in Cell Reports Medicine examines how advances in oligonucleotide chemistry and delivery have established ASOs and RNA interference therapies as a class of genetic medicines, with 21 oligonucleotides approved at the time of writing. It also identifies extrahepatic delivery, safety, target validation, individualized treatment, and data quality as priorities as the field expands into common diseases and explores AI-assisted development.

24 Sep 2026

Early treatment may improve outcomes in Shwachman-Diamond syndrome

More than 90% of children born with the rare bone marrow condition called Shwachman-Diamond Syndrome (SDS) survive beyond age 20. But fewer than 30% live beyond age 50.

23 Sep 2026

Transient ischemic attacks linked to increased long-term dementia risk

Having a transient ischemic attack (TIA) is associated with an increased risk of developing dementia, according to a new study published September 23, 2026, in Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

23 Sep 2026

Stroke rates nearly doubled among younger adults over three decades

Stroke is becoming more common among younger adults, according to a study published September 23, 2026, in Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

23 Sep 2026

Menopause leaves a blood protein signature linked to brain aging and Alzheimer’s risk

Researchers identified a 16-protein blood signature associated with menopause that tracked more strongly with reproductive hormones than chronological age and was largely replicated in an independent UK Biobank cohort. Higher menopause proteomic scores were also associated with less favorable proteomic aging estimates and poorer cognitive outcomes in older women, including incident Alzheimer’s dementia, although the observational evidence does not establish causality.

23 Sep 2026

WSU study reveals acute effects of cannabis on physiological stress-related outcomes

Cannabis is often used as a stress reliever, but a new study suggests that some of the body's stress response systems don't get the message.

23 Sep 2026

Dietary changes can prevent Hirschsprung disease symptoms

A multi-institutional study led by researchers at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) discovered for the first time that dietary interventions might prevent inflammatory symptoms associated with Hirschsprung disease, a bowel motility disorder.

23 Sep 2026

Voluntary exercise reduces stress-linked bladder pain and urinary frequency

Chronic stress may contribute to the pain and urinary symptoms experienced by people with interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome (IC/BPS) by triggering changes in the bladder and nervous system, according to a preclinical study by Weill Cornell Medicine investigators.

23 Sep 2026

New technique improves detection of central nervous system infections

New research led by Aston University's Dr Ghaniah Hassan-Smith, has found a new technique to diagnose infections of the central nervous system, such as meningitis and encephalitis, which can be difficult to determine using conventional methods.

23 Sep 2026

Sensory neurons remember past allergens to trigger future allergic reactions

Mass General Brigham researchers found that sensory neurons retain a 'memory' of allergens that may help explain why allergies develop over time.

22 Sep 2026

MLC1 auto-antibodies identified as possible trigger for NMOSD-like diseases

NMOSD is an inflammatory autoimmune disorder that damages support and supply cells in the central nervous system, known as astrocytes.

22 Sep 2026

Researchers identify a rare genetic change linked to neurodevelopmental disorder

Research led by Texas Children's Duncan Neurological Research Institute (Duncan NRI) and Baylor College of Medicine identified a rare genetic change that appears to cause a newly recognized neurodevelopmental disorder.

21 Sep 2026

Brain activity patterns predict math problem solving struggles in children

Some children have a condition that makes them persistently struggle with math problem solving (developmental dyscalculia), yet behavioral and mechanistic details about this condition are lacking.

21 Sep 2026

Active form of meprin-β protein increases in people with Alzheimer’s disease

A team from the Altered Molecular Mechanism in Alzheimer's Disease and Dementia laboratory, led by Javier Sáez Valero, a researcher at the Institute for Neurosciences (IN), a joint centre of the Miguel Hernández University of Elche (UMH) and the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), has identified increased levels of the protein meprin-β in the brain and cerebrospinal fluid of people with Alzheimer's disease.

21 Sep 2026

Adenine base editing slows neurodegeneration in hereditary motor neuron disease

A team of researchers led by Professor Haruhisa Inoue (Center for iPS Cell Research and Application, Kyoto University) and Professor Yuishin Izumi (Tokushima University) demonstrated that adenine base editing can correct a disease-causing genetic mutation and alleviate neurodegeneration in hereditary motor and sensory neuropathy with proximal dominant involvement (HMSN-P), providing proof of concept for a precision gene therapy for inherited motor neuron diseases.

18 Sep 2026

Scientists discover metabolite fueling aggressive brain tumor growth

Virtually all high-grade, aggressive gliomas in adults accumulate massive amounts of a metabolite called guanidinoacetate (GAA) that overstimulates nearby neurons and promotes tumor growth, according to new research from scientists at Children’s Medical Center Research Institute at UT Southwestern (CRI) published in Cell.

18 Sep 2026

Transplanted human cortical organoids filled most of a mouse cortex. Then they began to connect

Researchers created xenocortical mice by transplanting human cortical organoids into animals genetically depleted of much of their native cortex, allowing the human tissue to occupy most of the available cortical space and form anatomical connections throughout the host nervous system. The grafts developed diverse cortical cell types, including L5-ET and VEN-like neurons, generated organized neural activity, and produced measurable cellular and behavioral responses to hypoxic injury.

18 Sep 2026

Study highlights drop in harmful medication use among adults with cognitive disorders

Adults 65 and older with cognitive disorders such as dementia, are more likely to suffer negative effects from drugs that treat central nervous system conditions including anxiety, sleep problems and psychosis.

17 Sep 2026