Synapse News and Research

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Brain cells can burn fat to fuel activity

While glucose, or sugar, is a well-known fuel for the brain, Weill Cornell Medicine researchers have demonstrated that electrical activity in synapses—the junctions between neurons where communication occurs—can lead to the use of lipid or fat droplets as an energy source.

1 Jul 2025

Protective gene variant slows Alzheimer’s by taming brain inflammation

A rare gene mutation that delays Alzheimer's disease does so by damping inflammatory signaling in brain-resident immune cells, according to a preclinical study led by investigators at Weill Cornell Medicine.

23 Jun 2025

New imaging breakthrough sheds light on brain communication pathways

For the first time, scientists using cryo-electron microscopy have discovered the structure and shape of key receptors connecting neurons in the brain's cerebellum, which is located behind the brainstem and plays a critical role in functions such as coordinating movement, balance and cognition.

23 Jun 2025

Understanding the role of astrocytes in depression and neuroinflammation

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a mental health condition that negatively affects the mood of a person and causes a loss of interest in activities that were previously associated with happiness.

13 Jun 2025

New nanopore sequencing assay advances fragile X syndrome carrier screening

Researchers have developed an innovative new nanopore sequencing assay to identify carriers of fragile X syndrome (FXS), the leading cause of monogenic autism spectrum disorder and inherited intellectual disabilities.

12 Jun 2025

Pitt researchers challenge a decades-old assumption about brain plasticity

A new study from Pitt researchers challenges a decades-old assumption in neuroscience by showing that the brain uses distinct transmission sites - not a shared site - to achieve different types of plasticity.

3 Jun 2025

Self-powered artificial synapse brings human-like color vision to edge devices

As artificial intelligence and smart devices continue to evolve, machine vision is taking an increasingly pivotal role as a key enabler of modern technologies.

2 Jun 2025

New model creates a realistic picture of how vesicles support synaptic transmission

How do we think, feel, remember, or move? These processes involve synaptic transmission, in which chemical signals are transmitted between nerve cells using molecular containers called vesicles.

28 May 2025

Astrocytes may contribute to memory storage in the brain

The human brain contains about 86 billion neurons. These cells fire electrical signals that help the brain store memories and send information and commands throughout the brain and the nervous system.

27 May 2025

Insulin resistance in the brain may link Alzheimer’s and epilepsy

Researchers at the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil have succeeded in showing, in an animal model, that the process of insulin resistance in the brain affects both Alzheimer's disease and epilepsy and may be a linking factor between the two diseases.

22 May 2025

Researchers discover key mechanism behind synapse maturation

Researchers from the lab led by Prof. Joris De Wit (VIB-KU Leuven) have discovered an important clue to how connections between brain cells, known as synapses, mature.

21 May 2025

Discovery reveals how neuronal ion channels store molecular memory

Researchers have discovered how an ion channel in the brain's neurons has a kind of 'molecular memory', which contributes to the formation and preservation of lifelong memories.

19 May 2025

Astrocytes found to drive brain rewiring during attention states

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have upended decades-old dogma of how connections between brain cells are rearranged during states of heightened vigilance or attention.

15 May 2025

Study links impaired synaptic pruning to autism

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental condition in which affected individuals experience difficulties in social communication and exhibit restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior or interests.

30 Apr 2025

Machine learning provide new insights into how the brain responds to heroin use

Object recognition software is used by law enforcement to help identify suspects, by self-driving cars to navigate roadways and by many consumers to unlock their cell phones or pay for their morning coffee.

30 Apr 2025

Researchers uncover how substance use accelerates brain aging

In a comprehensive Genomic Press Interview, researchers from UTHealth Houston have uncovered crucial evidence that substance use disorders (SUDs) accelerate biological aging in the brain through distinct molecular mechanisms.

29 Apr 2025

Researchers simulate protein structures behind learning and memory

Our brain's remarkable ability to form and store memories has long fascinated scientists, yet most of the microscopic mechanisms behind memory and learning processes remain a mystery.

16 Apr 2025

Understanding the role of CD2AP in Alzheimer's disease

A groundbreaking peer-reviewed Thought Leaders Invited Review article in Brain Medicine (Genomic Press, New York) explores how CD2-associated protein (CD2AP) contributes to Alzheimer's disease (AD), one of the most devastating neurodegenerative disorders affecting millions worldwide.

19 Mar 2025

Non-invasive 40Hz gamma stimulation could help fight Alzheimer’s

A decade after scientists in The Picower Institute for Learning and Memory at MIT first began testing whether sensory stimulation of the brain's 40Hz "gamma" frequency rhythms could treat Alzheimer's disease in mice, a growing evidence base supporting the idea that it can improve brain health-in humans as well as animals-has emerged from the work of labs all over the world.

3 Mar 2025