Neuron News and Research

RSS

Aging brains struggle to recycle synaptic proteins

As we age, we begin to lose the connections that wire up our brains-and neuroscientists aren't sure why.

2 Feb 2026

Regulating microglial phagocytosis through immunotherapy could slow Parkinson's disease progression

By analyzing tissue from patients with Parkinson's disease, and animal and cellular models of the disease, a research team from the Institut de Neurociències of the UAB has shown that the main immune cells of the brain become reactive and overexpress certain receptors that promote the elimination of dopaminergic neurons, even when these neurons are still functional.

2 Feb 2026

New fluorescent markers reveal dynamic cell-to-cell communication

Living organisms are made up of hundreds of thousands of cells that cooperate to create the organs and systems that breathe, eat, move, and think.

30 Jan 2026

Hippocampus reorganizes memories to anticipate future outcomes, study finds

A preclinical study published in Nature has found evidence that the hippocampus, the brain region that stores memory, also reorganizes memories to anticipate future outcomes.

30 Jan 2026

Lab-grown corticospinal neurons offer new models for ALS and spinal injuries

Researchers have developed a way to grow a highly specialized subset of brain nerve cells that are involved in motor neuron disease and damaged in spinal injuries.

29 Jan 2026

New evidence shows Parkinson’s spreads via immune cells from the gut

New research reveals how Parkinson's spreads from the gut to the brain, with the help of immune cells – offering a new potential therapeutic strategy – in a study in mice led by scientists at the UK Dementia Research Institute at UCL (University College London).

29 Jan 2026

Overactive protein cleanup disrupts nuclear pores in neurodegenerative disease

When it comes to neurodegenerative diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and certain forms of dementia, researchers have known that protein quality control and damage to the nuclear pore are key players.

27 Jan 2026

Game-changing discovery reveals how viruses may trigger ALS development

A large, multidisciplinary team led by researchers from Texas A&M University has made a potentially game-changing discovery about the development of devastating motor neuron diseases like amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

27 Jan 2026

Tiny plastic particles may interfere with brain processes implicated in Parkinson’s disease

Micro- and nanoplastics are increasingly detected in human tissues, including the brain, and experimental evidence suggests they can interact with biological pathways central to Parkinson’s disease pathology. This review synthesises mechanistic data indicating that plastic particles may influence protein aggregation, neuroinflammation, mitochondrial dysfunction, and the gut–brain axis, while emphasising the need for prospective human studies.

26 Jan 2026

Ageing slows brain protein clearance and shifts synaptic waste to microglia

Ageing slows neuronal protein degradation in mice, leading to widespread accumulation and aggregation of long-lived proteins, particularly at synapses. As neuronal clearance declines, microglia selectively accumulate synaptic proteins, suggesting a compensatory but potentially strained proteostasis pathway in the ageing brain.

22 Jan 2026

Long-term air pollution exposure raises motor neuron disease risk

Long-term exposure to ambient air pollution was associated with a higher risk of developing motor neuron disease and poorer prognosis after diagnosis in a large nationwide Swedish study. Higher particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide exposure were also linked to faster functional decline and increased likelihood of invasive ventilation.

21 Jan 2026

Prolonged exposure to air pollution linked to elevated risk for ALS

Prolonged exposure to air pollution can be linked to an elevated risk for serious neurodegenerative diseases like ALS and seems to speed up the pathological process, report researchers from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden.

20 Jan 2026

Wearable device enables natural speech in stroke patients with dysarthria

Researchers have developed a wearable, comfortable and washable device called Revoice that could help people regain the ability to communicate naturally and fluently following a stroke, without the need for invasive brain implants.

19 Jan 2026

ALS breakthrough: Restoring protein production in motor neuron axons

Researchers at VIB and KU Leuven have identified a molecular process that allows motor neurons to maintain protein production, a process that fails in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

12 Jan 2026

Sex-based differences and role of BMP signaling in neurogenesis in Alzheimer's mice models

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a serious neurodegenerative disease largely affecting older adults. Apart from age, it also shows sex-based differences, with women being more at risk. However, the origin of these differences remains unknown.

9 Jan 2026

$Neural pain pathways found to play crucial role in bone fracture healing$

Neural pain pathways found to play crucial role in bone fracture healing

When a house catches on fire, we assume that a smoke alarm inside will serve one purpose and one purpose only: warn the occupants of danger.

8 Jan 2026

UC Davis team creates new class of serotonin-effecting drugs

UC Davis researchers have developed a new method that uses light to transform amino acids - the building blocks of proteins - into molecules that are similar in structure to psychedelics and mimic their interaction with the brain.

8 Jan 2026

Separate neurons for content and context enable flexible human memory

The human brain must be able to link memory content to the circumstances in which it occurs. Researchers in Bonn have now discovered how the human brain uses two different groups of neurons to store content and context separately.

7 Jan 2026

Parkinson’s disease may stem from iron starvation rather than iron overload

This perspective argues that Parkinson’s disease may involve functional iron deficiency, where bioavailable iron is limited despite normal or elevated total iron in the brain. The authors propose that iron sequestration, not iron toxicity alone, may impair dopamine synthesis and neuronal survival.

6 Jan 2026