Neocortex News and Research

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Rare cortical neurons actively promote the transition into sleep

What makes the brain fall asleep? For nearly a century, scientists have looked to structures deep within the brain for the answer.

11 Sep 2026

Study discovers memory switchboard that protects past knowledge

The brain may reuse some cells to store many different memories without mixing them up with or erasing older memories, a new study in mice suggests.

3 Jun 2026

Molecular map reveals how Down syndrome alters brain development

Scientists at UCLA have created one of the first cellular-resolution molecular maps detailing how Down syndrome alters human brain development before birth - a resource that resolves longstanding contradictions in the field and could lay the groundwork for future therapeutic strategies.

25 Apr 2026

Study reveals how tau tangles spread from one brain region to another in Alzheimer's

Alzheimer's disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that slowly impairs memory, affects thinking skills, and eventually interferes with daily functioning.

8 Apr 2026

The brain encodes time and space through common neural sequences

If you develop Alzheimer's disease, you not only lose your sense of time, but you also lose your sense of place. Could time and place be two sides of the same coin?

1 Apr 2026

New brain atlas reveals how the human neocortex forms over time

In a bid to better understand, and potentially treat, a host of conditions that affect early cognition, neurodevelopment and the brain later in life, investigators at Johns Hopkins Medicine and colleagues throughout the world have been mapping the molecular construction of the human brain.

25 Mar 2026

Study links brain waves to misremembering of negative, irrelevant information

A good night's sleep has long been understood to help us consolidate new memories, but we don't understand how. Associations with negative feelings like fear or stress can improve recall, but intentionally trying to remember can also be effective. But these two mechanisms are very different - one involuntary, one deliberate.

7 Oct 2025

New research links postictal symptoms in epilepsy to hidden brain waves

In everyday clinical practice, symptoms are regularly observed after epileptic seizures, known as "post-ictal symptoms", which, in contrast to the usually short duration of seizures, typically last several minutes to hours. Besides symptoms such as impaired speech and language comprehension, a state of disorientation may occur.

19 Sep 2025

Researchers identify seizure-associated depolarization as cause of post-ictal symptoms

People with temporal lobe epilepsy in particular often wander around aimlessly and unconsciously after a seizure. Researchers at the University Hospital Bonn (UKB), the University of Bonn, and the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) have identified a neurobiological mechanism that could be responsible for this so-called post-ictal wandering and potentially other postictal symptoms.

18 Sep 2025

New tech could revolutionize neurodegenerative disease research and AI

When electrical activity travels across the brain, it moves like ripples on a pond. The motion of these "brain waves," first observed in the 1920s, can now be seen more clearly than ever before thanks to instruments and techniques created by a Stanford-led team.

17 Jul 2025

Study sheds new light on brain evolution

In a new study published in Science, a Belgian research team explores how genetic switches controlling gene activity define brain cell types across species.

17 Feb 2025

Study sheds light on how deep sleep supports memory formation

It has been known for nearly 20 years that slow, synchronous electrical waves in the brain during deep sleep support the formation of memories.

12 Dec 2024

An evolutionary ancient brain region drives modern-day cognition

The superior colliculus is a midbrain region that is traditionally thought to help animals orient themselves toward important locations in space, like directing their eyes and head toward a bright flash of light. New research from the University of Chicago shows that this part of the brain also plays a role in complex cognitive tasks like visual categorization and decision making.

19 Sep 2024

Neuroscientists decode the brain’s response to unexpected sensory inputs

Researchers have discovered how two brain areas, neocortex and thalamus, work together to detect discrepancies between what animals expect from their environment and actual events.

28 Aug 2024

PET imaging and proteomics reveal distinct protein signatures in Alzheimer's disease progression

Researchers used PET imaging and proteomic analysis of cerebrospinal fluid to study amyloid β and tau tangle loads in Alzheimer's patients, identifying 127 proteins linked to disease progression. The findings highlight distinct molecular pathways and potential therapeutic targets.

28 Aug 2024