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.

What is the Nervous System?

The nervous system is a complex network of neurons and cells that carry messages to and from the brain and spinal cord to various parts of the body.

The Impact of Hormones on the Nervous System

What are Schwann Cells?

Development of the Nervous System

Pathology of the Nervous System

Function of the Nervous System

Bioelectronic Medicine: Hacking Nervous System Signals for Therapeutic Benefits

Latest Nervous System News and Research

Shingles vaccine may benefit individuals already diagnosed with dementia, new study finds

An unusual public health policy in Wales may have produced the strongest evidence yet that a vaccine can reduce the risk of dementia.

2 Dec 2025

Specific DNA sequences control spinal cord injury response

After a spinal cord injury, cells in the brain and spinal cord change to cope with stress and repair tissue. A new study from Karolinska Institutet, published in Nature Neuroscience, shows that this response is controlled by specific DNA sequences.

2 Dec 2025

Neural stem cells drive lifelong eye growth in marine bristleworms

A new study, led by the University of Vienna and the Alfred Wegener Institute in Bremerhaven, shows how the eyes of adult marine bristleworms continue to grow throughout life – driven by a ring of neural stem cells reminiscent of vertebrate eyes.

1 Dec 2025

Brain recordings reveal why food cravings return despite tirzepatide

Researchers investigate the effects of tirzepatide on food preoccupation by influencing the brain’s mesolimbic circuitry.

1 Dec 2025

Driving behavior data may help detect early cognitive decline

Using in-vehicle driving data may be a new way to identify people who are at risk of cognitive decline, according to a study published on November 26, 2025, in Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

26 Nov 2025

Comprehensive research identifies most effective ADHD treatments

The most comprehensive review to date of ADHD treatments has found that medication for children and adults, and cognitive behavioral therapy for adults, remain the most effective approaches, backed by the strongest short-term trial evidence.

26 Nov 2025

Rare inherited variants shape risk and outcomes in pediatric brain and spinal cord tumors

Researchers at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and Children's National Hospital in Washington D.C. are uncovering how rare inherited genetic variants contribute to the development of brain and spinal cord tumors in children.

26 Nov 2025

Using a psychedelic to explore the relationship between alpha waves and self-awareness

When people use a psychedelic called dimethyltryptamine (DMT), they experience a temporary loss of their sense of self. DMT interacts with a frequency of brain activity associated with self-referential processes (alpha waves), but it's unclear how this activity relates to self-awareness.

26 Nov 2025

Most public speakers at FDA advisory committees support drug approval

U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory committees play a key role in evaluating the efficacy and safety of new drugs.

25 Nov 2025

Long-term calorie restriction can slow cellular markers of brain aging

As the brain ages, cells in the central nervous system experience metabolic dysfunction and increased oxidative damage.

25 Nov 2025

Gut nervous system controls intestinal barrier and allergy risk

An international research team led by scientists from Bern and Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin has identified a previously unknown function of the intestinal nervous system.

25 Nov 2025

Deficient ATP release in the brain drives depressive- and anxiety-like behaviors

In a new JNeurosci paper, Tian-Ming Gao and colleagues, from Southern Medical University, explored how adenosine triphosphate (ATP) signaling relates to depression and anxiety using male mice. ATP is a molecule that not only provides energy but also supports communication between neurons.

25 Nov 2025

New analysis shows one in two people in the U.S. live with neurological conditions

One in two people in the United States, just over half of the population, is affected by a neurological disease or disorder, according to a new systematic analysis by the American Academy of Neurology and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation published on November 24, 2025, in the journal JAMA Neurology.

24 Nov 2025

Gut neurons control immunity attack or repair

Beneath the surface of your gut lies a vast network of neurons—as many as in your spinal cord. New research from the Champalimaud Foundation (CF) in Lisbon shows that in mice this "second brain" helps decide whether the immune system should go into attack mode or start repairing tissue.

24 Nov 2025

Researchers use organoids to study the earliest moments of electrical activity in the brain

Humans have long wondered when and how we begin to form thoughts. Are we born with a pre-configured brain, or do thought patterns only begin to emerge in response to our sensory experiences of the world around us? Now, science is getting closer to answering the questions philosophers have pondered for centuries.

24 Nov 2025

Study finds GLP-1 drugs improve strength and reverse aging biology in mice

Researchers showed that GLP-1 receptor agonism counteracts aging across multiple organs in mice, improving strength and reversing molecular aging signatures without meaningful effects on body weight. These benefits depended largely on hypothalamic GLP-1R signaling and closely mirrored the anti-aging patterns produced by rapamycin.

23 Nov 2025