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The big idea with Diego Bohórquez
His theories around the neuropod have challenged the boundaries of classic ideas regarding gut-brain communication.

The big idea with Diego Bohórquez
His theories around the neuropod have challenged the boundaries of classic ideas regarding gut-brain communication.
Neurotransmitter switch-up helps fan extreme stress into full-blown fear
The flip occurs when certain neurons in the dorsal raphe start to express the chemical GABA instead of glutamate, a new study shows.

Neurotransmitter switch-up helps fan extreme stress into full-blown fear
The flip occurs when certain neurons in the dorsal raphe start to express the chemical GABA instead of glutamate, a new study shows.
Neurons in thalamus sort new social cues from familiar ones
A subset of thalamic neurons support an aspect of social behavior called social recognition, according to experiments in mice.

Neurons in thalamus sort new social cues from familiar ones
A subset of thalamic neurons support an aspect of social behavior called social recognition, according to experiments in mice.
Trials of arbaclofen for autism yield mixed results
Autistic children taking the drug showed improvements in some behaviors but not in their social skills.

Trials of arbaclofen for autism yield mixed results
Autistic children taking the drug showed improvements in some behaviors but not in their social skills.
Experimental drug shows promise for autism-linked syndromes
The drug quells seizures in children with Dravet syndrome or Lennox-Gastaut syndrome.

Experimental drug shows promise for autism-linked syndromes
The drug quells seizures in children with Dravet syndrome or Lennox-Gastaut syndrome.
New resource maps gene expression, regulation in neuron subtypes
The catalog could help researchers understand the effects of autism-linked DNA variants that fall outside genes.

New resource maps gene expression, regulation in neuron subtypes
The catalog could help researchers understand the effects of autism-linked DNA variants that fall outside genes.
New human neuron assays set stage for high-throughput autism drug screens
The ability to conduct large-scale screening in human neurons could accelerate the discovery of autism treatments.

New human neuron assays set stage for high-throughput autism drug screens
The ability to conduct large-scale screening in human neurons could accelerate the discovery of autism treatments.
Visual task flags autistic people who respond to GABA agonists
The investigational drug arbaclofen makes autistic people's brains respond to a visual task more like non-autistic people's brains do.

Visual task flags autistic people who respond to GABA agonists
The investigational drug arbaclofen makes autistic people's brains respond to a visual task more like non-autistic people's brains do.
Neural network captures noisy neurons in autism mouse model
Mice missing the autism-linked gene SHANK3 use more neurons to engage in social behavior than control mice do, reflecting a more disorganized, less efficient brain signaling network.

Neural network captures noisy neurons in autism mouse model
Mice missing the autism-linked gene SHANK3 use more neurons to engage in social behavior than control mice do, reflecting a more disorganized, less efficient brain signaling network.
GABA agonist rescues auditory hypersensitivity in rats missing autism-linked gene CNTNAP2
The investigational drug arbaclofen may right an imbalance between inhibitory and excitatory signaling in the animals’ brains.

GABA agonist rescues auditory hypersensitivity in rats missing autism-linked gene CNTNAP2
The investigational drug arbaclofen may right an imbalance between inhibitory and excitatory signaling in the animals’ brains.
Explore more from The Transmitter
Null and Noteworthy: Neurons tracking sequences don’t fire in order
Instead, neurons encode the position of sequential items in working memory based on when they fire during ongoing brain wave oscillations—a finding that challenges a long-standing theory.

Null and Noteworthy: Neurons tracking sequences don’t fire in order
Instead, neurons encode the position of sequential items in working memory based on when they fire during ongoing brain wave oscillations—a finding that challenges a long-standing theory.
How to teach this paper: ‘Neurotoxic reactive astrocytes are induced by activated microglia,’ by Liddelow et al. (2017)
Shane Liddelow and his collaborators identified the factors that transform astrocytes from their helpful to harmful form. Their work is a great choice if you want to teach students about glial cell types, cell culture, gene expression or protein measurement.

How to teach this paper: ‘Neurotoxic reactive astrocytes are induced by activated microglia,’ by Liddelow et al. (2017)
Shane Liddelow and his collaborators identified the factors that transform astrocytes from their helpful to harmful form. Their work is a great choice if you want to teach students about glial cell types, cell culture, gene expression or protein measurement.
Astrocytes sense neuromodulators to orchestrate neuronal activity and shape behavior
Astrocytes serve as crucial mediators of neuromodulatory processes previously attributed to direct communication between neurons, four new studies show.

Astrocytes sense neuromodulators to orchestrate neuronal activity and shape behavior
Astrocytes serve as crucial mediators of neuromodulatory processes previously attributed to direct communication between neurons, four new studies show.