Neuroanatomy

Recent articles

Research image of microglia in organoids.

Microglia nurture young interneurons

The immune cells secrete a growth factor that “sets the supply of GABAergic interneurons in the developing brain.”

By Lauren Schenkman
28 August 2025 | 4 min read

Cell ‘antennae’ link autism, congenital heart disease

Variants in genes tied to both conditions derail the formation of cilia, the tiny hair-like structure found on almost every cell in the body, a new study finds.

By Lauren Schenkman
24 July 2025 | 4 min listen
Illustration of a fly in various poses.

This paper changed my life: Bradley Dickerson on how a 1940s fly neuroanatomy paper influences his research to this day

This classic paper by zoologist John Pringle describes the haltere—a small structure in flies that plays a crucial role in flight control. It taught me to think about circuits and behavior as greater than the sum of their parts.

By Bradley Dickerson
17 June 2025 | 5 min listen
An opaque cube is repeated multiple times to create the appearance of overlapping cubes.

Sounding the alarm on pseudoreplication: Q&A with Constantinos Eleftheriou and Peter Kind

Most studies of neurological disorders in mice erroneously treat multiple samples from a single animal as independent replicates, according to a new analysis. But scientists and journals can take steps to curb this practice.

By Lauren Schenkman
12 June 2025 | 6 min read
Computer-generated images of the human brain showing functional networks.

Cell ‘fingerprints’ identify distinct cortical networks

These networks align with different assemblages of cells, a finding that could reveal how cellular diversity influences brain function, according to a new study.

By Holly Barker
28 February 2025 | 4 min read
Violet-stained neurons in a serial transverse section from an embryonic spiny dogfish, a bottom-dwelling shark.

Digitization of ‘breathtaking’ neuroanatomy slide collection offers untapped research gold mine

Thousands of histological sections of vertebrate brains—including from spiny dogfish, turtles and more—are newly available online.

By Shaena Montanari
22 January 2025 | 3 min read
Illustration of a lab with a smoking crater in the middle of the floor.

The Transmitter’s favorite features of 2024

Our chosen stories include tales about research misconduct in the lab, a neuroscientist working at the end of the world, and the passing of neuroanatomy’s “great-grandfather,” Harvey Karten.

By The Transmitter
23 December 2024 | 2 min read
A cortical neuron glows orange and red.

START method assembles brain’s wiring diagram by cell type

The new technique mapped the interactions of about 50 kinds of inhibitory neurons in the mouse visual cortex in finer detail than previous approaches.

By Holly Barker
31 October 2024 | 5 min read
Illustration of a neuron with cardinal directions superimposed over it as on a compass.

Neurons’ spikes may convey their whereabouts

The time lag between spurts of activity holds anatomical information, according to a preprint.

By Holly Barker
23 August 2024 | 4 min read
Photograph of neuroscientist Harvey Karten.

Remembering comparative neuroanatomy ‘great-grandfather’ Harvey Karten

The National Academy of Sciences member and pioneer in studying non-mammalian vertebrate brains died on 15 July at 89 years old.

By Sydney Wyatt
9 August 2024 | 9 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

Portrait photograph of Dame Stephanie Shirley.

In memoriam: Stephanie “Steve” Shirley, autism philanthropist

Fueled by business success and her son, she played an outsized role in British autism research.

By Lauren Schneider
25 September 2025 | 6 min read

Ann Kennedy explains the theoretical neuroscience of survival behaviors

The Scripps neuroscientist calls for a broader theoretical neuroscience approach in her area of research, which focuses on how the subcortex bridges life and cognition.

By Paul Middlebrooks
24 September 2025 | 1 min read
Map of the fly nervous system.

Local circuit loops within body control fly behavior, new ‘embodied’ connectome reveals

The mapping, which traces how the central nervous system interacts with the rest of the body, challenges the idea that behavior control is centralized.

By Claudia López Lloreda
24 September 2025 | 5 min listen

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