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Cheng and Ji show that in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease, new spatial memory formation by hippocampal place cells is disrupted by an inability to encode external environmental information and by dominating internally generated brain activity.
A study reveals a signalling pathway in the mouse cortex that immobilizes mitochondria at nascent presynaptic sites in developing axons and thereby promotes terminal axon branching.
A new study reveals that an interaction between Ca2+/calmodulin and the vesicle-priming protein MUNC13-1 has a crucial role in replenishment of the presynaptic readily releasable pool of vesicles after depletion by high-frequency stimulation.
Planar cell polarity (PCP) is regulated by a core set of conserved genes. Tissir and Goffinet describe the emerging roles of these PCP genes in various developmental processes in the nervous system, including neural tube closure, neuronal migration and axon guidance.
Correct functioning of the brain requires stability as well as plasticity of neural circuits, and loss of stability is associated with numerous neurological disorders. In this Review, Koleske discusses recent insights into the molecular mechanisms that govern long-term dendrite and synapse stabilization.
Intricate mechanisms regulate iron homeostasis in the CNS. In this Review, Rouault considers the role of brain iron accumulation in several common neurodegenerative disorders and discusses 'neurodegeneration with brain iron accumulation' diseases that are associated with specific genetic mutations.
Hypnosis is used in treatment contexts and, recently, also as an investigative tool in cognitive neuroscience. Oakley and Halligan review the potential for hypnosis to provide insights into brain mechanisms involved in attention, motor control, pain perception, beliefs and volition and also to produce informative analogues of clinical conditions.
The possession of psychoactive drugs is subject to national and international regulations. In this Perspective article, Nuttet al. discuss how this situation makes it extremely difficult to obtain licences and investigate both the therapeutic potential and the potential dangers of psychoactive drugs.