Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain
the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in
Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles
and JavaScript.
Cannabinoids promote food intake in mice by activating pro-opiomelanocortin neurons in the hypothalamus and selectively increasing β-endorphin release.
Chronic morphine treatment reduces brain-derived neurotrophic factor (Bdnf) expression by influencing various epigenetic mechanisms, including histone modification and reduced transcription factor binding to Bdnf.
The GABA receptor subunit GABAB1inhibits sensitization of the heat-activated transient receptor potential cation channel TRPV1 in peripheral nociceptors.
Per1b-mutant zebrafish exhibit symptoms that mimic those of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and can be used to provide insight into the pathogenic disease mechanisms.
In this Review, Egeland, Zunszain and Pariante examine the complicated relationship between the stress response and adult neurogenesis, which can regulate each other. They discuss the molecular pathways that may underlie this interaction in the dentate gyrus.
Several psychiatric disorders have been linked to changes in microRNA levels in the circulation and brain. In this Review, Issler and Chen discuss approaches for studying the role of these non-coding RNAs in disease and highlight examples of their potential pathophysiological contributions to psychiatric disorders.
Positive effects of mindfulness-based practices on health and cognitive performance have been reported; however, we know little about the underlying mechanisms. Tang and colleagues outline the challenges of meditation research and consider emerging information about the effects of mindfulness meditation on brain structure and function.
How fast and precise is astrocytic Ca2+ signalling? In this Opinion article, Dmitri Rusakov discusses how overcoming difficulties in monitoring and interpreting astrocyte Ca2+signalling — and the acquisition of a fuller understanding — requires a leap in our experimental and analytical strategies.
Reading enables language to be perceived through vision. In this Opinion article, Dehaene and colleagues discuss the changes in brain function, brain structures and behaviour that occur when learning how to read, and how these changes may reflect more-efficient connections among visual and language-processing centres.
