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Two new studies involving graph theoretical analysis of healthy brain connectivity show that in neurodegenerative diseases, pathology might spread across neural networks via transneuronal propagation.
Sexual rejection inDrosophila melanogasterhas been found to reduce activity in the neuropeptide F reward pathway, resulting in compensatory enhanced ethanol consumption.
A growing body of evidence suggests that many psychiatric illnesses are associated with impaired mitochondrial function. Manji and colleagues review evidence from studies in animal models and humans and discuss strategies for therapeutics aimed at enhancing mitochondrial function in patients with psychiatric disorders.
Local mRNA translation provides an efficient mechanism by which highly polarized cells such as neurons can respond to extrinsic signals. Holt and colleagues describe the growing evidence for the importance of local axonal mRNA translation and protein synthesis in various aspects of nervous system development and function.
Dysfunction of the circadian clock contributes to the age-associated decline of brain functions. Here, the authors examine the evidence for this link and the potential underlying molecular mechanisms such as the circadian control of brain metabolism and hormone secretion.
On the basis of data from brain network science, Bullmore and Sporns propose that brain organization is shaped by an economical trade-off between minimizing wiring cost and maximizing the efficiency of information transfer between neuronal populations and discuss this idea in the context of psychiatric and neurological disorders.
In recent decades, advances in technology have enabled the structure of the nervous system to be dissected in greater detail than ever before. In this Opinion article, Denk and colleagues outline why structural information is so important for our understanding of the function of neural circuits and describe new tools and approaches that are improving the structural information that we can acquire.
