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A map of neural signals and circuits traces the logic of brain computation

A large consortium of scientists adds functional data to neuronal wiring maps, seeking to crack the computational circuitry of the mouse brain.
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  1. Mariela D. Petkova

    1. Mariela D. Petkova is in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA.

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  2. Gregor F. P. Schuhknecht

    1. Gregor F. P. Schuhknecht is in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA.

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Millions of years of evolution have endowed animals with cognitive abilities that can surpass modern artificial intelligence. Machine learning requires extensive data sets for training, whereas a mouse that explores an unfamiliar maze and randomly stumbles upon a reward can remember the location of the prize after a handful of successful journeys1. To shine a light on the computational circuitry of the mouse brain, researchers from institutes across the United States have led the collaborative MICrONS (Machine Intelligence from Cortical Networks) project and created the most comprehensive data set ever assembled that links mammalian brain structure to neuronal function in an active animal2.

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Nature 640, 319-321 (2025)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-025-00908-4

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Competing Interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

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