Volume 25 Issue 4, April 2022

Wang et al. used transcriptomic profiles of olfactory sensory neurons to determine the identity of their odorant receptors and map the location of their corresponding glomeruli on the olfactory bulb surface. The method enables high-throughput molecular mapping of the glomerular layout and opens up new venues to understand olfactory processing.

An efficient tool for neurite tracing has been developed that reconstructed the complete axons of 6,357 individual projection neurons in the mouse prefrontal cortex (PFC). The resulting single-neuron projectome analysis revealed comprehensive PFC neuron subtypes, topographic organization of PFC axon projections, modular structure within the PFC and correspondence with single-cell transcriptomes.

Human neuroscience methods (for example, electroencephalography, functional near-infrared spectroscopy and electrodermal response) are biased to exclude data from dark skin and coarse hair—traits common in Black people—and possibly people with racial trauma. We outline strategies to prevent a biased ‘unusable data crisis’.

Neely et al. investigated the regeneration of different oligodendrocytes after demyelination. They found that newly generated cells exhibit much more proficient remyelination than those that survive demyelination, with implications for MS.

Human brain structure changes throughout the lifespan. Brouwer et al. identified genetic variants that affect rates of brain growth and atrophy. The genes are linked to early brain development and neurodegeneration and suggest involvement of metabolic processes.

Eitan et al. discovered genetic variants in the 3′UTR for the gene encoding IL-18 receptor that protect against ALS. The variant 3′UTR destabilizes the mRNA and dampens microglia NF-κB signaling and neurotoxicity, thus emphasizing the value of noncoding genetic association studies.

By using exome sequencing and extremes of phenotype, McAllister et al. identify rare coding variants with clinical effect in Huntington’s disease. They show that FAN1 nuclease activity slows CAG expansion and is associated with later onset of HD.

Duy and Weise et al. combined human functional integrative genomics with mouse experimental biology to reveal a neuroprogenitor-based genetic subtype of human hydrocephalus with defective neurogenesis and altered brain–fluid biomechanics.

Girdhar et al. constructed chromosomal domains from prefrontal histone acetylation and methylation maps and discovered, in a large cohort of schizophrenia and bipolar brains, converging alignment by genetic risk, neuronal function and three-dimensional genomics.

Using single-cell RNA sequencing and spatial transcriptomics, Wang et al. recreate a map of glomerular locations in the mouse olfactory bulb. This work describes a spatial organization that may be used by the brain to assist in odor decoding.

The authors identify adult neurogenesis in individuals with epilepsy that declines with disease duration and epileptiform activity. Additionally, astrogenesis persists and immature astrocyte activity is inversely associated with neuronal hyperactivity.

This study reports structural variants (SVs) discovered using 1,760 short-read whole genomes and provides a catalog linking SVs to gene regulation by mapping cis-acting SV-xQTLs with mRNA expression, splicing, histone acetylation and protein in postmortem brain tissues.

The authors reconstructed the individual projectomes of 6,357 mouse prefrontal cortical projection neurons, revealing projectome-defined neuron subtypes and organizing principles of axon projections and correspondence with transcriptomes.