Research Highlights in 2011

A disinhibitory circuit in the mouse auditory cortex mediates fear conditioning to sounds.

Localized expression of different TRP channel isoforms determines behavioural outcomes to different stimuli.

HCN1 channels regulate the size and stability of grid and place cells

Mutations that cause fragile X syndrome and tuberous sclerosis shift the balance of mGluR5 signalling and synaptic protein synthesis in opposite directions.

Two new studies suggest mechanisms whereby variants of DISC1 affect neurodevelopment in the immature and adult mammalian brain.

A cellular reprogramming approach reveals that Timothy syndrome, which may be associated with symptoms of autism, is linked to impaired cortical neuron differentiation and abnormal catecholamine signalling.

Some of the functions attributed to striatal cholinergic neurons, such as spontaneous locomotor activity and rewarding response to cocaine, are actually mediated by the release of glutamate.

A new study demonstrates a method by which dopaminergic neurons can be reliably produced from stem cells, which when transplanted into damaged dopaminergic tissue, integrate into the host tissue to produce functional recovery.

A 'rich club' of interconnected brain regions is crucial for global brain network function.

The greatest differences in brain gene expression patterns are observed between brain regions and over time, rather than between sexes, ethnicities or individuals.

Numb-associated kinase activity is crucial for higher-order dendrite aborization.

Bursting activity in electrically coupled neurons induces long term depression at gap-junctional synapses.

The hippocampus is normally involved in, but is not required for, activation of neocortical memory traces.

Chronic stress exacerbates tauopathy, memory impairment and neurodegeneration in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease via a CRF1 receptor-dependent mechanism.

Neurogenesis in the subventricular zone is robust in infancy, with cells migrating to olfactory regions and also to the prefrontal cortex, but this declines sharply before the age of two.

Mice lackingCntnap2show abnormal neuronal migration, asynchronous firing patterns and have an autism-like phenotype that can be partially normalized by treatment with risperidone.

KIBRA may modulate learning and memory through the regulation of AMPA receptor trafficking and synaptic plasticity.

microRNA-34c interferes with memory consolidation in the mouse hippocampus and could be a novel target for the treatment of cognitive impairment.

Identification of the chemical cues that activate specific vomeronasal receptors sheds light on the organization of the vomeronasal system.

A new study reveals an unexpected role for Hedgehog signalling in thermal allodynia and hyperalgesia.