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Genetics

This shows DNA and other cellular factors associated with ASD.

·December 10, 2025·9 min read

Many Autism Cases May Be Preventable

A new study proposes that autism arises when genetic vulnerability, an early environmental trigger, and prolonged activation of the cellular stress response align during critical developmental windows. This “three-hit” metabolic model reframes autism as a disorder of disrupted cellular communication and energy metabolism rather than an inevitable genetic outcome.

Featured Genetics Neuroscience

·December 9, 2025·7 min read

Key Brain Protein Controls How We Learn Reward Cues

Changing levels of the brain protein KCC2 can alter how reward associations form, reshaping the learning process that links cues to outcomes. Reduced KCC2 activity increased dopamine neuron firing and strengthened new cue–reward connections, offering insight into how addictions and maladaptive habits develop.

Featured Genetics Neurology Neuroscience

·December 6, 2025·7 min read

Blocking a Key Protein Greatly Reduces Alzheimer’s Damage

New findings show that removing Centaurin-α1, a protein elevated in Alzheimer’s disease, significantly reduces inflammation, plaque buildup, and cognitive deficits in a well-established mouse model. Eliminating this protein normalized several brain pathways, protected neural connections in the hippocampus, and improved spatial learning.

Featured Genetics Neuroscience

·December 5, 2025·5 min read

Astrocytes Found to Drive Key Brain Changes in Nicotine Addiction

New research shows that astrocytes play an active role in nicotine-induced brain changes, challenging the long-held neuron-centered view of addiction. Nicotine stimulates receptors on astrocytes, triggering signaling cascades that boost glutamine synthetase activity and amplify glutamate-related pathways.

This shows a child and parent walking in a "forest" of DNA.

Featured Genetics Neurology Neuroscience

·December 4, 2025·7 min read

Mutation in Key Enzyme Triggers Ferroptosis and Childhood Dementia

Researchers have identified how a single mutation in the GPX4 enzyme causes neurons to undergo ferroptosis, leading to severe early-onset dementia. The study provides the first molecular evidence that ferroptosis can directly drive neurodegeneration in the human brain.

This shows a child reaching to touch neurons.

Featured Genetics Neuroscience

·December 3, 2025·6 min read

Early-Life Stimulation Switches On a Molecular Code for Memory

New research shows that childhood environments shape lifelong memory through a single molecular switch that controls learning-related gene activity. In animal models, enriched early experiences activated this switch, strengthening neural circuits involved in memory and cognition, while deprived environments suppressed it.

Featured Genetics Neuroscience

·December 3, 2025·7 min read

Hidden Brain Layers Revealed in Key Memory Center

Scientists have identified a previously unseen layered organization inside one of the brain’s most important memory hubs. The CA1 region of the hippocampus was found to contain four distinct bands of neuron types, each defined by unique genetic signatures that shift subtly across the structure.

Featured Genetics Neuroscience Psychology

·November 25, 2025·7 min read

Genes Behind Dog Behaviors Also Shape Human Emotions

Researchers analyzed the genomes and behavioral profiles of 1,300 golden retrievers and found that several behavioral traits—such as trainability, fear of strangers, and aggression toward other dogs—are shaped by specific genetic variants. Remarkably, a dozen of these same genes also influence emotional and cognitive traits in humans, revealing shared biological roots across species.

Featured Genetics Neurology Neuroscience

·November 25, 2025·5 min read

Gene Discovery Reveals Hidden Risk Pathway for Delirium

A massive genetic analysis of over one million people has revealed that APOE, long known for its role in Alzheimer’s disease, also independently increases a person’s risk of delirium. The researchers found that this effect cannot be explained solely by dementia, showing that APOE directly contributes to delirium vulnerability in otherwise cognitively healthy individuals.

Featured Genetics Neuroscience Psychology

·November 24, 2025·9 min read

Genetics Point to a New Type of Suicide Risk

New research shows that many people who die by suicide without prior suicidal thoughts or behaviors are not simply “missed cases”—they may have an entirely different underlying risk profile. Genetic analyses of more than 2,700 deaths revealed that these individuals carry fewer genetic risk factors for major psychiatric conditions compared to those with known suicidality.

Featured Genetics Neurology Neuroscience

·November 21, 2025·6 min read

Genetics Plus Heart Health Markers Sharpen Dementia Risk

New research shows that dementia risk is best predicted by combining genetic vulnerability with cardiovascular disease markers, revealing a more precise and actionable way to identify who is most likely to develop the condition. While genes such as APOE4 and family history contribute heavily, equally powerful are modifiable factors like hypertension, obesity, and diabetes.

Featured Genetics Neuroscience Visual Neuroscience

·November 18, 2025·6 min read

Night-Vision Disorders Share a Surprising Cellular Trigger

New research reveals that the loss of a single ion channel, TRPM1, is enough to produce persistent rhythmic oscillations in the retina, a feature observed in both congenital stationary night blindness and retinitis pigmentosa. By comparing Trpm1 and mGluR6 knockout mice, researchers identified a disrupted circuit between rod bipolar cells and AII amacrine cells that produces anti-phase oscillations interfering with visual signaling.