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SfN

·November 24, 2025·4 min read

Stress-Like Behaviors Traced to a Single ATP Circuit in the Brain

New research reveals that reduced ATP signaling in the hippocampus plays a causal role in both depression- and anxiety-like behaviors. In stressed male mice, ATP levels and the ATP-releasing protein connexin 43 were markedly lower.

This shows the outline of a head in psychedelic colors.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·November 24, 2025·4 min read

Psychedelic ‘Ego Death’ Tied to a Collapse in Alpha Brain Waves

A new study using DMT as a scientific tool reveals how psychedelics alter the brain’s alpha-wave dynamics and weaken our sense of self. The researchers found that DMT pushes the brain away from its usual “critical” balance between chaos and order, a state believed to be essential for coherent self-awareness over time.

Featured Neuroscience

·November 17, 2025·4 min read

Brain Splits Smell Into “What It Is” and “How It Feels”

New research shows that the brain separates “what an odor is” from “how it feels,” with each processed at distinct times. Shortly after an odor is presented, the brain activates a fast, objective signal that tracks molecular features and supports accurate odor discrimination.

Neuroscience

·November 10, 2025·3 min read

Why the Brain Struggles to Switch Between Learned Motor Skills

A new study shows that people often struggle to switch between familiar motor skills and newly learned movement patterns, leading to predictable errors. Volunteers tended to stick with the previous movement strategy even when instructed to switch, revealing how deeply motor habits persist.

This shows a baby looking at a screen and sound waves.

Featured Neuroscience

·November 10, 2025·4 min read

Babies’ Brains Tune In to Mom’s Voice and Shift How They See New Faces

New findings show that seven-month-old infants are finely tuned to their mothers’ voices, displaying stronger neural tracking than when hearing strangers. When a stranger’s voice accompanied an unfamiliar face, babies’ brains showed enhanced processing of that face, suggesting maternal speech shifts how infants allocate attention.

This shows a man holding a wine glass against a psychedelic backdrop.

Featured Neuroscience

·November 10, 2025·4 min read

Psychedelics Calm Stress Circuits to Reduce Alcohol Drinking

New research shows that psilocin, the active metabolite of the psychedelic psilocybin, may reduce alcohol consumption by calming stress-sensitive neurons in the central amygdala. In female mice exposed to long-term alcohol use, psilocin dampened the hyperactivity of these neurons, temporarily reducing drinking.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·November 3, 2025·4 min read

Brain Circuit Found to Shape Risk and Impulse Differently by Sex

Researchers exploring risky decision-making in rats found that a specific reward-related neural circuit influences impulsivity and risk-taking in complex ways that depend on timing and biological sex. Manipulating the circuit during the learning phase of a gambling task altered risky choices differently in males and females, while manipulation after learning affected motor impulsivity in both.

This shows a brain on a pillow and food.

Featured Neuroscience

·November 3, 2025·4 min read

Losing Sleep Might Make You Hungrier and Sleepier Later

New research using fruit flies reveals that sleep loss can trigger both increased eating and sleeping—if the deprivation leads to energy depletion. Flies that lost energy while sleep-deprived compensated with extra rest and food intake, while those deprived without losing energy showed no such rebound.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·October 27, 2025·4 min read

Imperfect Parenting: How Early Neglect Reshapes the Developing Brain

New research shows that even mild early-life adversity can disrupt development, attachment, and stress regulation in young mice. When mother mice had limited nesting material, their maternal care decreased, leading to higher stress hormones, slower growth, and anxiety-like behaviors in their pups.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·October 27, 2025·4 min read

Psychedelics May Rewire Memory Circuits Key to Mental Health

New research suggests that psychedelic drugs may work by strengthening specific brain connections linked to memory and cognition. Scientists found that under psychedelic exposure, neurons in the claustrum—a region dense with psychedelic-sensitive receptors—intensified their communication with the anterior cingulate cortex, a region involved in mood and psychiatric disorders.

Featured Neuroscience

·October 20, 2025·3 min read

Your Brain Navigates Mental Maps Differently Than Real Ones

When you picture a map in your mind, your brain uses different pathways than when you actually look at one. In a study on spatial attention, participants recalled the map of France and judged which city was closer to Paris.

This shows a brain and a castle in the clouds.

Featured Neuroscience

·October 20, 2025·4 min read

How the Brain Learns New Facts About Imaginary Worlds

Learning new information about the world—like details from a fantasy realm—engages brain regions distinct from those used to recall personal experiences. In a new study, participants learned fictional facts about imaginary civilizations and were later tested on what they remembered.

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SfN

Stress-Like Behaviors Traced to a Single ATP Circuit in the Brain

Psychedelic ‘Ego Death’ Tied to a Collapse in Alpha Brain Waves

Brain Splits Smell Into “What It Is” and “How It Feels”

Why the Brain Struggles to Switch Between Learned Motor Skills

Babies’ Brains Tune In to Mom’s Voice and Shift How They See New Faces

Psychedelics Calm Stress Circuits to Reduce Alcohol Drinking

Brain Circuit Found to Shape Risk and Impulse Differently by Sex

Losing Sleep Might Make You Hungrier and Sleepier Later

Imperfect Parenting: How Early Neglect Reshapes the Developing Brain

Psychedelics May Rewire Memory Circuits Key to Mental Health

Your Brain Navigates Mental Maps Differently Than Real Ones

How the Brain Learns New Facts About Imaginary Worlds

Smelling Fatty Foods in Pregnancy May Raise Obesity Risk in Children

AI Watches Pianists and Reconstructs Their Muscle Signals

Scientists Achieve Sustained HIV Control Without Lifelong Drugs

Insomnia Keeps the Brain Stuck in Daytime Mode

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