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synaptic plasticity

·June 28, 2025·4 min read

Sleep Learning: How Synapses Strengthen While We Rest

New research reveals how synaptic connections in the cerebral cortex can strengthen during sleep, offering insight into how the brain continues learning even while we rest. Using computer simulations, researchers demonstrated that synaptic activity during sleep follows known "synaptic learning rules" when neural activity reaches specific thresholds.

Featured Neuroscience

·June 4, 2025·4 min read

Brain Uses Separate Synapses to Balance Learning and Stability

New research has overturned a long-held belief in neuroscience by showing that the brain uses separate synaptic transmission sites for spontaneous and evoked signaling. Traditionally thought to share the same origin, these two forms of communication actually emerge from distinct sites, each following its own developmental path.

Featured Neuroscience

·May 29, 2025·8 min read

Astrocytes May Hold the Key to Brain’s Vast Memory Capacity

New research proposes that astrocytes—long thought to be merely supportive cells—may significantly enhance the brain’s ability to store memories. Unlike neurons, astrocytes cannot fire electrical signals but can influence synaptic activity through calcium signaling and gliotransmitters.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·May 24, 2025·4 min read

Boosting Ketamine’s Antidepressant Effects to Last Two Months

Ketamine is a fast-acting antidepressant that can relieve symptoms of major depressive disorder (MDD) within hours, even in treatment-resistant cases. However, its effects typically last only a week, and frequent dosing poses risks like dissociation or addiction.

Featured Neuroscience

·May 20, 2025·5 min read

Brain’s Gatekeepers Remember Signals to Shape Long-Term Memory

Summary: A new study reveals how calcium ion channels in the brain don’t just relay signals—they remember them. Researchers discovered...

This shows a person running and a brain.

Featured Neuroscience

·May 18, 2025·4 min read

Light Exercise Boosts Memory via Dopamine and Noradrenaline

New research reveals that even light exercise, like jogging or yoga, activates key neurotransmitter systems that enhance memory by stimulating the hippocampus. In a rat model mimicking human exercise, scientists found that dopamine and noradrenaline levels increased in the hippocampus during low-intensity activity.

Featured Neuroscience

·May 9, 2025·6 min read

How Memories Take Shape at the Synapse Level

A groundbreaking new technique called EPSILON allows researchers to map the proteins involved in memory formation with unprecedented detail, providing a window into the molecular architecture of learning. This approach focuses on tracking AMPARs—key receptors that regulate synaptic strength—over time, illuminating how the brain encodes, strengthens, and stores memories.

This shows a person sitting and mushrooms.

Featured Neurology Neuroscience

·April 30, 2025·6 min read

Psilocybin Shows Promise for Parkinson’s Mood and Motor Symptoms

A new pilot study reveals that psilocybin—the compound found in psychedelic mushrooms—may significantly improve mood, cognition, and motor function in people with Parkinson’s disease. The compound was well tolerated, with only mild side effects, and benefits persisted for weeks after dosing. While the study was primarily designed to test safety, researchers observed meaningful and lasting improvements in multiple symptoms.

Featured Neuroscience

·April 23, 2025·4 min read

Psychedelic Sparks Long-Term Brain Plasticity

A single dose of the psychedelic compound 25CN-NBOH significantly improved cognitive flexibility in mice, with effects lasting up to three weeks post-treatment. Treated mice adapted more quickly in rule-switching tasks, indicating enhanced neuroplasticity in the prefrontal cortex.

Featured Neuroscience

·April 17, 2025·5 min read

Synapses Use Multiple Learning Rules to Encode New Information

New research reveals that individual neurons follow multiple learning rules simultaneously, challenging the long-held belief that synaptic plasticity operates uniformly throughout the brain. Using advanced two-photon imaging, scientists tracked changes in synapses during learning in mice, uncovering that different regions within a single neuron adapt using distinct plasticity mechanisms.

Autism Featured Neuroscience

·April 7, 2025·5 min read

Thalamus Identified As a Hub for Memory and Brain Plasticity

A new study reveals that the thalamus, long overshadowed by the cortex and hippocampus, plays a crucial role in shaping and updating brain connections. Researchers observed plasticity in thalamic neurons in response to visual experiences, independent of the cortex—an unexpected finding.

Featured Neuroscience

·April 1, 2025·5 min read

Brain Mapping Tool Reveals How Learning Rewires Synaptic Links

Researchers have developed DELTA, a powerful new imaging method that maps brain-wide synaptic changes during learning. By labeling synaptic proteins before and after behavioral training, scientists can now visualize where and how neural connections shift over time.

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synaptic plasticity

Sleep Learning: How Synapses Strengthen While We Rest

Brain Uses Separate Synapses to Balance Learning and Stability

Astrocytes May Hold the Key to Brain’s Vast Memory Capacity

Boosting Ketamine’s Antidepressant Effects to Last Two Months

Brain’s Gatekeepers Remember Signals to Shape Long-Term Memory

Light Exercise Boosts Memory via Dopamine and Noradrenaline

How Memories Take Shape at the Synapse Level

Psilocybin Shows Promise for Parkinson’s Mood and Motor Symptoms

Psychedelic Sparks Long-Term Brain Plasticity

Synapses Use Multiple Learning Rules to Encode New Information

Thalamus Identified As a Hub for Memory and Brain Plasticity

Brain Mapping Tool Reveals How Learning Rewires Synaptic Links

Blurry Beginnings Shape Brain’s Visual Pathways

Human Brains Keep Making Memory Neurons in Adulthood

Gene Therapy Restores Hearing in Those with Deafness

Forever Chemicals May Disrupt Brain Development

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