Study reveals the specific changes that occur in the brains of mice exposed to cocaine. The findings shed new light on the role of dopamine in addiction, and provide new insight into dopamine transmission in the brain.
When T helper cells are absent in the brain, microglia remain suspended between the fetal and adult developmental state. Mice lacking brain T cells showed changes in behavior and defective synaptic pruning. The study reveals the critical role T cells play in the development of the brain.
An over-production of eIF4E impairs microglial cells, hampering their ability to effectively prune synapses and leading to autism-like behaviors in male mouse models of ASD.
Study implicates C4, an immune system gene, in schizophrenia pathogenesis.
White matter tracts show increasing maturation with age from the back to the front of the brain. The maturations begin as a child reaches 9-12 years of age. The maturity correlates with a critical and formative period of development.
Participating in exercise improved synaptic pruning in mouse models of autism. The study also found microglia dependant synaptic pruning is impaired by maternal inflammation, which has been previously connected to the development of ASD.
Researchers have directly observed excessive synaptic pruning in cells derived from people with schizophrenia.
A new study provides further evidence for immune system activation during pregnancy and disruptions in brain development. Many adult diseases, researchers say, may originate during fetal development.
A new electronic microscopy study has captured microglia perform their role in synaptic pruning.
Researchers investigate how synaptic pruning occurs during development in hopes of discovering how neurodevelopmental and psychiatric disorders occur.
Emory researchers report a drug approved in Japan for stroke, can help to stimulate neural pruning and help reduce habit driven behaviors in mice.
From consolidating memories to cleaning out toxins in the brain that accumulate during waking hours, researchers explore why sleep is so important and what happens when we don't get enough.
