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Neuroinflammation triggers DNA damage and subsequent parthanatos-mediated neuron death. Inhibiting parthanatos in a mouse model of autoimmune inflammation is neuroprotective and reduces disease-associated paralysis.
The authors find that distinct radial glia subtypes generate and support midbrain dopaminergic neurons, revealing specialized function and lineage relationships among the diverse cell types that shape dopamine neuron development.
Cue–reward learning rate scales proportionally with the time between rewards. Consequently, learning over a fixed duration is independent of the number of trials. This challenges trial-based dopamine learning models but supports retrospective learning.
Verhaege et al. identify a conserved fibroblast barrier population at the base of the choroid plexus that compartmentalizes brain–CSF interfaces and is disrupted by inflammation, revealing a new site of central nervous system immune entry and barrier regulation.
Artificial intelligence applied to brain magnetic resonance imaging could transform neurological care. Here the authors present BrainIAC, a foundation model that can be used across diverse clinical tasks with limited training data.
The authors analytically determine how neuronal correlations and geometry collectively determine readout generalization across tasks and show how these geometric features follow distinct trajectories over the course of learning.
Using infant fMRI, the authors show that, by 2 months of age, representations in high-level visual cortex encode visual categories that align with deep neural networks, and lateral object-selective regions are later to develop.
The choroid plexus is a vital brain ventricular organ that produces cerebrospinal fluid. This study shows how developmental origins and local niches shape the specialization of choroid plexus macrophages, a key first line of immune defense for the brain.
The authors mapped spontaneous and choice activity across mouse prefrontal cortex. The activity maps aligned with intrinsic connectivity rather than anatomical subregions, suggesting that connectivity, not cytoarchitecture, organizes prefrontal function.
The lesion network mapping method links diverse brain lesions to similar functional brain networks, reflecting general brain organization rather than disorder-specific circuits.
Kukreja, Jeon et al. leverage spatial transcriptomics to map immune gene expression in the developing mouse brain, identifying key sex-specific changes in the context of maternal gut−immune perturbations.
We conducted a CRISPR screen to identify genes essential for neural differentiation. By integrating these findings with mouse neuroanatomy, we demonstrated its utility in discovering a new PEDS1-related neurodevelopmental disorder.
Zhu et al. find that aging causes region-specific myelin damage in the spinal cord, which is counteracted by enhanced TGFβ signaling in microglia, revealing a protective mechanism for healthy aging.
Even when neocortical neurons form in abnormal locations, they retain their identity and function, revealing that brain circuit formation can be guided by intrinsic developmental programs rather than physical position.
This paper describes the Simons Sleep Project, an open resource designed to accelerate research into the sleep and daily behaviors of autistic children using synchronized recordings from multiple wearable and nearable devices for >3,600 days and nights.
Bruijns et al. present a modeling tool that enables the tracking of learning dynamics across subjects to reveal how behaviors emerge and adapt. Applying the tool to a decision-making task in mice uncovers similarities and differences across individuals.
Distinct endocannabinoids signal to either astrocytes or neurons, evoking contrasting regulation of synaptic function. This works reveals the high degree of complexity of neuronal and astrocytic signaling in brain function.
Liu et al. report Chinese normative lifespan brain charts showing later neurodevelopmental milestones than those detected in Western cohorts. Individual deviations from these norms are valuable in assessing clinical risk and outcomes.
Fractal analysis of structural MRI captures the formation of brain shape in human newborns and outperforms other morphological measures in predicting infant age and genetic similarity, including the identification of twins from their brain data.
