Anterior zona incerta to ventral tegmental area circuit controls compulsive eating in a binge-eating-disorder mouse model

Chen et al. identify anterior zona incerta aZIT neurons as key drivers of compulsive binge eating. Intermittent high-fat-diet exposure increases GABAergic aZIT neuronal excitability, thus enhancing mesolimbic dopamine signaling through direct and indirect circuits and driving aversion-resistant compulsive binge eating. Nrsn2 marks the aZI neuronal population required for BED development.

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A miR-10a-5p-γCaMKII axis links periphery-to-brain signaling to cognitive vulnerability during female midlife

Qu et al. link emerging brain vulnerability during female midlife to molecular communication between peripheral organs and the brain. They trace this connection to miR-10a-5p-γCaMKII signaling, revealing a cross-organ dimension of cognitive aging.

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Temporal regulation of progenitor lineage progression and output by NFIs underlying human neocortical malformation

Zhang et al. show that NFIs act as evolutionarily conserved global temporal regulators and bidirectionally control the pace of RGP lineage progression and consequently progeny output during neocortical development, providing direct insights into NFI mutation-associated human brain malformations.

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The recipe for intelligence in natural and artificial systems

This review by Summerfield and Stachenfeld surveys how the dialog between neuroscience and AI research has evolved over the past decade. They highlight continued opportunities for synergy between these disciplines.

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Post-inhibitory rebound firing promotes hypothalamic activation during male mating in mice

Both inhibitory inputs to the mPOA and mPOA activation are required for male mating, but how inhibition contributes to neuronal activity during mounting remains unclear. Zhang et al. identify T-type calcium channel-mediated post-inhibitory rebound firing in the mPOA as a mechanism that converts inhibition into excitation to facilitate mount initiation.

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Brainstem sensing of multiple body signals during food consumption

Essner, Ruda, and colleagues use large-scale, multi-day calcium imaging in awake and anesthetized mice to characterize how brainstem lateral parabrachial neurons encode body signals. Largely distinct, spatially organized groups of neurons in this interoceptive hub preferentially respond to oral or post-ingestive feeding signals, locomotion, arousal, and/or feedback from cortex.

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Neural geometry in the human hippocampus enables generalization across spatial position and gaze

Chericoni et al. show that neurons in the human hippocampus track the positions of multiple agents in a simple pursuit-based video game. They identified place codes for each agent and for gaze. The co...

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Local sympathetic signal enables the immune evasion of hepatic stellate cells

Li et al. report a positive correlation between local sympathetic inputs and the severity of liver fibrosis in patients, a phenomenon that similarly occurs in a mouse disease model. Local sympathetic signals act via the α1B-adrenergic receptor to promote immune evasion of hepatic stellate cells from natural killer cells.

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Amygdalostriatal transition zone neurons encode sustained cue responses to guide defensive behaviors

We identify the amygdalostriatal transition zone (ASt) as a genetically distinct region that plays a previously unappreciated role in conditioned fear responses. We find that ASt neurons show sustained responses to shock-predictive cues and are both necessary and sufficient for the expression of defensive behaviors.

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Loss of interruption in the HTT CAG repeat is associated with somatic expansion and loss of medium spiny neurons in Huntington’s disease

Kay, Levesley, et al. show that the strongest genetic modifier of Huntington’s disease (HD), a loss of interruption in the causative HTT CAG repeat, increases somatic expansion in neurons that are selectively lost in the disease. Their findings suggest that genetic changes in disease-causing repeats can modify cell-type-specific pathology.

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A hypothalamic-vagal pathway mediates stress-induced feeding suppression and gastric dysfunction

Dai et al. identify stress-responsive neuropeptide Y receptor Y1-expressing neurons in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus that engage the dorsal vagal complex to suppress feeding and delay gastric emptying. Inhibiting this pathway alleviates these stress-induced responses, revealing a hypothalamic-brainstem circuit coordinating feeding and gastric function during acute stress.

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Cell-type-specific disruption of nucleus accumbens social representations in a mouse model of autism

Zhao et al. show that social information is represented in the nucleus accumbens and becomes unstable in a mouse model of autism. They further identify distinct contributions of D1- and D2-medium spiny neurons to social behavior and show that targeting these circuits can ameliorate social deficits.

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Voltage imaging: A practical guide

Cohen and Gong provide a practical guide to voltage imaging, covering voltage indicators, gene expression strategies, instrumentation, instrument control software, data analysis algorithms, and experimental protocols. Signal-to-noise ratios and sources of artifacts are discussed in detail.

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Mapping cell-type- and age-dependent neuronal vulnerability through genome-wide in vivo CRISPRi screens in the mouse brain

Lin et al. developed an in vivo CRISPRi screening platform to map gene function directly in the mouse brain. Their genome-wide survey across neuronal types and ages reveals cell-type-specific and age-dependent vulnerabilities that are invisible to cell-based models, offering a functional view of the brain beyond gene expression atlases.

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Neural geometry in the human hippocampus enables generalization across spatial position and gaze

Chericoni et al. show that neurons in the human hippocampus track the positions of multiple agents in a simple pursuit-based video game. They identified place codes for each agent and for gaze. The codes were systematically related in a way that allowed generalization while preserving the ability to differentiate.

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Inhibitory circuits restrain adult glioma progression by suppressing calcium-driven oncogenic programs

Uesaka et al. show that inhibitory brain circuits can suppress adult glioma growth by limiting tumor calcium signaling and downstream growth programs. The study reframes glioma progression as a balance between growth-promoting and growth-restraining neural inputs, suggesting that strengthening inhibitory tone may help control brain tumors.

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A descending glycinergic circuit drives opioid-resistant mechanical pain via spinal GluN3A excitatory glycine receptors in mice

Dong et al. identify a descending brainstem-to-spinal-cord circuit that drives widespread, opioid-resistant pain in mice. They show that glycine from this pathway acts as an excitatory signal by activating a specific type of NMDA receptor in the spinal cord, revealing a previously unknown mechanism for refractory tactile pain.

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Astrocytes directly regulate brain circuits involved in memory consolidation

The findings suggest that astrocytes are much more than support cells for neurons – they also seem to directly regulate brain function.

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Neuron by Cell Press | LinkedIn

Neuron by Cell Press | 65 followers on LinkedIn. Neuron, published by Cell Press, is one of the leading and most influential journals in neuroscience and a premier intellectual forum for the scientifi...

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A bifunctional optical reporter for tracking estrogen response dynamics in neurons

Cara, Guthman, et al. present neuro-seeER, an optical tool for monitoring how neurons respond dynamically to the hormone estrogen. By tracking these dynamics across the reproductive cycle in female mice, they reveal that individual neurons and different animals respond differently to hormone signals, thereby uncovering unexpected complexity in brain-hormone interactions.

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Ingestion-activated CGRP neurons control learning but not satiety

Jarvie et al. identify two populations of parabrachial CGRP neurons, one that responds rapidly to appetitive signals during ingestion and the other that responds slowly to aversive visceral cues. The rapid CGRP neuron activation during ingestion is shown to be required for post-ingestive learning but not, as previously believed, satiety.

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An inherited hypomorphic variant in PIEZO2 reveals structural features of mechanotransduction

Nickolls et al. identify a clinical variant in PIEZO2 that impairs touch sensation and body awareness. By showing how this variant prevents PIEZO channels from opening and deforming under pressure, the study adds to our understanding of how specific PIEZO protein domains contribute to force-induced conformational changes.

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Two prefrontal-subcortical circuits estimate controllability and reflect its impact on learning

Using fMRI and TMS, Liu et al. showed how the human brain learns whether outcomes are under one’s control. A circuit linking dorsomedial prefrontal cortex and dorsal raphe nucleus supports controllability estimates, while control estimates subsequently reshape teaching signals that guide learning.

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