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The Transmitter

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Your latest update from The Transmitter, an essential resource for the neuroscience community, dedicated to helping scientists at all career stages stay current and build connections. Read more: https://www.thetransmitter.org/

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1114 episodes

Maiken Nedergaard's power of disruption

The award-winning researcher’s discoveries have changed the way we think about the brain; that’s exactly what her critics dislike.

25m
Mar 28
Expanding 'little brain' may have powered dinosaur flight

The cerebellum swelled in size before flight evolved among modern birds’ dinosaur ancestors, according to a new comparison of fossilized skulls and living birds.

4m
Mar 25
How long-read sequencing will transform neuroscience

New technology that delivers much more than a simple DNA sequence could have a major impact on brain research, enabling researchers to study transcript diversity, imprinting and more.

6m
Mar 18
Incentivizing data-sharing in neuroscience: How about a little customer service?

To make data truly reusable, we need to invest in data curators, who help people enter the information into repositories.

7m
Mar 11
'Into the wild': Moving studies of memory and learning out of the lab

People with electrodes embedded deep in their brain are collaborating with a growing posse of plucky researchers to uncover the mysteries of real-world recall.

9m
Mar 04
Making cancer nervous

Nerve cells in the brain and throughout the body can turbocharge tumor growth — a finding that not only expands conventional ideas about the nervous system but points to novel therapeutic targets for a range of malignancies.

24m
Feb 26
Vast diversity of human brain cell types revealed in trove of new datasets

The collection offers a glimpse into differences in cell composition — across people and brain regions — that may shape neural function.

6m
Oct 31, 2023
Journal club: Why do some children lose their autism diagnosis?

More than one-third of a cohort of autistic toddlers no longer meet criteria for the condition at school age, according to a new study, but the findings may not generalize because the cohort is predominantly white and affluent.

5m
Oct 26, 2023
Uncertainty and excitement surround one company's cell therapy for epilepsy

After 10 years of work, Neurona may have the data to quiet its skeptics. But its ongoing clinical trial will be the ultimate test.

19m
Oct 24, 2023
Mutations in multipurpose gene deal dendrites a double whammy

The mutations disrupt protein translation as well as the cell’s skeleton, according to a new study.

4m
Oct 17, 2023
UBE3A's link to synaptic pruning bolstered by fly study

Increasing or reducing the levels of the UBE3A gene, which is associated with autism and autism-related syndromes, results in altered patterns of synaptic pruning — a process that snips away brain cell connections.

5m
Oct 12, 2023
Debate unfurls over inclusivity and authenticity in research involving minimally verbal autistic people

Autism researchers can’t agree on how far to go to validate the input they gather from minimally verbal autistic people who use certain communication devices.

11m
Oct 10, 2023
Common genetic variants shape the structure of the cortex

A genome-wide association study lays a foundation for deeper investigation of these variants in neurodevelopmental conditions.

5m
Oct 05, 2023
Six tips for postdoc success

Postdoctoral positions are relatively short, so starting out on the right foot can make all the difference. Researchers offer their advice for making that happen.

4m
Sep 28, 2023
Alterations in circuits characterize six neuropsychiatric conditions

The underlying regional neurobiology of the conditions may differ from person to person.

4m
Sep 26, 2023
Tablet-based tool to spot autism validated in two studies

The new tool could help clinicians diagnose autism in children younger than 3, the findings show.

5m
Sep 14, 2023
Neuronal deafness to stress may add to protein surplus in fragile X

A protective pathway that pauses protein synthesis is muted in a mouse model of fragile X syndrome, according to a new study.

3m
Sep 12, 2023
Social skills decline during adolescence for a sliver of autistic youth

Most children with the condition, however, gain communication and social abilities over time.

4m
Sep 07, 2023
Scammers threaten quality of research survey data

Jammed online surveys and invaded video calls are forcing researchers to rethink their outreach methods.

10m
Sep 05, 2023
Father's genes may drive sociability in male monkeys

The findings in rhesus macaque monkeys may provide clues to sex differences in the heredity of social behavior in people.

3m
Aug 31, 2023
Is excess brain fluid an early marker of autism?

Brain scans of hundreds of infants suggest that up to 80 percent of those with autism have unusual amounts of cerebrospinal fluid. Researchers are studying how this might contribute to the condition.

11m
Aug 29, 2023
Unwritten rules of tenure

Academics are not always aware of the standards — both explicit and implicit — that are used to assess them for promotion. We explore these expectations and more in this month’s issue of the Spectrum Launch newsletter.

3m
Aug 24, 2023
Co-occurring conditions in autistic teens increase with age

The most prevalent conditions include obesity, neurological disorders, anxiety and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

5m
Aug 22, 2023
Autism in Adulthood gets its first impact factor

The 4-year-old journal focuses on research that aims to improve the lives of autistic adults.

4m
Aug 17, 2023
Exclusive: Shake-up at top psychiatric institute following suicide in clinical trial

The New York State Psychiatric Institute in New York City is undergoing an audit and a change in leadership following a suicide that occurred during one of its clinical trials.

5m
Aug 15, 2023
Amy Wetherby: Impatient for progress

A speech-language pathologist by training, Wetherby has spent more than four decades developing tools to help identify and treat autism early; now her work has taken on a more personal sense of urgency.

12m
Aug 10, 2023
'Gain-of-function' mutation spawns autism traits

The mutation increases the activity of an autism-linked protein and leads to social difficulties and other behavior differences in mice.

5m
Aug 08, 2023
Change of heart and mind: Autism's ties to cardiac defects

Children with congenital heart disease have an increased likelihood of autism. Why?

13m
Aug 03, 2023
'A catalyst for change': NIH makes first call for research supporting minimally verbal autistic people

The request is energizing scientists investigating autistic people who largely don’t communicate with spoken words.

6m
Aug 01, 2023
Repurposed electronics lens spies neurons across entire mouse brain

When combined with tissue-inflation methods, the microscope can image axons without the need for tissue slicing, the researchers say.

5m
Jul 27, 2023