Neuropsychiatry Journals

Publication Date: 2010 Mar 10 PMID: 20216548
Authors: Nave, K. A.
Journal: Nat Rev Neurosci

In addition to their role in providing myelin for rapid impulse propagation, the glia that ensheath long axons are required for the maintenance of normal axon transport and long-term survival. This presumably ancestral function seems to be independent of myelin membrane wrapping. Here, I propose that ensheathing glia provide trophic support to axons that are metabolically isolated, and that myelin itself might cause such isolation. This glial support of axonal integrity may be relevant for a number of neurological and psychiatric diseases.

post to: CiteULike

Publication Date: 2010 Mar 10 PMID: 20216547
Authors: Rizzolatti, G. - Sinigaglia, C.
Journal: Nat Rev Neurosci

The parieto-frontal cortical circuit that is active during action observation is the circuit with mirror properties that has been most extensively studied. Yet, there remains controversy on its role in social cognition and its contribution to understanding the actions and intentions of other individuals. Recent studies in monkeys and humans have shed light on what the parieto-frontal cortical circuit encodes and its possible functional relevance for cognition. We conclude that, although there are several mechanisms through which one can understand the behaviour of other individuals, the parieto-frontal mechanism is the only one that allows an individual to understand the action of others 'from the inside' and gives the observer a first-person grasp of the motor goals and intentions of other individuals.

post to: CiteULike

Publication Date: 2010 Mar 10 PMID: 20216546
Authors: Johnson, V. E. - Stewart, W. - Smith, D. H.
Journal: Nat Rev Neurosci

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) has devastating acute effects and in many cases seems to initiate long-term neurodegeneration. Indeed, an epidemiological association between TBI and the development of Alzheimer's disease (AD) later in life has been demonstrated, and it has been shown that amyloid-beta (Abeta) plaques - one of the hallmarks of AD - may be found in patients within hours following TBI. Here, we explore the mechanistic underpinnings of the link between TBI and AD, focusing on the hypothesis that rapid Abeta plaque formation may result from the accumulation of amyloid precursor protein in damaged axons and a disturbed balance between Abeta genesis and catabolism following TBI.

post to: CiteULike

Publication Date: 2010 Mar 3 PMID: 20197790
Authors: Ariely, D. - Berns, G. S.
Journal: Nat Rev Neurosci

The application of neuroimaging methods to product marketing - neuromarketing - has recently gained considerable popularity. We propose that there are two main reasons for this trend. First, the possibility that neuroimaging will become cheaper and faster than other marketing methods; and second, the hope that neuroimaging will provide marketers with information that is not obtainable through conventional marketing methods. Although neuroimaging is unlikely to be cheaper than other tools in the near future, there is growing evidence that it may provide hidden information about the consumer experience. The most promising application of neuroimaging methods to marketing may come before a product is even released - when it is just an idea being developed.

post to: CiteULike

Publication Date: 2010 Feb 24 PMID: 20179712
Authors: Erzurumlu, R. S. - Murakami, Y. - Rijli, F. M.
Journal: Nat Rev Neurosci

The facial somatosensory map in the cortex is derived from facial representations that are first established at the brainstem level and then serially 'copied' at each stage of the somatosensory pathway. Recent studies have provided insights into the molecular mechanisms involved in the development of somatotopic maps of the face and whiskers in the trigeminal nuclei of the mouse brainstem. This work has revealed that early molecular regionalization and positional patterning of trigeminal ganglion and brainstem target neurons are established by homeodomain transcription factors, the expression of which is induced and maintained by signals from the brain and face. Such position-dependent information is fundamental in transforming the early spatial layout of sensory receptors into a topographic connectivity map that is conferred to higher brain levels.

post to: CiteULike

Publication Date: 2010 Mar PMID: 20168316
Authors: Walker, M. P. - Stickgold, R.
Journal: Nat Rev Neurosci



post to: CiteULike

Publication Date: 2010 Mar PMID: 20168314
Authors: Fukata, Y. - Fukata, M.
Journal: Nat Rev Neurosci

Protein palmitoylation, a classical and common lipid modification, regulates diverse aspects of neuronal protein trafficking and function. The reversible nature of palmitoylation provides a potential general mechanism for protein shuttling between intracellular compartments. The recent discovery of palmitoylating enzymes--a large DHHC (Asp-His-His-Cys) protein family--and the development of new proteomic and imaging methods have accelerated palmitoylation analysis. It is becoming clear that individual DHHC enzymes generate and maintain the specialized compartmentalization of substrates in polarized neurons. Here, we discuss the regulatory mechanisms for dynamic protein palmitoylation and the emerging roles of protein palmitoylation in various aspects of pathophysiology, including neuronal development and synaptic plasticity.

post to: CiteULike

Publication Date: 2010 Mar PMID: 20029439
Authors: Shaham, S.
Journal: Nat Rev Neurosci

Neuronal synapses are important microstructures that underlie complex cognitive capacities. Recent studies, primarily in Caenorhabditis elegans and Drosophila melanogaster, have revealed surprising parallels between these synapses and the 'chemosensory synapses' that reside at the tips of chemosensory cells that respond to environmental stimuli. Similarities in the structures, mechanisms of action and specific molecules found at these sites extend to the presynaptic, postsynaptic and glial entities composing both synapse types. In this article I propose that chemosensory synapses may serve as useful models of neuronal synapses, and consider the possibility that the two synapse types derive from a common ancestral structure.

post to: CiteULike

Publication Date: 2010 Mar PMID: 20029438
Authors: Frost, B. - Diamond, M. I.
Journal: Nat Rev Neurosci

Many non-infectious neurodegenerative diseases are associated with the accumulation of fibrillar proteins. These diseases all exhibit features that are reminiscent of those of prionopathies, including phenotypic diversity and the propagation of pathology. Furthermore, emerging studies of amyloid-beta, alpha-synuclein and tau--proteins implicated in common neurodegenerative diseases--suggest that they share key biophysical and biochemical characteristics with prions. Propagation of protein misfolding in these diseases may therefore occur through mechanisms similar to those that underlie prion pathogenesis. If this hypothesis is verified in vivo, it will suggest new therapeutic strategies to block propagation of protein misfolding throughout the brain.

post to: CiteULike

Publication Date: 2010 Mar PMID: 20145624
Authors: Kaupp, U. B.
Journal: Nat Rev Neurosci

Vertebrates and insects have evolved complex repertoires of chemosensory receptors to detect and distinguish odours. With a few exceptions, vertebrate chemosensory receptors belong to the family of G protein-coupled receptors that initiate a cascade of cellular signalling events and thereby electrically excite the neuron. Insect receptors, which are structurally and genetically unrelated to vertebrate receptors, are a complex of two distinct molecules that serves both as a receptor for the odorant and as an ion channel that is gated by binding of the odorant. Metabotropic signalling in vertebrates provides a rich panoply of positive and negative regulation, whereas ionotropic signalling in insects enhances processing speed.

post to: CiteULike

Publication Date: 2010 Mar PMID: 20145623
Authors: Deary, I. J. - Penke, L. - Johnson, W.
Journal: Nat Rev Neurosci

Neuroscience is contributing to an understanding of the biological bases of human intelligence differences. This work is principally being conducted along two empirical fronts: genetics--quantitative and molecular--and brain imaging. Quantitative genetic studies have established that there are additive genetic contributions to different aspects of cognitive ability--especially general intelligence--and how they change through the lifespan. Molecular genetic studies have yet to identify reliably reproducible contributions from individual genes. Structural and functional brain-imaging studies have identified differences in brain pathways, especially parieto-frontal pathways, that contribute to intelligence differences. There is also evidence that brain efficiency correlates positively with intelligence.

post to: CiteULike

Publication Date: 2010 Mar PMID: 20107441
Authors: Conti, L. - Cattaneo, E.
Journal: Nat Rev Neurosci

Neural stem cells (NSCs) can be experimentally derived or induced from different sources, and the NSC systems generated so far are promising tools for basic research and biomedical applications. However, no direct and thorough comparison of their biological and molecular properties or of their physiological relevance and possible relationship to endogenous NSCs has yet been carried out. Here we review the available information on different NSC systems and compare their properties. A better understanding of these systems will be crucial to control NSC fate and functional integration following transplantation and to make NSCs suitable for regenerative efforts following injury or disease.

post to: CiteULike