neurobiology

As newborn neurons make their way through the developing brain, they must squeeze through incredibly tight spaces to reach their final destinations. Researchers discovered that this physical journey routinely causes some of the most severe forms of DNA damage—double-strand breaks—yet the young brain has evolved an impressive ability to repair the damage almost immediately.

This systematic review examines structural, functional, neurochemical, and plasticity brain changes associated with social determinants of health in individuals with, or at risk for, schizophrenia-spectrum psychotic conditions.

Scientific Reports, Published online: 20 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41598-026-57691-z Differential expression of neuronal function genes follows a tissue-specific temporal dynamic during Deformed Wing Virus infection in honey bees

Cells have surface receptors that couple to proteins and other molecules to initiate or inhibit certain behaviors. Typically, the number of these receptors increases as the cell matures, but researchers have now identified that one receptor influences cell behavior much earlier than previously thought and appears to help trigger the cell differentiation process to form […]

Thomas M. Jessel, Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, explores the human brain, the sophisticated product of 500 million years of vertebrate evolution, assembled during just nine months of embryonic development. The functions encoded by its trillion nerve cells direct all human behavior. Yet the brain is a biological organ made from the same building blocks […]

Nature, Published online: 17 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41586-026-10648-8 The migration of neurons in developing cerebral and cerebellar cortices is accompanied by massive DNA double-strand breaks due to mechanostress during passage through narrow interstitial spaces.

IntroductionAmyloid-β (Aβ) accumulation is a central pathological feature of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and a major driver of disease progression. Recent evidence suggests that carbonyl stress associated with Aβ plays a critical role in AD pathology by promoting neuroinflammation and neuronal damage. In particular, methylglyoxal (MGO), a highly reactive carbonyl compound, contributes to activation …

Inside the egg, the chick can see nothing. It is folded tight against the shell, blind and deaf for most of its development, sealed off from the desert glare and the colony’s racket. And yet, somehow, in the final days before it breaks out, it is listening. A fast, high, stuttering song presses through the shell, repeated over and over by the parent crouched on top of New! Sign up for our email n…

Tiny lab-grown brain models and the particles they release may reveal hidden differences among Alzheimer’s patients. Personalized treatment remains one of the biggest challenges in Alzheimer’s disease. Two patients can receive the same medication for symptoms such as depression, anxiety, or agitation and experience very different outcomes, leaving doctors with few ways to predict who [...]

Johanna Gabriela Ottilie “Tilly” Edinger dedicated her career to studying ancient brains. It saved her life

Nature, Published online: 10 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41586-026-10661-x Structures of the distinct binding poses of three agonistic peptide toxins—bullet-ant-derived toxin δ-paraponeritoxin-Pc1a, cone snail ι-conotoxin RXIA and the globular β-scorpion toxin Cn2—on the human Nav1.6–β1 channel complex illustrate a diversity in binding poses and mechanisms of action.

Nature Communications, Published online: 08 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41467-026-74083-z Lewis et al. show that Lewy body ultrastructure in Parkinson’s disease differs between cell bodies and processes, with distinct fibrillar and membranous forms that provide new insight into how these structures may form in the human brain.

BackgroundPrenatal stress (PS) is a major risk factor for depression later in life, yet the cellular mechanisms linking early-life adversity to long-term affective vulnerability remain incompletely understood. Neuropeptide receptors have emerged as important modulators of stress-related psychopathology, but their roles in mitochondrial regulation within limbic circuits remain largely unexplored.M…

Depressive disorders are highly heterogeneous syndromes characterized not only by depressed mood but also by cognitive impairment, sleep–circadian rhythm disturbances, altered appetite, somatic discomfort, and metabolic or gastrointestinal comorbidities. In recent years, the microbiota–gut–brain axis (MGBA) has been increasingly recognized as an integrative biological framework linking abnormalit…

Nature Communications, Published online: 06 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41467-026-73731-8 Using tractography in monkeys, chimps and humans, the authors provide evidence for evolutionary changes in ancestral vocalization networks, leading to the unique ability to sequence speech sounds into words and sentences according to syntactic rules.

Scientific Reports, Published online: 06 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41598-026-55411-1 Gadd45α silencing alleviates cerebral ischemia–reperfusion injury by suppressing FOXO1 signaling

Nature Communications, Published online: 05 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41467-026-73858-8 In this study, the authors identify an avian pegivirus that is associated with brain inflammation in red-legged partridges and using experimental infection in different avian species they demonstrate viral neurotropism, revealing a potential role of pegiviruses in neurological disease.

Researchers discover specialized neurons and vellus-like hair in mice--hairs that are like vellus hairs, or peach fuzz, on humans--give rise to itchiness in response to touch