ScienceDaily: Mind & Brain News

Researchers have developed ultrasensitive nanoscale optical probes to monitor the bioelectric activity of neurons and other excitable cells. This novel readout technology could enable scientists to study how neural circuits function at an unprecedented scale by monitoring large numbers of individual neurons simultaneously. It could also lead to high-bandwidth brain-machine interfaces with dramatically enhanced precision and functionality.

Young adults who develop PTSD after a traumatic event (e.g., gun violence, sexual assault, military combat or natural disaster) may be more likely to experience a transient ischemic attack (TIA) or major stroke event by middle age. This nationwide study of more than 1.1 million adults showed that PTSD may be a potent risk factor for developing stroke at a young age.

Neurobiologists have made a series of discoveries about fruit fly fertility and smell. The findings solve a long-standing puzzle of whether and how courtship-promoting signals are amplified by olfactory receptor neurons, or ORNs. The researchers found that a channel known as PPK25 amplifies courtship signals in the ORNs of male flies. Biologically, PPK25 heightens males' sensitivity to their mates' odors at the age of peak fertility, thus promoting courtship when flies are most fertile.