Seizures affect a large proportion of the global population and occur due to abnormal neuronal activity in the brain. Unfortunately, widespread genetic and phenotypic heterogeneity contribute to insufficient treatment options. It is critical to identify the genetic underpinnings of how seizures occur to better understand seizure disorders and improve therapeutic development. We used the Drosophila melanogaster model to identify that IGF-II mRNA Binding Protein (Imp) is linked to the onset of this phenotype. Specific reduction of Imp in neurons causes seizures after mechanical stimulation. Importantly, gross motor behavior is unaffected, showing Imp loss does not affect general neuronal activity. Developmental loss of Imp is sufficient to cause seizures in adults, thus Imp-modulated neuron development affects mature neuronal function. Since Imp is an RNA-binding protein, we sought to identify the mRNA target that Imp regulates in neurons to ensure proper neuronal activity after mechanical stress. We find th...

In this workshop, hear about key strategies postdoctoral training programs can use to help their trainees launch and sustain a successful career. You’ll learn about specific programs and policies that can reduce barriers to and create more opportunities for successful transitions to independent research careers. The panel discussion is based on The National Academies report, The Next Generation of Biomedical and Behavioral Science Researchers: Breaking Through.

The World Health Organization has labeled obesity a global epidemic with major public health implications. In humans, obesity produces many well-known health challenges, but one lesser-known danger is it diminishes cognitive function. Obesity also predisposes individuals to develop serious cognitive disorders later in life, such as dementia and Alzheimer's disease. Neuroimaging studies have shown reduced brain volume in obese humans, particularly in areas that support cognitive function. Yet, the cellular processes underlying the association between obesity and neuronal structure remain elusive.

Science policy is shaped by the information made available to your representatives, so establishing relationships with them early on in their terms can help set the tone for what you accomplish together in the future. This webinar will provide the “how-to” for connecting with your congressional delegation.

Neuroscientists at all training and career stages have an important role to play in advocating for science. After SfN’s Capitol Hill Day in March 2018, four participants who are also volunteer leaders on SfN’s Trainee Advisory Committee (TAC) share how they think neuroscientists can influence political and public support for research and ultimately lead to more discoveries.

In humans and mice, white matter tracts traversing the brain contain long axons especially vulnerable to TBI. TBI causes a characteristic pattern in which degenerating axons are dispersed among many intact axons in white matter tracts.

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Being part of a student-run outreach initiative through your institution can expand your scientific community, grow your confidence, and develop your professional skillset. In addition, your outreach efforts can make a lasting impact on the way your local community thinks about science. Watch this workshop for advice on engaging your community — whether you’re a graduate student looking to start an initiative or a faculty member providing support. You’ll learn how student-led STEM and neuroscience initiatives build trust within the community and can serve as a form of peer mentoring, as well as how those initiatives can serve as a teaching tool for talking about science approachably, managing projects, and working with different teams. Using the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate-Led Initiatives and Activities (GLIA) committee as a model, panelists offer guidelines for establishing an organization structure, setting priorities, and evaluating what’s working and what’s not.

Childhood epilepsy is a common and devastating condition, for which many children still do not have adequate treatment. Some children with drug-resistant epilepsy require surgical excision of epileptogenic brain tissue for seizure control, affording the opportunity to study this tissue ex vivo to interrogate human epileptic neurons for potentially hyperexcitable perturbations in intrinsic electrophysiological properties. In this study, we characterized the diversity of layer L2/3 (L2/3) pyramidal neurons (PNs) in ex vivo brain slices from pediatric patients with epilepsy. We found a remarkable diversity in the firing properties of epileptic L2/3 PNs: five distinct sub-populations were identified. Additionally, we investigated whether the etiology of epilepsy influenced the intrinsic neuronal properties of L2/3 PNs when comparing tissue from patients with epilepsy due to malformations of cortical development (MCDs), other forms of epilepsy (OEs), or with deep-seated tumors. When comparing epileptic with con...

The primary motor cortex (M1) is strongly engaged by movement planning and execution. However, the role of M1 activity in voluntary grasping is still not completely understood. Here we analyze recordings of M1 neurons during the execution of a delayed reach-to-grasp task, where monkeys had to actively grasp an object with either a side or a precision grip, and then pull it with a low or high amount of force. Single cell and neural populations analyses showed that grip type was robustly and specifically encoded by a large population of neurons, while force level was weakly and transiently encoded within mixed-selective neurons that also encoded grip type. Notably, the grip type was stably decoded from motor cortical populations during the preparation and execution epochs of the task. Our results are consistent with the idea that planning and performing specific grasping movements are high-level skills that strongly engage M1 neurons, while the execution of pulling force might be prominently encoded at lower...