The Transmitter

Whole-brain, bottom-up neuroscience: The time for it is now Applying new tools to entire brains, starting with C. elegans, offers the opportunity to uncover how molecules work together to generate neural physiology and how neurons work together to generate…

Applying new tools to entire brains, starting with C. elegans, offers the opportunity to uncover how molecules work together to generate neural physiology, and how neurons generate behavior, write @kordinglab.bsky.social and @eboyden3.bsky.social.

#neuroskyence

bit.ly/48EzEO8

FlyBase secures funding for year, but future still uncertain The FlyBase team’s fundraising efforts have proven successful in the short term, but restoration of its federal grant remains uncertain.

The FlyBase team’s fundraising efforts have proven successful in the short term, but restoration of its federal grant remains uncertain.

By @callimcflurry.bsky.social

#neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/community/fl...

The work with bats on barren, 7-acre Latham Island was Nachum Ulanovsky’s most complex undertaking yet.

By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social

#neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/neuroetholog...

Gene-activity map of developing brain reveals new clues about autism’s sex bias Boys and girls may be vulnerable to different genetic changes, which could help explain why the condition is more common in boys despite linked variants appearing more often in girls.

A large study of developing brains reveals genetic and molecular differences between males and females. The findings may help explain why neurodevelopmental conditions, including autism, occur at different rates in boys and girls.

By @giorgiag-sciwriter.bsky.social

bit.ly/4q9BsVH

Engrams in amygdala lean on astrocytes to solidify memories Disrupting the astrocyte-neuronal dynamic in mice destabilizes their memory of fear conditioning.

Astrocytes get less attention than their neuronal neighbors, partly because they’re harder to study. But the glial cells could help explain how memories take a more stable form after recall.

By @lauren-schneider.com

#neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/memory/engra...

Ant olfactory neurons reveal new gene regulation mechanism The mechanism enables each olfactory neuron in the ant to express exactly one out of hundreds of olfactory receptors.

Don't miss this piece in @thetransmitter.bsky.social by @vcallier.bsky.social on @danielkronauer.bsky.social's latest work! His lab discovered that a protective screen of spurious transcriptional activity enables each olfactory neuron to express exactly one out of hundreds of olfactory receptors.

Liftoff: New lab alerts Learn about early-career scientists starting their own labs.

Hello world 👋👋🏻👋🏼👋🏽👋🏾👋🏿
Quietly setting up my own lab in Sheffield.
Thank you to my funders @wellcometrust.bsky.social
Thank you to the @thetransmitter.bsky.social for featuring me today www.thetransmitter.org/liftoff-new-...

Newsletters and alerts The latest news and perspectives on the neuroscience topics that interest you most, direct to your inbox

This month’s newsletter features @annechurchland.bsky.social’s piece on reproducibility and Q&As with @izzynchristie.bsky.social and @neurojacob.bsky.social about their new labs. Plus job openings, a peer-review workshop and more. Sign up for the newsletter.
www.thetransmitter.org/newsletters-...

Liftoff: New lab alerts Learn about early-career scientists starting their own labs.

In this month’s “Liftoff,” @neurojacob.bsky.social talks about how there is no one “holy” method in neuroscience, and @izzynchristie.bsky.social reflects on her mentor’s advice and the value of persistence.

By @franciscorr25.bsky.social

#neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/liftoff-new-...

New findings solve “developmental biology’s most complicated problem”: how each olfactory neuron in the ant expresses exactly one out of hundreds of olfactory receptors.

By @vcallier.bsky.social

#neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/sensory-perc...

@shahabbakht.bsky.social @fahrenfort.bsky.social @timkietzmann.bsky.social @neuroai.bsky.social @jbrendanritchie.bsky.social @nogazs.bsky.social Justin Gardner, Sushrut Thorat, Christopher Pack, Brad Wyble.

Connecting neural activity, perception in the visual system Figuring out how the brain uses information from visual neurons may require new tools. I asked nine experts to weigh in.

Figuring out how the brain uses information from visual neurons may require new tools, writes @neurograce.bsky.social. Hear from 10 experts in the field.

#neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/the-big-pict...

@thetransmitter.bsky.social and @neuromatch.bsky.social have teamed up to learn more about what early-career neuroscientists need.

#neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/early-career...

New questions around motor neurons and plasticity A researcher’s theory hangs muscle degeneration on a broken neural circuit.

Results showed it was possible to “effectively rescue motor neuron function,” and George Mentis and his team think their results are coalescing into a theory, even if they don’t fully understand it yet.

By David Adam

#neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/neurodegener...

Boosting SCN2A expression reduces seizures in mice A modified form of CRISPR amps up expression of the gene—a strategy that could apply to other gene variations linked to autism.

A variant of CRISPR amps up expression of SCN2A, rescuing mice from seizures caused by haploinsufficiency.

By @cqchoi.com

www.thetransmitter.org/spectrum/boo...

Nikolay Kukushkin discusses his book, ‘One Hand Clapping: Unraveling the Mystery of the Human Mind’ He explains how meaning arises in the interactions found throughout nature and evolution, from molecules to minds.

In this episode, @braininspired.bsky.social talks with @niko-kukushkin.bsky.social about his new book, ‘One Hand Clapping: Unraveling the Mystery of the Human Mind.’

#neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/brain-inspir...

Autism researchers remain concerned about NIH data project An atypical funding mechanism, short timeline and opaque review process had generated concern over the quality of projects that would be selected.

While the newly awarded Autism Data Science Initiative projects look “outstanding,” concerns remain over the program’s abnormal and opaque review process.

By @callimcflurry.bsky.social

www.thetransmitter.org/spectrum/exc...

Exciting time to be in Cancer Neuroscience! Thank you to The Transmitter for featuring our lab's work.

Connectomics 2.0: Simulating the brain With a complete fly connectome in hand, researchers are taking the next step to model how brain circuits fuel function.

It took more than a decade to trace the 130,000 connections in a fruit fly's brain. With the map in hand, researchers are turning to the next step in connectomics: building simulations.

By @ldattaro.bsky.social

#neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/connectome/c...

This paper changed my life: Bradley Dickerson on how a 1940s fly neuroanatomy paper influences his research to this day This classic paper by zoologist John Pringle describes the haltere—a small structure in flies that plays a crucial role in flight control. It taught me to think about circuits and behavior as greater…

Bradley Dickerson on how a 1940s fly neuroanatomy paper influences his research to this day

#neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/this-paper-c...

Cross-species connectome comparison shows uneven olfactory circuit evolution in flies The findings start to reveal evolutionary changes that may have helped two species develop different olfactory preferences and adapt to their particular environments.

Two species of Drosophila with different odor preferences show the same number and type of cells in their olfactory circuits, but the way their interneurons connect to olfactory sensory neurons differs.

By @martajhill.bsky.social

#neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/connectome/c...

Local circuit loops within body control fly behavior, new ‘embodied’ connectome reveals The mapping, which traces how the central nervous system interacts with the rest of the body, challenges the idea that behavior control is centralized.

Sensory and effector neurons link up in specific body parts to produce behaviors while higher-order brain regions supervise from afar, according to a recent study mapping out the fly central nervous system.

By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social

#neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/connectome/l...

Take a look back at our previous coverage on the FlyWire and connectome

www.thetransmitter.org

How FlyWire is redefining Drosophila research, one year in Nine Drosophila researchers share how the connectome transformed the field and what additional new tools they would like to see.

To celebrate the first anniversary of the release of FlyWire, we asked nine neuroscientists to share how they are using connectome data in their research and what they hope is in store for the future of fly connectomics.

By @franciscorr25.bsky.social

#neuroskyence

bit.ly/3Wx5nt3

Neurons fuel lung tumors that have spread to brain Functional synapses between brain cells and cancer cells are key to the metastatic growth, according to new findings from two independent teams.

Neurons in the brain form functional connections with small-cell lung cancer cells that have spread there, fueling the growth of these brain metastases, two independent studies show.

By @sarahdeweerdt.bsky.social

#neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/neurobiology...

Meet the Autism Data Science Initiative grantees The projects plan to study gene-and-environment interactions in people, stem cells and organoids, as well as predictors of positive life outcomes.

The awarded projects plan to study gene-and-environment interactions in people, stem cells and organoids, as well as predictors of positive life outcomes in autistic youth and adults.

By @callimcflurry.bsky.social

www.thetransmitter.org/spectrum/mee...

Exclusive: Meet Richard Frye, who studies leucovorin for autism Frye has led two placebo-controlled trials of the folate supplement in autistic people; the first was suspended by regulators, and the other has yet to be published.

“It is rich that the NIH and Big Pharma want to take over leucovorin when they and the universities have fought my research for 20 years,” says Richard Frye.

By Brendan Borrell

www.thetransmitter.org/spectrum/exc...

Exclusive: The 23 studies the FDA based its expanded leucovorin label on The studies include 46 people, mostly toddlers, who have cerebral folate deficiency due to variants in a folate transporter.

The FDA wants to expand the use of leucovorin to treat autism traits, based on an analysis of the scientific research. @thetransmitter.bsky.social has obtained the list of 23 studies.

By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social

www.thetransmitter.org/spectrum/exc...

Autism researchers remain concerned about NIH data project An atypical funding mechanism, short timeline and opaque review process had generated concern over the quality of projects that would be selected.

“I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw that the list did not include multiple studies on why vaccines cause autism,” says Brian Lee about the newly awarded Autism Data Science Initiative projects.

By @callimcflurry.bsky.social

#neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/spectrum/exc...

NIH awarded 37 percent fewer neuroscience-related grants in 2025 than in past years But the agency has spent nearly its entire budget for this fiscal year, which ends tomorrow.

The NIH has spent nearly its entire budget for this fiscal year, but the number of new grants has dropped compared with past years.

By Natalia Mesa

#neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/funding/nih-...