Brain and Cognitive Sciences

Key brain region was “recycled” as humans developed the ability to read

Part of the visual cortex dedicated to recognizing objects appears predisposed to identifying words and letters, a study finds.

August 4, 2020

Ila Fiete, a professor of brain and cognitive sciences at MIT, uses computational and mathematical techniques to study how the brain encodes information in ways that enable cognitive tasks such as learning, memory, and neural representation of our surroundings.

Ila Fiete studies how the brain performs complex computations

The MIT professor takes a mathematical approach to exploring memory, navigation, and other neural functions.

July 28, 2020

Looking into the black box

Recent advances give theoretical insight into why deep learning networks are successful.

July 27, 2020

These cross-sections of the thalamic reticular nucleus (TRN) show two distinct populations of neurons, labeled in purple and green. A team of researchers from MIT and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard has now mapped the TRN in unprecedented detail.

Mapping the brain’s sensory gatekeeper

New analysis could help uncover potential drug targets for attention deficits and sensory hypersensitivity.

July 22, 2020

MIT neuroscientists have linked the vulnerability of neurons in Hungtington's disease to the release of mitochondrial RNA and an associated immune system response. In this image, on the right are neurons from a Huntington's model mouse showing much more PKR (a marker of immune response to mitochondrial RNA) in green than neurons on the left, which are from a healthy mouse.

Neural vulnerability in Huntington’s disease tied to release of mitochondrial RNA

Unique survey of gene expression by cell type in humans and mice reveals several deficits affecting the most vulnerable neurons.

July 21, 2020

The left side shows a "tonic" neuron (stained green) growing to just one muscle on the right of the panel. In the next panel, one can see a "phasic" neuron (also stained green) connecting to more than one muscle.

Seemingly similar, two neurons show distinct styles as they interact with the same muscle partner

Diversity in how cells talk to the muscle they innervate reveal distinct propensities for change, or “plasticity.”

July 20, 2020

Within a microscope image of neurons from the hippocampus region of a rodent brain (left), a zoomed-in section (red square) of a neuron's dendrites shows spines (right) where many synaptic connections with other neurons reside.

Findings weaken notion that size equals strength for neural connections

Among study’s many surprises may be a new way to address Fragile X syndrome — by finding a “protein X.”

July 14, 2020

LEAH Knox program instructor Vanessa Cheung teaches lab techniques remotely.

LEAH Knox Scholars Program kicks off fourth summer

The science program for local high school students is remote this year, as MIT instructors create at-home lab experiences.

July 14, 2020

The system uses a pair of soft robotic grippers with high-resolution tactile sensors to successfully manipulate freely moving cables.

Letting robots manipulate cables

Robotic gripper with soft sensitive fingers developed at MIT can handle cables with unprecedented dexterity.

July 13, 2020

3D renderings of simulated multi-bolus delivery to various brain structures (striatum, amygdala, substantia nigra, and hippocampus) show one to four boluses.

COMMANDing drug delivery

A new computational method fine-tunes delivery of therapeutics to specific brain regions.

July 10, 2020

Newly tenured MIT science professors include: (top row, l-r) Ibrahim Cissé, Mehrdad Jazayeri, Lindley Winslow; (middle row, l-r) Adam Willard, Yogesh Surendranath, Mark Vogelsberger; (bottom row, l-r) Joshua McDermott, Jörn Dunkel, Yen-Jie Lee.

Nine MIT School of Science professors receive tenure for 2020

Professors earn tenure in the departments of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Chemistry, Mathematics, and Physics.

July 7, 2020

Through research trips to the remote Bolivian rainforest, researchers in the McDermott lab at the McGovern Institute for Brain Research has found that aspects of the perception of note combinations may be universal.

Universal musical harmony

Acoustic and biological constraints shape how we hear harmony across cultures.

July 1, 2020

Using a new kind of microscope that closely tracks every movement, researchers seeking to study how organisms coordinate movement behaviors compiled a compendium of 100 reference postures that encompass the range of typical C. elegans poses.

How worms move: Dopamine helps nematodes coordinate motor behaviors

To spy on worms for days on end, Picower Institute scientists invent a new open-source microscopy platform.

June 30, 2020

Photo shows the device the team developed. The tube at top is connected to a supply of the precursor material, sodium nitrite, which then passes through a channel in the fiber at the bottom and into the body, which also contains the electrodes to stimulate the release of nitric oxide. The electrodes are connected through the four-pin connector on the left.

Producing a gaseous messenger molecule inside the body, on demand

Method could shed light on nitric oxide’s role in the neural, circulatory, and immune systems.

June 29, 2020

Using a new calcium indicator that accumulates in the cell bodies of neurons (boxes at right), MIT neuroscientists are able to more accurately image neuron activity. Traditional calcium indicators (boxes at left) can generate crosstalk that blurs the images.

A focused approach to imaging neural activity in the brain

New molecule for imaging calcium in neurons reduces crosstalk from neighboring neurons.

June 26, 2020

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