McGovern Institute

(Left to right) Caroline Robertson and Nancy Kanwisher.

Study finds altered brain chemistry in people with autism

Neuroscientists link autism to reduced activity of key neurotransmitter in human brain.

December 17, 2015

“One of the core debates surrounding music is to what extent it has dedicated mechanisms in the brain and to what extent it piggybacks off of mechanisms that primarily serve other functions,” Josh McDermott says.

Music in the brain

For the first time, scientists identify a neural population highly selective for music.

December 16, 2015

The gene Shank3 has been linked to both autism and schizophrenia. Researchers found that two different mutations of the Shank3 gene produce some distinct molecular and behavioral effects in mice.

How one gene contributes to two diseases

Neuroscientists unravel Shank3 gene’s role in autism and schizophrenia.

December 10, 2015

The researchers used structural knowledge of Cas9 to guide engineering of a highly specific genome-editing tool.

MIT, Broad scientists overcome key CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing hurdle

Team re-engineers system to dramatically cut down on editing errors; improvements advance future human applications.

December 1, 2015

When zebra finches first begin to sing, they produce only nonsense syllables similar to the babble of human babies. Now researchers at MIT have uncovered the brain activity that supports the birds’ song-learning process.

Singing in the brain

Neuroscientists identify neural patterns birds use to learn their songs.

November 30, 2015

(Left to right) Edward Boyden, Larry Guth, and Liang Fu

Edward Boyden wins 2016 Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences

MIT physicists share prize in fundamental physics; Larry Guth and Liang Fu win New Horizons Prizes.

November 9, 2015

Shown here is a ferritin protein complex. MIT researchers are using protein engineering the boost the magnetic characteristics of the protein to track cells.

Engineers design magnetic cell sensors

New protein nanoparticles allow scientists to track cells and interactions within them.

November 2, 2015

To locate objects, brain relies on memory

Neuroscientists identify brain region that holds objects in memory until they are spotted.

October 29, 2015

How the brain keeps time

Study reveals neuron-firing patterns that underlie time measurement.

October 8, 2015

Researchers have found that neuron firing patterns in the inferior temporal (IT) cortex, highlighted here, correlate strongly with success in object-recognition tasks.

How the brain recognizes objects

Neuroscientists find evidence that the brain’s inferotemporal cortex can identify objects.

October 5, 2015

Flickr users tagged a photograph similar to this one
“architecture," “tourism," and "travel.” A machine-learning system that
used a novel training strategy developed at MIT proposed “sky," “roof,”
and “building”; when it used a conventional training strategy, it came up
with “art," “sky,” and "beach.”

More-flexible machine learning

Giving machine-learning systems “partial credit” during training improves image classification.

October 1, 2015

CRISPR systems are found in many different bacterial species, and have evolved to protect host cells against infection by viruses.

New system for human genome editing has potential to increase power and precision of DNA engineering

CRISPR-Cpf1 offers simpler approach to editing DNA; technology could disrupt scientific and commercial landscape.

September 25, 2015

This illustration shows a brain with the amygdala highlighted in the center. In the background are models of the serotonin molecule.

Possible new weapon against PTSD

Blocking a newly identified memory pathway could prevent the disorder.

August 31, 2015

Young brains can take on new functions

Visual cortex of blind children can be remodeled to process language.

August 27, 2015

Wired for habit

Researchers discover neurons in the brain that weigh costs and benefits to drive formation of habits.

August 19, 2015

MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology

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