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Headshots of Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel.

How Nobel Prize-winning optogenetics has revolutionized neuroscience

The technique has enabled neuroscientists to target brain circuits and cells with unprecedented specificity, transforming the study of memory, interoception, brain disorders and reward, among other domains.

Alison Barth discovers how different neuron types contribute to cortical function

Barth uses learning tasks in mice as a tool to drive synaptic plasticity in the sensory cortex, hoping to unlock more general principles of how the cortex works.

By Paul Middlebrooks
5 August 2026 | 1 min read
Susumu Tonegawa.

In memoriam: Susumu Tonegawa, ‘intellectual giant’

He won the Nobel Prize for his work on immunology and then went on to define the field of learning and memory.

By Claudia López Lloreda
17 July 2026 | 6 min read
Research image showing dopamine level spikes.

Reward-learning algorithm hardwired into dopamine circuit

The finding bolsters the canonical model of reward prediction error, which has come under scrutiny in recent years.

By Natalia Mesa
5 June 2026 | 5 min read
Research image of locus coeruleus.

Brain’s blue spot possesses unexpected structure-function ties

The spatial arrangement of neurons in the locus coeruleus of mice corresponds with the cells’ targets across the brain, according to a new study.

By Holly Barker
25 May 2026 | 4 min read
Magnifying glass.

Researchers retract multisensory learning paper after failed replications

Even though one set of experiments did not hold up, the authors stand by the original conclusions of the work and plan to resubmit it as a new paper.

By Calli McMurray
31 March 2026 | 4 min read
Illustration of dopamine neurons.

This paper changed my life: Talia Lerner reflects on dopamine neuron diversity and the value of simple experiments

In a 2011 Neuron study, Stephan Lammel and his colleagues showed that dopamine neurons with different projections have different physiological properties. The work inspired Lerner to think about how to challenge widely held assumptions in the field.

By Talia Lerner
11 March 2026 | 6 min read
Research image of brain activity in infants.

Infant visual system categorizes common objects by 2 months of age

Brain activity patterns in the ventral visual cortex appear to distinguish images across 12 categories, including birds and trees, longitudinal functional MRI scans suggest.

By Helena Kudiabor
24 February 2026 | 5 min read
Mouse on a black background.

To persist, memories surf molecular waves from thalamus to cortex

During the later stages of learning, the mouse brain progressively activates transcriptional regulators that drive memory consolidation.

By Claudia López Lloreda
26 November 2025 | 4 min read
Research image of serotonin and dopamine expression in rats.

Sex hormone boosts female rats’ sensitivity to unexpected rewards

During the high-estradiol stages of their estrus cycle, female rats learn faster than they do during other stages—and than male rats overall—thanks to a boost in their dopaminergic response to reward, a new study suggests.

By Angie Voyles Askham
26 November 2025 | 5 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

Illustrated collage of a monkey profile, a gloved hand holding a vaccine syringe touching an outline of the United States with two primates sitting near it, a strand of DNA, and flags of the United States and China in the background.

U.S. national primate research centers face an uncertain future

The facilities were meant to last 100 years. Four decades shy of that mark, amid flatlined funds and mounting political pressure, their directors are trying to find a path forward.

By Calli McMurray
9 October 2026 | 12 min read
Reflections of primates in lab equipment (bottom left: Rhesus macaque, top left: Pig-tailed macaque, bottom right: Crab-eating macaque. top right: Marmoset

What if nonhuman primate research goes away?

As the U.S. government takes steps to stop using nonhuman primates in research, The Transmitter investigates what that shift could mean for neuroscience.

By The Transmitter
9 October 2026 | 2 min read
Illustration of primate hands interacting with objects of cognitive tests.

The neuroscience questions that need nonhuman primates

The Transmitter asked 17 neuroscientists what questions might remain unanswered if support for nonhuman primate research continues to decline.

By Alissa de Chassey
9 October 2026 | 10 min read