Peripheral nervous system

Recent articles

Photograph of Theanne Griffith sitting at a table with her hands interlocked over a stack of books, with one that she has published at the very top.

Crafting tales of science with Theanne Griffith

A lifelong passion for writing helped the neuroscientist land a book deal and publish 15 chapter books for early readers, covering topics ranging from what the cerebellum does to how a cake bakes.

By Angie Voyles Askham
26 August 2024 | 8 min read
Research image of a Pacinian corpuscle in a mouse.

Touch sensors detect subtle environmental vibrations, send information to auditory midbrain

Pacinian corpuscles sense high-frequency vibrations from meters away and send the information to a different circuit than other touch signals, according to a pair of new studies.

By Calli McMurray
20 August 2024 | 8 min read
Research image of tau proteins in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease.

Supersized version of Alzheimer’s protein avoids clumping in brain

“Big tau” may explain why some brain regions, such as the cerebellum and brainstem, are largely spared from neurodegeneration, even though tau is expressed throughout the nervous system.

By Charles Q. Choi
16 August 2024 | 6 min read
Research image of enteric neurons in zebrafish.

Opioid receptors may guide formation of gut nervous system in zebrafish

Fish lacking functional copies of the receptors have fewer enteric neurons than usual, but the findings await further validation.

By Olivia Gieger
26 June 2024 | 4 min read
Image of a series of red sticky notes protruding from a stack of white paper.

Faked results lead to retraction of high-profile cancer neuroscience study

An investigation found that the experiments required more animals than the scientists had purchased.

By Dalmeet Singh Chawla
18 June 2024 | 4 min read

The question of regeneration—an excerpt from ‘Periphery: How Your Nervous System Predicts and Protects Against Disease’

In his recent book, Moses Chao makes the case that the peripheral nervous system can warn of future illnesses.

By Moses V. Chao
26 April 2024 | 7 min read

Autism-linked genes shape touch processing through different mechanisms, at different times

Whereas some mice display hypersensitivity to touch only as adults, others respond that way from birth.

By Sarah DeWeerdt
21 March 2024 | 5 min read
Photograph of a gloved hand pointing to a computer screen that is displaying an image of a mouse brain.

Going deep: The Transmitter’s top long-form stories in 2023

Our favorite features and book excerpts from the past year delved into the neurobiology of cancer; problems with survey data; free will; mathematical minds; and questions around one startup’s quest to treat brain conditions with cell therapies.

By The Transmitter
26 December 2023 | 4 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

Illustration of an open journal featuring lines of text and small illustrations of eyes and mouths.

Anti-seizure medications in pregnancy; TBR1 gene; microglia

Here is a roundup of autism-related news and research spotted around the web for the week of 2 December.

By Jill Adams
3 December 2024 | 1 min read

Novel neurons upend ‘yin-yang’ model of hunger, satiety in brain

The new type of leptin-sensitive cells curb hunger quickly—adding to an increasingly complex picture of brain circuits that control feeding behaviors.

By Giorgia Guglielmi
3 December 2024 | 5 min read

Imagining the ultimate systems neuroscience paper

A growing body of papers on systems neuroscience and on giant simulations of neural circuits involves data beyond the point that anyone can reasonably understand end to end. Looking ahead, “paper-bots” could solve that problem.

By Mark Humphries
2 December 2024 | 8 min read