Newsflash from 1976: neurons can release more than one neurotransmitter

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Newsflash from 1976: neurons can release more than one neurotransmitter

Neuroscience has a lot of mantras. I blame textbooks.

The concept of “one neurotransmitter per neuron” nicely streamlines any discussion of neuron types. The problem: it’s at best reflection of 80-year-old dogma, and a wild over-simplification. So the fact that evidence to the contrary is rarely found in textbooks should … not surprise you.

The 1930s gave us many things: instant coffee, trampolines, and most relevant to this post, Dale’s Principle, which states that, “the nature of the chemical function … is characteristic for each particular neurone, and unchangeable”. Although this assumption remains the default, co-release of neurotransmitters has been formally discussed (read: published about) since at least 1976. In the past decade, the idea that neurons can release more than one neurotransmitter has gained ever wider acceptance amongst neuroscientists, with the list of brain regions containing co-releasing neurons growing rapidly. 

But what does co-release look like at the level of synapses? And why is there an image from my PhD qualifying proposal in this post?

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Ask a Neuroscientist: On Sleep and Memory

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Ask a Neuroscientist: On Sleep and Memory

Is there any connection between memory and sleep?

Common beliefs are that a good night’s sleep will enhance recall of old and learning of new memories, prevent memories from decaying, and improve insight. But how much of these premises are actually true? Does the right amount of sleep really work miracles when it comes to learning and remembering information? And if so, how can we use these insights in school?

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How to diagnose anterograde amnesia

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How to diagnose anterograde amnesia

How do we tell when someone is experiencing anterograde amnesia?

Anterograde amnesia, refers to the ability to lay down new memories. Persons with anterograde amnesia may not perceive any symptoms, or they may be profoundly confused and disoriented. Kelly Zalocusky describes the symptoms of anterograde amnesia, and explains the differences between this particular type of memory deficit, and another common form, dementia. 

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Ask a Neuroscientist: Auditory Hallucinations

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Ask a Neuroscientist: Auditory Hallucinations

Why can we hear music that isn’t really there? Dr. Luke Parkitny discusses how this question gnaws at some fairly complex and incompletely understood neuroscience phenomena. He explains how: "At the core of auditory hallucinations lies a breakdown in how signals from the outside world are translated into experience. ... In a sense, the world of musical hallucinations is one that is dominated by memories and predictions that are untempered by reality."

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Remembering neuroscientist Allison Doupe

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Each week SINTN (the Stanford Institute for Neuro-Innovation and Translational Neuroscience) invites a prominent scientist to come to campus and share their most recent work with the Stanford community. For professors, and a few students each week, this is also an opportunity to chat casually with these scientists one-on-one. Our goal with this program is to open that experience up to the broader neuroscience community. We hope the conversation gives you some insight into the speaker’s personality and provides a platform for the kind of stories of science which are of interest to us but are often are left out of more formal papers or presentations... how did the scientist really get interested in a subject ? what are some of the more unexpected challenges they had to overcome? In essence, it’s a conversation between neuroscientists, for neuroscientists. This week’s speaker is Alison Doupe, a professor of psychiatry and physiology at the W.M. Keck Foundation Center for Integrative Neuroscience at UCSF.

This past Friday, the neuroscience community suffered a great loss with the passing of Allison Doupe, a professor of neuroscience at UCSF. Professor Doupe was our very first guest on the Neurotalk podcast, which I wanted to repost here as a small way of remembering and appreciating her life and contributions to science. You can also find a short write-up about Professor Doupe here: In Memoriam: Allison Doupe. 

 

 

Neurotalk S3E6 Elena Gracheva

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This week on Neurotalk, we chat with Elena Gracheva about working with bats, snakes and squirrels (oh my!), and also how thermoregulation studies might help us with organ transplants. All this and more! Elena Gracheva is an assistant professor of molecular and cellular physiology at the Yale University School of Medicine

This week on Neurotalk, we chat with Elena Gracheva about working with bats, snakes and squirrels (oh my!), and also how thermoregulation studies might help us with organ transplants. All this and more!

Elena Gracheva is an assistant professor of molecular and cellular physiology at the Yale University School of Medicine. 

"Have more fun" : Neurotalk S3E5 Randy Buckner

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This week on Neurotalk, we chat with Randy Bucker about the unsurprising surprising role of the prefrontal cortex in memory, the rapid expansion of association cortex in humans, and what to do with a quarter in an MRI machine. Dr. Buckner is a professor of psychology and neuroscience at Harvard University.

This week on Neurotalk, we chat with Randy Buckner about the unsurprising surprising role of the prefrontal cortex in memory, the rapid expansion of association cortex in humans, and what to do with a quarter in an MRI machine, and more. 

Dr. Buckner is a professor of psychology and neuroscience at Harvard University.

NeuroTalk S3E4 Highlight Reel

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Join us for this episode as we highlight unforgettable moments from NeuroTalk Seasons 1 and 2. Through short, memorable clips, we will explore the gripping stories of how our guests were inspired to become scientists, adventures studying different animal models, and gossip about different professors. We will also share the greatest moment in all of NeuroTalk (so far!).  Take a listen!

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