Questions tagged [neuroscience]
The study of the structure and function of the nervous system and its components.
1,268
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By what means do “nerve agent” compounds like VX spread through the human body so quickly?
It has been demonstrated that so-called nerve agents are able to incapacitate and kill a human in only minutes after exposure. One such substance, VX, only requires a few milligrams to contact the ...
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17 views
How does the presynaptic terminal stay at the postsynaptic neuron? [duplicate]
I wondered about this because the two neurons never actually touch. The synaptic cleft is very small, but if there is no connection the neurons might easily separate...
[in chemical synapses]
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1answer
35 views
Is there an 'opposite' neurotransmitter to dopamine?
Dopamine is a neurotransmitter (i.e. chemical) in the brain that gives us great feeling. From here:
Dopamine plays a role in how we feel pleasure. It's a big part of our unique human ability to ...
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29 views
Does estrogen have a more potent neural pruning effect in adolescence than testosterone?
I have read a study here which finds that female rats with their oestrogen inhibited had more neurones in a region of the visual cortex than intact female rats. To me, this suggests that estrogen may ...
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How does expansion of the skin via mitosis influence the density of its specialised nerve endings
I found a reddit question Do nerves & nerve endings expand with skin or does skin expansion causes loss of nerve density where a user references the study Assessment of Epidermal Nerve Fibers: A ...
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Merzenichs' experiment suggesting neuroplasticity
Nicholas carr says in his book 'The Shallows' :
Merzenich proceeds to the second stage of his experiment. Using a scalpel, he makes incisions in the hands of the animals, severing the sensory nerve. ...
2
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1answer
32 views
What is the number of synaptic vesicles in an axon terminal?
Is there any research as to the average number of synaptic vesicles per axon terminal in a human neuron's axon? On top of that, what percentage of those vesicles are used in a single action potential ...
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10 views
Is B27 necessary to culture neural stem cells?
I've seen many papers using B27 (e.g. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24694094/ & https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167488919300242) but it is really expensive and I was ...
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1answer
76 views
Why do women have less synapses / neurons / brain mass than men despite having the same average IQ?
I don't mean to cause offence or suggest than men and women shouldn't be of the same intelligence — that's not something I'm here to dispute. What I want to understand is how this is possible given ...
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1answer
22 views
Connectivity Relation between axon terminal synapses and dendrites
With regards to the synapses between axon terminals and dendrites, what is the relation between a given neuron's axon terminals and its neighbouring neurons' dendrites?
Does each axon synapse on only ...
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2answers
110 views
What makes the neurons of the auditory nerve with such high-speed?
What makes the neurons of the auditory nerve with such high-speed? So the most labile are the fibers of the auditory nerve, in which the frequency of the generation of PD reaches 1000 Hz, while for ...
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Are bFGF and/or EGF necessary in NSC expansion medium?
My understanding is that it isn't necessary since it appears that the idea behind a feeder layer is that the stem cells produce their own bFGF & EGF along with other growth factors. Yet I've still ...
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20 views
Brain centers vs areas (and how they relate to nuclei)
I'm looking for a reputable source that can provide succinct definitions differentiating the following terms in the central nervous system (CNS; particularly in the brain):
Area
Center
Nucleus
...
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56 views
Why is there a notch in the Na curve for an action potential?
Just out of curiosity, why does the Na curve dip down like in the figure below? I can't seem to find an explanation!
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20 views
Neanderthal minibrains vs human minibrains
Minibrains are lab-grown balls of neurons that have some (distant) semblance to a brain.
One study showed that cells with the genome replaced with Neanderthal genes produced mini-brains that were &...
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9 views
In-plane rotation of vectors of neural population responses
In this paper on fear conditioning, the following is given:
The n-dimensional population vector (activity of n neurons) evoked by the conditioned stimulus (CS+, auditory tone) before conditioning
The ...
2
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1answer
11 views
Comparing angles between population vectors of neural activity
I am reading this paper on fear conditioning, where the following is given:
The n-dimensional population vector (activity of n neurons) evoked by the conditioned stimulus (CS+, auditory tone) before ...
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51 views
How are thoughts biologicaly generated?
I want to know how thoughts are biologicaly generated. I know that electrical impulses can trigger formed memories in the brain but what I want to know is how the electrical impulse is generated in ...
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17 views
Why exactly does UMN lesion cause hypertonia?
The corticospinal tracts are excitatory in nature (Glutaminergic). So damage of the CST would mean less excitatory input to the LMN. By this logic, there should not be hypertonia. What is the ...
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0answers
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What are “inactive” cells during Ca2+ imaging of neurons?
I am reading this paper, and have found the following Figure (Extended Data Figure 5) where they show maps of active cells in the amygdala as imaged with a miniscope and GCaMP6m:
Legend:
Using the ...
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1answer
65 views
Can we decode memories?
Premise: I don't have a strong background in neuroscience or human biology, so I would ask you to answer like you would at a 5 years old child. I have done a couple of research on the web, as well as ...
2
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1answer
34 views
Are synaptic boutons always located on axons?
I am learning about the protein Synaptophysin and I have read that it is an integral membrane protein localised to synaptic vesicles. I have also read that it is a specific and sensitive marker for ...
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1answer
25 views
What is meant by the term synaptic targeting?
I am studying whether a protein interacts with the mitochondria in the synapses of neurons and I have come across the term "synaptic targeting". I am reading this paper and I have come ...
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Is there a word that describes symmetrical correlations between a damaged brain region and behavioral disability?
Specifically, I'm looking to address phenomena such as (1) how damage to only one side of the substantia nigra leads to Parkinson's symptoms on only one side of the body, or (2) retinotopy, how ...
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Can Inositol triphosphate (IP3)-mediated Calcium release on its own cause membrane depolarization?
This is about smooth muscles.
I know that the Voltage-operated Ca²+ channels on the smooth muscle membrane can be opened by membrane depolarization to threshold. I also know
that this depolarization ...
2
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1answer
69 views
Why is gyrification advantageous?
Standard 'Explanation':
I've seen countless neuroscience articles and experts explain that 'cortical gyrification is advantageous because it increases surface area which obviously increases your ...
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1answer
40 views
Would tinnitus be explained by perpetually-bent/opened hairs in the cochlea?
When I look around for what causes tinnitus and the like, the usual response is "Well, loud sounds and hearing damage" but I feel like that's a little plain and I am curious about the ...
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1answer
542 views
How does pressure travel through the cochlea exactly?
I cannot find this answer anywhere.
What I do know is that the stapes pounds on the round window of the cochlea and this causes the fluid to move inside the cochlea itself, which has the three ...
4
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1answer
33 views
Why do water molecules diffuse along axons direction?
I am studying tractography technique which aims to reconstruct bundles of axons in brain by following the diffusion direction of water. It is very interesting because it is non-invasive. It exploits ...
43
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3answers
14k views
Are humans more adapted to “light mode” or “dark mode”?
I was discussing with a colleague about using dark-mode vs. light mode and remembered an article arguing that humans vision is more adapted to light-mode rather than dark-mode:
I know that the trend “...
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23 views
Has anyone tried using functional near-infrared spectropathy to quantitively measure sodium concentrations in the brain?
Functional near-infrared spectropathy "fNIRS", is a biophysics/medical technique that uses the near-infrared part of the electromagnetic spectrum (around 680nm to 810nm in wavelength) to ...
3
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1answer
84 views
Looking for source: Biologic reactions of people saying “no” [closed]
Searching for this topic is incredibly tedious because the word "no" is the main point of interest and I always end up on sites saying how "saying no is good for your health" but I ...
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2answers
65 views
Distribution of hearing loss
Low-frequency sounds are more penetrating, damaging. Hearing damage caused by blasts typically occurs at frequencies around 2 - 8 kHz, while age-related hearing loss starts at the high frequencies. ...
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1answer
92 views
Can scientists “see” thought?
Touching an object activates a nerve - something that can be observed by scientists.
Scientists can also trace the resulting "signal" through your nerves to your brain. They may know which ...
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1answer
53 views
Why don't sodium Voltage Gated Channels open during Repolarization?
During Depolarization the Sodium VGC open when they receive the Threshold Stimulus. But when Repolarization occurs there comes a point when the cell interior has exactly the the same potential that it ...
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14 views
Is the neural area TEO distinct from the inferotemporal cortex?
I am finding conflicting literature with regards to the division of the inferior temporal (IT) cortex of the brain.
For some, I see that area TEO is equivalent to the posterior IT. Which would make ...
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0answers
24 views
Using coefficient of variation (CV) for GCaMP6 'synchronised episode' spikes, good idea or not?
Using GCaMP6 we have recorded fluorescence activity of kisspeptin neurons that exhibit synchronised pulsatile firing activity. I measured the intervals between each episode, which are quite variable. ...
2
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1answer
31 views
Are neurons capable of buffering a signal to sync up with other data?
The brain is the most complex thing that mankind discovered thus far in the universe. Super computers aren't able yet to outperform the human brain (running only on ~25 watt or so) on the domain of ...
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Biological Neural Network Modification to Unlearn Understandings [closed]
Lets assume that a person grows up thinking that religion X is true religion. So he builds up a profile in ones head and when notion of religion X appears the neurons that is related are fired, giving ...
4
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1answer
83 views
Do neurons that *don't* fire together unwire?
We all know the classic Hebbian theory, often phrased as "neurons that fire together wire together." I'm curious about how other connections get pruned when two neurons start to fire ...
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0answers
65 views
Could eidetic memory be related to glial cells?
I am a plasma physicist so I apologize in advance for my biology ignorance.
I recall from a neuropsychology class I took in college (used Lezak, Howieson, and Loring, 4th Edition) that there are ...
7
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3answers
1k views
Biological Neural Network Training for Babies [closed]
I am concerned by the fact that babies cant walk because the muscles in their limbs arent developed and tuned to give directional control, it takes years before babies gain mobility and dexterity. So ...
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0answers
25 views
How does the brain initiate the process of releasing the neurotransmitters?
Just reading up on the basics of neuroscience. Had a basic question on the signal generation. I understand the concepts of sodium, potassium pumps and how the action potential travels through the axon ...
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0answers
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Parts of Brain Active for Dreams | Right Hemisphere or Cortex
I found a research that states cortex is responsible for the contents of the dream. Contents could be people, place, objects etc.
The cortex is responsible for the content of dreams, including the ...
4
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1answer
54 views
Can potassium ions depolarise neuron membranes?
I am reading a journal paper about the cell adhesion molecule NCAM2 and I have come across the following statement:
To confirm the functionality of the reporters, neurons were time-lapse
recorded ...
1
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1answer
57 views
Is new idea equivalent to forming new synaptic connection?
We get new ideas quite frequently hence I am curious that is getting new idea equvant to formation of new synaptic connections? I am aware of neural plasticity but somehow doubt that it happens quite ...
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0answers
26 views
How reward / penalty is comprehended?
Technically brain is composed of billions of neurons for abstract computation of the world around us. I am bit confused that how does emotions such as fear/anger gets simulated by amygdala, which is ...
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40 views
Does The Sympathetic Nervous System Increase or Decrease Urination?
According to my book:
Sympathetic nervous system stimulation, leads to the release of Norepinephrine(Noradrenaline), priming the body for the "Fight or Flight" response.
It is also stated ...
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What are kinesiological factors? [duplicate]
I am in search of a term that describes movement, or practice of motor skills, as a factor of laterality. Would "kinesiological" be appropriate? I'll leave my two previous questions down ...
1
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1answer
39 views
Does GABA enhance or inhibit negative effects of glutamate? [closed]
A study on NCBI studied the correlation between a depressive mood and chronic pain. I researched this because today I noticed unusual emotional volatility as a result of 2 days of acute back pain ...
