Neurons that release dopamine (DA) in the hippocampus switch between tonic and phasic firing modes, but how these modes affect hippocampal function is not known. Rosen et al. now show that, depending ...

Researchers compared a pair of superficially similar motor neurons in fruit flies to examine how their differing use of the same genome produced distinctions in form and function. Figuring out how ...

Synaptic inhibition is based on both tonic and phasic release of the inhibitory transmitter γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA). Although phasic GABA release arises from Ca²⁻ -dependent exocytosis from neurons ...

Tomosyn's tight regulation of neurotransmitter release distinguishes functions of two neuron classes at the fly neuromuscular junction, incluiding their ability to engage in a form of plasticity The ...

Tonic endocannabinoid signaling is long-lasting and contrasts with the brief pulses characteristic of phasic signaling. Endocannabinoid signaling in general affects memory formation, learning, pain, ...

A new study by MIT neuroscientists into how seemingly similar neuronal subtypes drive locomotion in the fruit fly revealed an unexpected diversity as the brain's commands were relayed to muscle fibers ...

A new study by MIT neuroscientists into how seemingly similar neuronal subtypes drive locomotion in the fruit fly revealed an unexpected diversity as the brain's commands were relayed to muscle fibers ...

Figuring out how hundreds of different kinds of brain cells develop from their unique expression of thousands of genes promises to not only advance understanding of how the brain works in health, but ...