Catálogo de publicaciones - revistas

<jats:title>Reversing Autism in Mice</jats:title> <jats:p> Autism comprises a heterogeneous group of neurodevelopmental disorders characterized by defects in communication and social inter action. A group of nonsyndromic forms of autism is associated with mutations in the neuroligin genes, which encode postsynaptic adhesion molecules. Using a reversible knockout approach, <jats:bold> Baudouin <jats:italic>et al.</jats:italic> </jats:bold> (p. <jats:related-article xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" ext-link-type="doi" page="128" related-article-type="in-this-issue" vol="338" xlink:href="10.1126/science.1224159">128</jats:related-article> , published online 13 September) investigated the in vivo functions of neuroligin-3 in the mouse cerebellum. Mutant mice showed a major defect in metabotropic glutamate receptor–dependent, long-term potentiation; disrupted heterosynaptic competition; and ectopic synapse formation in vivo. These synaptic defects could be rescued by reactivation of the neuroligin gene in the adult. </jats:p>

<jats:title>Salience, Values, and Decisions</jats:title> <jats:p> How does the brain make value-based decisions? There are two major competing models: the goodsbased model and the action-based model of value. <jats:bold>Leathers and Olson</jats:bold> (p. <jats:related-article xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" ext-link-type="doi" page="132" related-article-type="in-this-issue" vol="338" xlink:href="10.1126/science.1226405">132</jats:related-article> ) designed a critical experiment to decide between these two views. In the monkey brain, lateral intraparietal neurons responded strongly to stimuli predicting both large rewards and large penalties, encoding the salience of the stimulus rather than reward value, which refutes both models. </jats:p>

<jats:title>Changing Your Belief</jats:title> <jats:p> The ability to display behavioral flexibility depends on an internal representation of the environment—a framework of beliefs that can be adjusted on the basis of experience. Recording from multiple electrodes in the rat medial prefrontal cortex, <jats:bold> Karlsson <jats:italic>et al.</jats:italic> </jats:bold> (p. <jats:related-article xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" ext-link-type="doi" page="135" related-article-type="in-this-issue" vol="338" xlink:href="10.1126/science.1226518">135</jats:related-article> ) investigated how ensembles of neurons changed their activity during the performance of a task in which the animal had to update its knowledge of reward contingencies. The results suggest that changes in perceived action-outcome contingencies were associated with abrupt switches in neuronal representations in the rat medial prefrontal cortex. </jats:p>

<jats:p>A weekly roundup of information on newly offered instrumentation, apparatus, and laboratory materials of potential interest to researchers.</jats:p>

<jats:p>The show includes depression resilience, properties of dinosaur teeth, mysteries of the brain, and more.</jats:p>

<jats:p>Human health is undeniably a topic of intense research focus today. It's an issue that affects each one of us personally–including our friends, family, and colleagues–while also having a global impact. We are constantly bombarded by environmental insults that can affect our health, from the relatively innocuous irritants that cause allergies to potentially deadly viruses, parasites, and bacteria. Our most effective defense against these microscopic invaders is our immune system. However, this defense mechanism can also turn against itself, causing a range of autoimmune diseases. Despite rapid progression in the field of immunology over the past few decades, scientists are still searching for a deeper understanding of the intricacies of the immune system and the relationships between host and pathogen. New discoveries hold the potential for uncovering novel strategies to strengthen our immunological defense mechanisms and prevent their malfunctioning.</jats:p> <jats:p>One institution that has focused on unraveling some of the remaining questions in immunology is the RIKEN Research Center for Allergy and Immunology (RCAI). Since 2001, RCAI has published numerous research papers that have significantly advanced our knowledge in different areas of immunology. In this booklet, we invite you to read a sampling of RCAI publications that have shed light on topics such as immune cell development and differentiation, the protective role of probiotics, immune system homeostasis, and the role of immune cells in cancer and autoimmune diseases.</jats:p>