Joint Salk-Gladstone study to help scientists decode
circuitry that guides brain function
The power of the brain lies in its trillions of
intercellular connections, called synapses that together form complex neural
"networks." While neuroscientists have long sought to map these
individual connections to see how they influence specific brain functions,
traditional techniques have been unsuccessful. Now, scientists at the Salk
Institute and the Gladstone Institutes, using an innovative brain- tracing
technique, have found a way to untangle these networks. These findings offer
new insight into how specific brain regions connect to each other, while also
revealing clues as to what may happen, neuron by neuron, when these connections
are disrupted.