
Fall 2022
Rethinking Neuroscience
From the cerebellum to neurodegenerative disease, researchers are giving old science a fresh look
Features

The Misunderstood Proteins of Neurodegeneration

The Cerebellum’s Functions in Cognition, Emotion, and More
Critic at Large

Opinion: Many Clinical Trials Fail to Navigate the Literature
Too often, studies that aim to develop new treatments for patients fail to adequately cite and build upon research that preceded them.

Opinion: Splashing Cold Water on Poop Transplants for Weight Loss
Gut microbiome–based solutions hold promise for addressing obesity, but are they overhyped?
Foundations

Masking Up, 1619 to Present
Putting on a mask to protect oneself and others against disease is nothing new, nor is resistance to mask-wearing, but mask designs have changed considerably from their first iterations.

Handmade Hemoglobin, 1912-2012
Makio Murayama, a Japanese-American biochemist who was turned away from the Manhattan Project due to his heritage, rose to prominence for his work uncovering the link between the structure of hemoglobin and the mechanisms of sickle cell disease.
The Literature

Bull Ant Venom Evolved to Make Bites More Painful to Mammals
A peptide found in bull ant venom closely resembles a hormone of its primary predator, triggering hypersensitivity and making subsequent bites even more painful than the ones that came before.

Protein-Recycling Process Protective Against Arterial Plaques
A team of scientists has found that in mice, a cellular housekeeping pathway protects against a major cause of heart attacks and strokes.

Mother’s Circadian Rhythms Mirrored in Fetal Rat Brains
Before their own central clocks develop, the brains of fetal rats detect their mother’s metabolic cycle to help regulate the expression of certain genes.

Human Gut Bacteria Show Up in Urban Wildlife
The gut microbiomes of city-dwelling animals, including coyotes, lizards, and birds, show similarities to those found in humans who also live in urban environments.

A Novel Player at the Neuromuscular Junction
The muscle transmembrane protein Vangl2 helps organize the development and maintenance of connections between muscles and motor neurons, a study concludes.
Infographics

Infographic: Possible Mechanisms of Gene Transfer in Eukaryotes
Genetic studies have made it clear that eukaryotic horizontal gene transfer can and does happen. Exactly how, though, remains speculative.

Infographic: Secret Lives of Neurodegeneration-Linked Proteins
Maligned peptides such as the Alzheimer’s-associated amyloid precursor protein may have critical roles in the healthy brain.

Infographic: DNA Damage Viewed with Unprecedented Clarity
A new genetic sensor called PRISM makes use of a host cell’s DNA replication machinery to trigger fluorescence in neurons with damaged DNA.

Infographic: The Cerebellum’s Many Roles Beyond Motor Control
Researchers have discovered that the small structure is involved in language, emotion, and many other high-order brain processes.

Infographic: The Sequencing and Assembly of the Human Genome
With ever-advancing genetic technologies, researchers continue to document the genetic code of the human species.

Infographic: Vangl2 in Muscles Keeps Neuromuscular Junctions Organized
Genetic knockout experiments reveal a role for the protein in forming and maintaining synapses between motor neurons and muscle fibers in mice.

Infographic: Noncoding RNA in the Brain
Neurologically important noncoding RNAs come in many shapes and sizes.
Reading Frames

Opinion: Why We Fall for Fad Diets
Human beings are susceptible to the latest nutritional trends, regardless of their actual biological value.

Opinion: Animal Dreaming Should Give Us Ethical Pause
Research shows that humans aren’t the only animals whose imaginations run wild while they sleep.
Careers

What If Scientists Shared Their Reagents for Free?
Some researchers have decided to provide their products without financial compensation or expectations of authorship on resulting papers, prompting a flurry of new work.

How to Fix Science's Code Problem
Despite increasingly strict journal policies requiring the release of computational code files along with research papers, many scientists remain reluctant to share—underscoring the need for better solutions.
Notebook

The Sex Appeal of Symmetric Songs
Female fruit flies assess the physical symmetry of male suitors through the songs they sing, a study claims.

Why Does Geosmin Smell?
Researchers shed light on why microbes make the chemicals responsible for petrichor, the earthy smell of recent rain.

Why Did Ferns Persist When All Other Plants Perished?
A strange layer in the fossil record contains evidence that fern populations exploded following the mass extinction that ended the Cretaceous period. Scientists want to know why.

Scientists Use Sound to Attract Baby Oysters Back to the Reef
Meet the team trying to restore mollusk populations with the help of underwater speakers.
Scientist to Watch

Humsa Venkatesh Probes Cancer’s Grip on the Brain
At Brigham and Women’s Hospital, the cancer biologist is combining research into the tumor microenvironment with the principles of neuroscience to tease apart how cancers grow—and how to stop them.

Clinton Cave Investigates How Brain Cells Communicate
The Middlebury College neuroscientist explores enzymes that affect brain cell development and neurodegeneration.
Modus Operandi

DNA Damage Viewed with Unprecedented Clarity
A new tool called PRISM draws on virus-host interactions and a DNA repair pathway to help researchers visualize how cellular stress may contribute to neurodegenerative disease.
Editorial

Wonders Without, Wonders Within
As humanity peers ever further into the cosmos, the similarities and differences between our universe and our inner workings emerge.
Speaking of Science

Notable Science Quotes
Taking stock of the CDC's COVID-19 response, the importance of forest science, the evolutionary importance of chewing, and more