1. Smelling the difference » How do animals quickly tell the difference between similar smells? A clue from the mouse olfactory bulb: inhibiting signals from specific neurons makes odor discrimination fast and accurate.
N.M. Abraham et al., Neuron, 65(3):399–411, February 11, 2010. Evaluated by Amar Sahay and Rene Hen, Columbia University; Kristina Rehm and Rosalind Segal, Harvard Medical School. ID: 2426965
2. A pain in the back » Injection of methylene blue, a neurotoxin, into damaged intervertebral discs destroys pain receptors. This cheap and simple treatment could relieve chronic lower back pain for at least 2 years.
B. Peng et al., Pain, 149(1):124–29, April 2010. Evaluated by Wilfrid Jänig, Christian-Albrechts-University. ID: 2638974
3. Docking identity » The calcium sensor synaptotagmin-1 docks secretory granules to the cell membrane, which primes them for release in response to the key signaling ion, calcium. H de Wit, et al., Cell, 138(5):935–46, September 4, 2009. ...
