Q&A: The basic research origin of the first approved drug to treat Rett syndrome

On March 10 the FDA approved a drug based on the protein IGF-1 as the first medicine to treat Rett syndrome. The original research showing that IGF-1 could treat Rett syndrome was published by MIT in 2009

On March 10 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the first treatment for Rett syndrome, a devastating neurodevelopmental disorder. The drug is based on the natural protein IGF-1. Mriganka Sur's Picower Institute lab, led by Daniela Tropea, published the first demonstration that IGF-1 could combat Rett syndrome in model mice in 2009. A pair of companies then embarked on clinical trials of Trofinetide. In this Q&A, Sur (pictured above) discusses his Rett syndrome research and how the approval of an IGF-1 based treatment is a dream come true. Story continues>>

Sparse, small, but diverse neural connections help make perception reliable, efficient

First detailed mapping and modeling of thalamus inputs onto visual cortex neurons show brain leverages “wisdom of the crowd” to process sensory information

The brain’s cerebral cortex produces perception based on the sensory information it’s fed through a region called the thalamus. In a new study in Nature Neuroscience, an MIT-led team reports that thalamic inputs into superficial layers of the cortex are not only rare, but also surprisingly weak, and quite diverse in their distribution patterns. Despite this, they are reliable and efficient representatives of information in the aggregate, and their diversity is what underlies these advantages. Story continues>>

Astrocyte cells critical for learning skilled movements

When astrocyte function is disrupted, neurons in the brain’s motor cortex struggle to execute and refine motion, a new study in mice shows

Just as teams of elite athletes train alongside staffs of coaches, ensembles of neurons in the brain’s motor cortex depend on nearby astrocytes to help them learn to encode when to move, and the optimal timing and trajectory of a motion, a new Picower Institute study shows. Story continues>>

Our discoveries are your impact! Give on Pi Day

Please consider giving any amount on March 14 (Pi Day) to support the Aging Brain Initiative's research on neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's. Support ABI Research>>

How Huntington’s disease affects different neurons

A new study identifies cells that are the most vulnerable within a brain structure involved in mood and movement

In patients with Huntington’s disease, neurons in a part of the brain called the striatum are among the hardest-hit. Degeneration of these neurons contributes to patients’ loss of motor control, which is one of the major hallmarks of the disease. Neuroscientists at MIT have now shown that two distinct cell populations in the striatum are affected differently by Huntington’s. They believe that neurodegeneration of one of these populations leads to motor impairments, while damage to the other population, located in structures called striosomes, may account for the mood disorders often seen in early disease stages. Story continues>>

Researchers map brain cell changes in Alzheimer’s disease

Study reveals key cell structures and gene expression changes near amyloid plaques and tau tangles in mouse brain tissue

Researchers don’t know how deposits of two bellewhether proteins are related to the other major hallmark of Alzheimer's disease: the death of neurons in the brain. A study by scientists at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard in Nature Neuroscience hints at some answers. The team developed a new method to reveal how brain cells located near these proteins change as the disease progresses in a mouse model of Alzheimer’s. The technique, is the first to simultaneously map gene expression of individual cells and their location, as well as the spatial distribution of specific proteins in intact tissue samples. Story continues>>

Self-assembling proteins can store cellular “memories”

Using engineered proteins, researchers can record histories that reveal when certain genes are activated or how cells respond to a drug

As cells perform their everyday functions, they turn on a variety of genes and cellular pathways. MIT engineers have now coaxed cells to inscribe the history of these events in a long protein chain that can be imaged using a light microscope. Cells programmed to produce these chains, continuously add building blocks that encode particular cellular events. Later, the ordered protein chains can be labeled with fluorescent molecules and read under a microscope, allowing researchers to reconstruct the timing of the events. Story continues>>

Picower Fellows discuss the social context of their science

Young neuroscientists contributed their perspectives as the MIT Museum works to create a potential ‘Center for Neuroscience & Society’

Every day Picower Institute researchers work to advance understanding of how tens of billions of interconnecting and interacting cells produce memory, behavior, consciousness, perception, cognition, feelings and more. Just as a matter of interrogating nature, neuroscience is complex and consequential. But on Feb. 6, more than a dozen Picower postdoctoral and graduate fellows took time to discuss how neuroscience interconnects and interacts with the broader society it serves. Their reflections made it clear that the social impact of brain research is complex and consequential, too. Story continues>>

Picower postdocs earn School of Science recognitions

Congratulations to Picower Institute postdocs Mat Victor (left) and Kyle Jenks (right) on earning School of Science Infinite Expansion awards! Victor works in the lab of Picower Professor Li-Huei Tsai. Jenks works in the lab of Newton Professor Mriganka Sur. Story continues>>

Professor Emery N. Brown and his pioneering research on anesthesia are featured in an in-depth profile in Technology Review.

Research in the lab of Li-Huei Tsai testing whether sensory stimulation can help treat Alzheimer's (Brown and affiliate faculty member Ed Boyden are collaborators) also continues to earn media attention, for instance in Neurology Live and Physics World. The CEO of an MIT spin-off co-founded by Tsai and Boyden also spoke to Bloomberg toward the end of a recent podcast.

In other recent coverage of Picower Institute research, Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News reported on the Nedivi lab's discoveries about connections between the visual cortex and thalamus. The Scientist noted that Tonegawa lab memory research may help explain a new use for an asthma drug, and some enterprising high schoolers at Curious Science Writers covered research by Picower alumnus Sage Chen, citing a recent spatial memory paper he co-authored with Professor Matt Wilson.

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'Environmental and Social Determinants of Child Mental Health' on May 11

Abuse, neglect, trauma or adverse experiences during childhood coming from personal, environmental or social sources can lead to lifelong struggles including with mental health. Fortunately research also indicates that solutions and interventions at various stages of life can be developed to help and to promote resilience. Please plan to join us online or in person on May 11, 2023 to hear from leading speakers about various ways people are working to help. Click "Register," or the image above, to see the growing list of terrific speakers and to join us. Register>>

Upcoming colloquia and Aging Brain Initiative seminars

• March 23: Colloquium on the Brain and Cognition with Adam Kepecs, PhD, Washington University in St. Louis More>>
• April 4: Aging Brain Seminar with Kenneth Kosik, MD, UC Santa Barbara More>>
• April 27: Colloquium on the Brain and Cognition with Elena Gracheva, PhD, Yale University More>>
• November 7: Aging Brain Seminar with Julia TCW, PhD, Boston University More>>