Picower Institute for Learning and Memory

Complex brain function depends on flexibilityNeurons that can multitask greatly enhance the brain’s computational power, study finds.

Study finds a new culprit for epileptic seizuresDiscovery that some seizures arise in glial cells could offer new targets for epilepsy treatment.

New insights into how brain synapses transmit informationTwo essential proteins regulate the molecular machinery that controls neuronal communication and the release of signals between neurons.

In search of better antidepressantsNew study suggests targeting dopamine-releasing neurons could lead to more effective therapies.

Brain waves encode rules for behaviorFluctuations in electrical activity may also allow the brain to form thoughts and memories.

How attention helps you rememberNew study finds long-overlooked cells help the brain respond to visual stimuli.

MIT neuroscientists achieve 'dream engineering' in rats

Picower Institute researchers identify brain cell aberration tied to autism

Inhibitory and excitatory synapse dynamics in the brain

Researchers show that memories reside in specific brain cellsSimply activating a tiny number of neurons can conjure an entire memory.

Reversing Alzheimer’s gene ‘blockade’ can restore memory, other cognitive functionsNeuroscientists show that HDAC2 enzyme could be a good target for new drugs.

James DiCarlo to head Department of Brain and Cognitive SciencesNew department head succeeds Mriganka Sur, who will lead the new Simons Center for the Social Brain at MIT.

A new piece to the autism puzzleNeuroscientists find that two rare autism-related disorders are caused by opposing malfunctions in the brain.

Unraveling how a mutation can lead to psychiatric illnessMIT neuroscientists show that a gene linked with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder impairs early brain development.

Mimicking the brain, in siliconNew computer chip models how neurons communicate with each other at synapses.

How the brain assigns objects to categoriesNew findings may explain why children with autism tend to fixate on details instead of seeing the big picture.

When four is not four, but rather two plus twoMIT neuroscientists redefine the limits of visual working memory.

Of minds and machinesFinal installment of MIT’s 150th anniversary symposia explores intelligence — both human and artificial.

6 from MIT named AAAS fellows

Protein linked to aging may boost memory and learning abilityDiscovery could lead to new drugs to fight Alzheimer’s and other neurological diseases.

Li-Huei Tsai receives Glenn Foundation AwardPicower Institute director awarded grant for research in biological mechanisms of aging

Multitasking is no problem for these brain cellsScientists find that neurons in the brain’s planning center can handle more than one kind of job.

Earl Miller wins MERIT award from National Institute of Mental HealthNational Institute of Mental Health

HHMI lists Tsai team’s advance among 10 biggest stories of 2009Howard Hughes Medical Institute honors discovery of gene protein that could lead to safer drug treatments for Alzheimer’s and other diseases.