Scientists have discovered that forming a mental map of a new environment takes more than just recognizing individual places—it also requires sleep. The study highlights how weakly tuned neurons gradually become synchronized to encode space as a connected whole.

Caffeine has long been associated with health benefits, including a reduced risk of age-related diseases. However, the specifics of how caffeine interacts with cellular mechanisms and nutrient and stress-responsive gene networks have remained elusive — until now.

In this pioneering research, published in the journal Microbial Cell, scientists used fission yeast, a single-celled organism with surprising similarities to human cells, to delve deeper into caffeine’s impact.

The researchers discovered that caffeine influences aging by engaging an ancient cellular energy system.

A few years ago, the same team found that caffeine prolongs cell life by acting on a growth regulator known as TOR (Target of Rapamycin). TOR is a molecular switch that regulates cell growth based on available food and energy and has been part of the evolutionary landscape for over 500 million years.

However, their latest study unveiled a surprising new finding: caffeine does not directly act on the TOR switch. Instead, it activates AMPK, a cellular fuel gauge that is conserved through evolution in both yeast and humans.

“When your cells are low on energy, AMPK kicks in to help them cope,” senior author Charalampos (Babis) Rallis, a reader in genetics, genomics and fundamental cell biology at Queen Mary University of London, said in a news release. “And our results show that caffeine helps flip that switch.”

Intriguingly, AMPK is also the target of metformin, a common diabetes medication currently under scrutiny for its potential to extend human lifespan when used alongside rapamycin.

The evolution of the human brain has long been framed in terms of sexual selection, with an emphasis on consistent but small on-average volumetric differences between males and females. In this revie…

Schematic diagram illustrating the protective role of protein disulphide isomerase (PDI) against DNA damage via non-homologous end-joining (NHEJ), which repairs double stranded DNA breaks (DSBs). Ind…

A comprehensive analysis of the cell-specific molecular regulatory mechanisms underlying post-traumatic stress disorder in the human prefrontal cortex.

New research suggests the brain uses a learning rule at inhibitory synapses to block out distractions during memory replay. This process enables the hippocampus to prioritize useful patterns over random noise, helping build more generalizable and reliable memories.

Japanese researchers have successfully eliminated the extra chromosome responsible for Down syndrome using CRISPR gene editing.

This cohort study investigates the association of active travel modes, such as walking and cycling, with dementia risk and brain structure.

SignificanceThe highly scattering nature of near-infrared light in human tissue makes it challenging to collect photons using source-detector separations larger than several centimeters. The limits of detectability of light transmitted through the head remain unknown. Detecting photons in the extreme case through an entire adult head explores the limits of photon transport in the brain. AimWe explore the physical limits of photon transport in the head in the extreme case wherein the source and detector are diametrically opposite. ApproachSimulations uncover possible migration pathways of photons from source to detector. We compare simulations with time-resolved photon counting experiments that measure pulsed light transmitted through the head. ResultsWe observe good agreement between the peak delay time and width of the time-correlated histograms in experiments and simulations. Analysis of the photon migration pathways indicates sensitivity to regions of the brain well beyond accepted limits. Source repositioning can isolate sensitivity to targeted regions of the brain, including under the cerebrum. ConclusionsWe overcome attenuation of ∼1018 and detect photons transmitted through an entire adult human head for a subject with fair skin and no hair. Photons measured in this regime explore regions of the brain currently inaccessible with noninvasive optical brain imaging.

Humans are social creatures; we live in family groups, socialise with friends, and work with colleagues. Evolutionary psychologist Robin Dunbar’s ‘social brain hypothesis’ suggests that brain size is directly related to social group size in mammals. The bigger the group, the bigger the brain. In this interview with Research Outreach, we find out how Dunbar developed his theory as well as his now famous ‘Dunbar’s number’

Robin Dunbar discusses his eponymous ‘Dunbar’s Number’, primates to people, and why size matters with social groups and evolution.