The kick-off signal for puberty begins in the brain. Specifically, in the hypothalamus, where specific neurons release a hormone that activates the hypophysis, at the base of the skull, which then releases other hormones to start gonad—ovaries or testicles—maturation. This mechanism leading to a fertile organism is the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis.

A study by Spain’s National Cancer Research Center (CNIO) has discovered in animal models that two previously unsuspected elements are also involved in this hormone regulating system: microglia—defensive cells of the nervous system—and the protein RANK, which contributes to bone remodeling and is essential in the functioning of the mammary glands.

The work is published in the journal Science. It is led by Eva González-Suárez, head of the CNIO Transformation and Metastasis Group, who discovered in 2010 the key role played by RANK in the development of breast cancer. The first author is Alejandro Collado, a researcher from the same group and co-corresponding author.

Axion Click is a neural headband that turns brain signals and eye movements into seamless digital interactions. With zero effort. And no surgery.

Making a living brain transparent and watching its neurons fire without disturbing their function—sounds like science fiction, doesn’t it? Yet the solution may already exist within our own bodies. In a paper published in Nature Methods, a research team led by Kyushu University introduces a new reagent called SeeDB-Live.

SeeDB-Live uses albumin—a common protein in blood serum—to clear tissue while preserving cellular function. The technique allows scientists to see deeper, brighter structures in both brain slices in a dish and living mice, achieving neural activity that was previously out of sight.

“This is the first time tissue clearing has been achieved without altering its biology,” says Takeshi Imai, professor at Kyushu University’s Faculty of Medical Sciences and the study’s senior author.

An international team of scientists and clinicians has announced the launch of a new open-access 3D portal that allows users to explore intact human organs in unprecedented detail—from the whole organ down to individual cells locally. The Human Organ Atlas, created using a powerful synchrotron imaging method, brings together some of the most detailed 3D images of human organs ever produced. It enables scientists, doctors, educators, students and the wider public to interactively “fly through” organs such as the brain, heart, lungs, kidney and liver, providing a new way of understanding human anatomy and human diseases.

Building on an initial release, the Human Organ Atlas (HOA) is now available in a greatly expanded form and can be accessed directly through a standard web browser, without specialized software. The technology is published in the journal Science Advances.

The Atlas is powered by an advanced imaging method called Hierarchical Phase-Contrast Tomography (HiP-CT), developed at the European Synchrotron (ESRF) in Grenoble, France, by an international team led by University College London (UCL), UK. HiP-CT uses the ESRF’s Extremely Brilliant Source—a new generation of synchrotron source—which is up to 100 billion times brighter than conventional hospital CT scanners.

A surprising energy imbalance in the brain and blood cells may offer a new way to detect and treat depression earlier.