Genetic studies in mice identify the transcription factor MafB as a potent regulator of specific features of the synapses underlying hearing.

The signaling molecule Frizzled3 plays a part in the development of the nervous system by controlling the ability of motor neurons to form connections with distant target muscles.

Close examination of lanceolate mechanosensory complexes has revealed clues about the ways that sensory nerves detect the movement of hairs and shown than terminal Schwann cells are needed to maintain and regenerate these intricate structures.

The molecular mechanisms by which midbrain dopamine neurons acquire the inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA for synaptic release are revealed.

In nematode worms, the length of the male refractory period–the time between matings–is regulated by multiple transmitters including dopamine, which both promotes ejaculation and reduces the activity of males post-copulation.

Midbrain dopaminergic neurons and a cortex-like structure called the arcopallium form part of a circuit that enables young songbirds to compare their own song with a template stored in memory, and use any discrepancies to improve their performance.

A mathematical model built around the assumption that the desire to maintain internal homeostasis drives the behavior of animals, by affecting their learning processes, can explain many real-world behaviors, including some that might otherwise appear irrational.

By demonstrating song learning-related synaptic strengthening and pruning in the vocal control circuits of songbirds, and showing how such changes can reduce the sensitivity of the circuit to ‘noisy’ inputs, a simple neural circuit mechanism for regulating motor variability during motor skill learning is identified.

The spatial regulation of gene expression within neurons occurs primarily at the level of local translation rather than by stimulus-induced RNA targeting from nucleus to synapse.

The life cycle and morphology of the sea squirt Ciona intestinalis shed light on vertebrate evolution.