NeuroscientistPub Date : 2025-08-01Epub Date: 2024-11-29DOI: 10.1177/10738584241293366
Xiaochun Han, Yina Ma
{"title":"Oxytocin in Human Social Network Cooperation.","authors":"Xiaochun Han, Yina Ma","doi":"10.1177/10738584241293366","DOIUrl":"10.1177/10738584241293366","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Human society is organized in structured social networks upon which large-scale cooperation among genetically unrelated individuals is favored and persists. Such large-scale cooperation is crucial for the success of the human species but also one of the most puzzling challenges. Recent work in social and behavioral neuroscience has linked human cooperation to oxytocin, an evolutionarily ancient and structurally preserved hypothalamic neuropeptide. This review aims to elucidate how oxytocin promotes nonkin cooperation in social networks by reviewing its effects at three distinct levels: individual cooperation, the formation of interpersonal relationships, and the establishment of heterogeneous network structures. We propose oxytocin as a proximate mechanism for fostering large-scale cooperation in human societies. Specifically, oxytocin plays an important role in facilitating network-wide cooperation in human societies by 1) increasing individual cooperation, mitigating noncooperation motives, and facilitating the enforcement of cooperative norms; 2) fostering interpersonal bonding and synchronization; and 3) facilitating the formation of heterogeneous network structures.</p>","PeriodicalId":49753,"journal":{"name":"Neuroscientist","volume":" ","pages":"409-424"},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2025-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142751963","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
NeuroscientistPub Date : 2025-08-01Epub Date: 2024-10-04DOI: 10.1177/10738584241282969
Maximilian Fischer, Maria Kukley
{"title":"Hidden in the white matter: Current views on interstitial white matter neurons.","authors":"Maximilian Fischer, Maria Kukley","doi":"10.1177/10738584241282969","DOIUrl":"10.1177/10738584241282969","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The mammalian brain comprises two structurally and functionally distinct compartments: the gray matter (GM) and the white matter (WM). In humans, the WM constitutes approximately half of the brain volume, yet it remains significantly less investigated than the GM. The major cellular elements of the WM are neuronal axons and glial cells. However, the WM also contains cell bodies of the interstitial neurons, estimated to number 10 to 28 million in the adult bat brain, 67 million in Lar gibbon brain, and 450 to 670 million in the adult human brain, representing as much as 1.3%, 2.25%, and 3.5% of all neurons in the cerebral cortex, respectively. Many studies investigated the interstitial WM neurons (IWMNs) using immunohistochemistry, and some information is available regarding their electrophysiological properties. However, the functional role of IWMNs in physiologic and pathologic conditions largely remains unknown. This review aims to provide a concise update regarding the distribution and properties of interstitial WM neurons, highlight possible functions of these cells as debated in the literature, and speculate about other possible functions of the IWMNs and their interactions with glial cells. We hope that our review will inspire new research on IWMNs, which represent an intriguing cell population in the brain.</p>","PeriodicalId":49753,"journal":{"name":"Neuroscientist","volume":" ","pages":"381-408"},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2025-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12255840/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142376247","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
NeuroscientistPub Date : 2025-08-01Epub Date: 2024-12-12DOI: 10.1177/10738584241293049
Sharon Mathew, Sadaf Ashraf, Susan Shorter, Gianluca Tozzi, Stella Koutsikou, Saak V Ovsepian
{"title":"Neurobiological Correlates of Rheumatoid Arthritis and Osteoarthritis: Remodelling and Plasticity of Nociceptive and Autonomic Innervations in Synovial Joints.","authors":"Sharon Mathew, Sadaf Ashraf, Susan Shorter, Gianluca Tozzi, Stella Koutsikou, Saak V Ovsepian","doi":"10.1177/10738584241293049","DOIUrl":"10.1177/10738584241293049","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Swelling, stiffness, and pain in synovial joints are primary hallmarks of osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Hyperactivity of nociceptors and excessive release of inflammatory factors and pain mediators play a crucial role, with emerging data suggesting extensive remodelling and plasticity of joint innervations. Herein, we review structural, functional, and molecular alterations in sensory and autonomic axons wiring arthritic joints and revisit mechanisms implicated in the sensitization of nociceptors, leading to chronic pain. Sprouting and reorganization of sensory and autonomic fibers with the invasion of ectopic branches into surrounding inflamed tissues are associated with the upregulation of pain markers. These changes are frequently complemented by a phenotypic switch of sensory and autonomic profiles and activation of silent axons, inferring homeostatic adjustments and reprogramming of innervations. Identifying critical molecular players and neurobiological mechanisms underpinning the rewiring and sensitization of joints is likely to elucidate causatives of neuroinflammation and chronic pain, assisting in finding new therapeutic targets and opportunities for interventions.</p>","PeriodicalId":49753,"journal":{"name":"Neuroscientist","volume":" ","pages":"425-444"},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2025-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12255838/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142819893","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
NeuroscientistPub Date : 2025-08-01Epub Date: 2025-03-13DOI: 10.1177/10738584251324459
Angeleen Fleming, Ana Lopez, Matea Rob, Sarayu Ramakrishna, So Jung Park, Xinyi Li, David C Rubinsztein
{"title":"How does autophagy impact neurological function?","authors":"Angeleen Fleming, Ana Lopez, Matea Rob, Sarayu Ramakrishna, So Jung Park, Xinyi Li, David C Rubinsztein","doi":"10.1177/10738584251324459","DOIUrl":"10.1177/10738584251324459","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Autophagies describe a set of processes in which cells degrade their cytoplasmic contents via various routes that terminate with the lysosome. In macroautophagy (the focus of this review, henceforth autophagy), cytoplasmic contents, including misfolded proteins, protein complexes, dysfunctional organelles, and various pathogens, are captured within double membranes called autophagosomes, which ultimately fuse with lysosomes, after which their contents are degraded. Autophagy is important in maintaining neuronal and glial function; consequently, disrupted autophagy is associated with various neurologic diseases. This review provides a broad perspective on the roles of autophagy in the CNS, highlighting recent literature that furthers our understanding of the multifaceted role of autophagy in maintaining a healthy nervous system.</p>","PeriodicalId":49753,"journal":{"name":"Neuroscientist","volume":" ","pages":"349-364"},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2025-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12255843/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143626542","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
NeuroscientistPub Date : 2025-08-01Epub Date: 2024-06-06DOI: 10.1177/10738584241257927
Debjyoti Dhar, Samim Mm, Naznin Parvin, Treshita Dey, Anantini Pal, Pramod Kumar Pal
{"title":"Islands and Neurology: An Exploration into a Unique Association.","authors":"Debjyoti Dhar, Samim Mm, Naznin Parvin, Treshita Dey, Anantini Pal, Pramod Kumar Pal","doi":"10.1177/10738584241257927","DOIUrl":"10.1177/10738584241257927","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The current study investigates the intricate connection between neurology and islands shedding light on the historical, epidemiological, and genetic aspects. Based on an elaborate literature review, we identified neurological conditions having a significant clustering in an island(s), confined to a particular island(s), named after an island, and described first in an island. The genetic factors played a crucial role, uncovering disorders like Cayman ataxia, Machado Joseph disease, SGCE-mediated dystonia-myoclonus syndrome, X-linked dystonia parkinsonism, hereditary transthyretinrelated amyloidosis, Charcot Marie Tooth 4F, and progressive myoclonic epilepsy syndromes, that exhibited remarkable clustering in diverse islands. Local customs also left enduring imprints. Practices such as cannibalism in Papua New Guinea led to Kuru, while cycad seed consumption in Guam triggered Lytico-Bodig disease. Toxin-mediated neurologic disorders exhibited intricate island connections, exemplified by Minamata disease in Kyushu islands and atypical parkinsonism in French Caribbean islands. Additionally, the Cuban epidemic of amblyopia and neuropathy was associated with severe nutritional deficiencies. This study pioneers a comprehensive review narrating the genetic, environmental, and cultural factors highlighting the spectrum of neurological disorders in island settings. It enriches the medical literature with a unique understanding of the diverse influences shaping neurological health in island environments.</p>","PeriodicalId":49753,"journal":{"name":"Neuroscientist","volume":" ","pages":"336-348"},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2025-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141260448","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
NeuroscientistPub Date : 2025-08-01Epub Date: 2025-07-16DOI: 10.1177/10738584251358733
{"title":"mRNA in axonal terminals: a role in memory.","authors":"","doi":"10.1177/10738584251358733","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/10738584251358733","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":49753,"journal":{"name":"Neuroscientist","volume":"31 4","pages":"333"},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2025-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144643966","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
NeuroscientistPub Date : 2025-08-01Epub Date: 2024-09-24DOI: 10.1177/10738584241282632
Trevor Balena, Kevin Staley
{"title":"Neuronal Death: Now You See It, Now You Don't.","authors":"Trevor Balena, Kevin Staley","doi":"10.1177/10738584241282632","DOIUrl":"10.1177/10738584241282632","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Fatally injured neurons may necrose and rupture immediately, or they may initiate a programmed cell death pathway and then wait for microglial phagocytosis. Biochemical and histopathologic assays of neuronal death assess the numbers of neurons awaiting phagocytosis at a particular time point after injury. This number varies with the fraction of neurons that have necrosed vs initiated programmed cell death, the time elapsed since injury, the rate of phagocytosis, and the assay's ability to detect neurons at different stages of programmed cell death. Many of these variables can be altered by putatively neurotoxic and neuroprotective interventions independent of the effects on neuronal death. This complicates analyses of neurotoxicity and neuroprotection and has likely contributed to difficulties with clinical translation of neuroprotective strategies after brain injury. Time-resolved assays of neuronal health, such as ongoing expression of transgenic fluorescent proteins, are a useful means of avoiding these problems.</p>","PeriodicalId":49753,"journal":{"name":"Neuroscientist","volume":" ","pages":"365-380"},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2025-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142331105","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
NeuroscientistPub Date : 2025-08-01Epub Date: 2025-07-16DOI: 10.1177/10738584251358733a
{"title":"Neurite density in autism: new lessons from MRI.","authors":"","doi":"10.1177/10738584251358733a","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/10738584251358733a","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":49753,"journal":{"name":"Neuroscientist","volume":"31 4","pages":"333-334"},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2025-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144643967","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
NeuroscientistPub Date : 2025-08-01Epub Date: 2025-07-16DOI: 10.1177/10738584251358734
{"title":"Mapping emotional responses across the brain.","authors":"","doi":"10.1177/10738584251358734","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/10738584251358734","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":49753,"journal":{"name":"Neuroscientist","volume":"31 4","pages":"335"},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2025-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144643965","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
NeuroscientistPub Date : 2025-06-26DOI: 10.1177/10738584251337652
Andrew Strohman, Wynn Legon
{"title":"Neuromodulation of the Cingulate Cortex for Pain.","authors":"Andrew Strohman, Wynn Legon","doi":"10.1177/10738584251337652","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/10738584251337652","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The subgenual (sACC) and pregenual (pACC) anterior cingulate and anterior midcingulate (aMCC) cortices are structurally and functionally distinct subregions of the cingulate cortex with critical roles in pain processing. These regions may be promising therapeutic targets using non-invasive neuromodulation techniques, including transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), transcranial electrical stimulation (TES), and low-intensity focused ultrasound (LIFU). In this review, we synthesize emerging evidence on the function and connectivity of these subregions in both acute and chronic pain, highlighting their differential roles in the sensory, affective, and autonomic contributions to pain processing. We compare the strengths and limitations of the different non-invasive neuromodulatory methods for accessing these deep midline structures and examine how technique-specific and target-specific effects influence analgesic outcomes. We also explore the influence of placebo mechanisms and stimulation context on therapeutic effects. Finally, we discuss emerging strategies such as personalized connectivity-based targeting to overcome anatomical and technical limitations to advance precision non-invasive neuromodulation for pain.</p>","PeriodicalId":49753,"journal":{"name":"Neuroscientist","volume":" ","pages":"10738584251337652"},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2025-06-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144509175","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}