One of the outstanding questions in neurodevelopment research has been identifying how connections in the brain change to improve neural function during childhood and adolescence. Now, results from a study in rats just reported by neuroscientists Heather Richardson of psychological and brain sciences, Geng-Lin Li of biology, and colleagues suggest that as animals transition into adolescence, specific physical changes to axons speed up neural transmission, which may lead to higher cognitive abilities. (Read more)

The Lacreuse lab received $361,752 in supplemental funding from NIH to study whether Alzheimer’s disease-like symptoms occur naturally in  nonhuman primates with aging. Lacreuse is especially interested in determining whether female marmosets, like women, are more prone to such symptoms,  and her work seeks to identify the factors that predict pathological aging in each sex.  Lacreuse believes that comparative studies in different primate species will provide important new clues to advance our understanding of the etiology of Alzheimer's disease in humans.

Incoming students in the interdisciplinary graduate programs in the life sciences (MCB, NSB, OEB and PB) enjoyed a day of whitewater rafting on the Deerfield River. Several faculty, staff and current students joined the group. The rafting adventure was a great way to get to know one another and have a ton of fun at the same time.

Rebecca Spencer, psychological and brain sciences, recently received a two-year, $423,208 grant from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, with co-investigator Tracy Riggins at the University of Maryland, to study the role of sleep and brain maturation on memory in early childhood development, specifically when children transition out of naps. (Read more...)