AI Summary
Summary: The article discusses a novel technique called "Flash and Freeze-fracture" that allows scientists to study how neurons in the medial habenula region of the brain communicate with each other. The researchers at the Institute of Science and Technology Austria used this technique to gain insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying fear and stress responses. The results of their study were published in the journal PNAS.
Fear and addiction exert significant influence within society. Managing them is often challenging, as they are driven by intricate neuronal circuits in our brains. Understanding the underlying molecular mechanisms is crucial to intervene when these processes malfunction. Pioneered by scientists at the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA), the novel “Flash and Freeze-fracture” technique provides a unique glimpse into the respective brain region. The results were recently published in the journal PNAS.
While looking for food, a bird encounters a fox. It gets away just in time, but the sight and the sound of the predator lingers. The negative experience will form a memory in its brain and will be associated with fear and stress from now on. Whenever it meets a fox again, the fear memory is revived. The bird’s attention spikes, its heart rate goes up, and it changes its behavior to reduce the risk of predation. Such memory is mediated by a specific brain region called the medial habenula, one of the epicenters for emotional processing.
Peter Koppensteiner, together with Pradeep Bhandari, Cihan Önal and other members of Ryuichi Shigemoto’s research group at the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) investigated this particular part of the brain to understand how its neurons (nerve cells) communicate with each other. Published in the journal PNAS, the results give an unprecedented look into this subject, utilizing a novel visualization technique called “Flash and Freeze-fracture”.
Counter-intuitive brain cells
Nerve cells in the medial habenula exhibit unusual behavior, contradicting