Nerve Cells

Pain is mediated through specialized nerve cells that are activated when potentially harmful things affect various parts of our bodies. These nerve cells have a special ion channel that has a key role in starting the electrical impulse that signals pain and is sent to the brain. According to a new s more

Various diseases of the digestive tract, for example serious intestinal inflammation in humans, are closely linked to disturbances in the natural mobility of the intestine. The role of the microbiome - i.e. the natural microbial colonisation of the digestive tract - in these rhythmic contractions of more

High-calorie, energy-dense foods are constantly available in our modern society. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Metabolism Research in Cologne have discovered that a group of nerve cells in the brains of mice promotes the consumption of high-fat food. If these so-called nociceptin neuro more

In his novel "Perfume - the Story of a Murderer", Patrick Süskind managed to put the power of odors into words better than anyone before him more

by Deena R. Schmidt, Roberto F. Galán, Peter J. Thomas Nerve cells produce electrical impulses (“spikes”) through the coordinated opening and closing of ion channels. Markov processes with voltage-dependent transition rates capture the stochasticity of spike generation at the cost of complex, tim more

by Alexander Borst Seeing the direction of motion is essential for survival of all sighted animals. Consequently, nerve cells that respond to visual stimuli moving in one but not in the opposite direction, so-called ‘direction-selective’ neurons, are found abundantly. In general, direction select more

Three nearly identical genes could help explain why the ancestral human brain tripled in size over the course of human evolution. The genes, descendants of an ancient developmental gene that multiplied and changed over time, could also explain how brain development sometimes goes wrong, leading to n more