Stop Signals

Trillions of stringy neurons meet up in our brains, passing signals through junctions called synapses. Sometimes, though, these signals need fine-tuning. Inhibitory neurons (highlighted as red, green and blue dots in this mouse brain) connect to synapses to block certain signals, vital to controlling information passing into and out from the brain. Here a technique called qBrain reveals three different types of inhibitory neurons are not spread evenly – the green cells, for example, occur more densely in sensory-motor areas of the brain, which control how we respond to the world. Other qBrain scans reveal that, although females generally have smaller brains, specific areas contain more inhibitory neurons, suggesting more sensitive control of signals associated with reproductive, social and parenting behaviours.

Written by John Ankers

John Ankers

Writer

A former researcher in systems biology, John is now an online biology tutor and professional coach supporting the wellbeing of scientists and NHS professionals. He's writing, too, of course.

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• Image from the Osten Lab, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, New York
• Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA
• Image copyright held by the original authors
• Research published in Cell, October 2017