Myriam Heiman stands along the blue glassy windows of the Reading Terrace in MIT's Building 46
May 26, 2026
Myriam Heiman named the director of The Picower Institute for Learning and Memory
On a black background a spiny section of a neural dendrite is outlined in white. Within the outline numerous little white dots indicate the actual dendrite within the outline.
May 14, 2026
The rules neurons follow to make sense of what we see
A microscope view of several worms wriggling through a red-hued gel
April 20, 2026
How neurons sense bacteria in the gut
Three views of an organoid cell culture show the constiuent cells of the vaguely round, tangled mass of cells.  In the different views the cells are highlighted in different colors such as magenta and green.
April 14, 2026
Rett syndrome study highlights potential for personalized treatments
A video screenshot shows a grayscale worm twisting its body around in a loop to change direction
April 10, 2026
With navigating nematodes, scientists map out how brains implement behaviors

Immune & Inflamed

March 1, 2023
Research Feature
Neuroscientists are finding that immune system activity within the brain and the body has important impacts on mental health and behavior

Picower Fellows discuss the social context of their science

February 14, 2023
Picower People
Young neuroscientists contributed their perspectives as the MIT Museum works to create a potential ‘Center for Neuroscience & Society’

Sparse, small, but diverse neural connections help make perception reliable, efficient

February 2, 2023
Research Findings
First detailed mapping and modeling of thalamus inputs onto visual cortex neurons show brain leverages “wisdom of the crowd” to process sensory information

Researchers map brain cell changes in Alzheimer’s disease

February 2, 2023
Study reveals key cell structures and gene expression changes near amyloid plaques and tau tangles in mouse brain tissue

How Huntington’s disease affects different neurons

January 20, 2023
Research Findings
A new study identifies cells that are the most vulnerable within a brain structure involved in mood and movement

Self-assembling proteins can store cellular “memories”

January 10, 2023
Research Findings
Using these engineered proteins, researchers can record histories that reveal when certain genes are activated or how cells respond to a drug.

New technologies revealing cross-cutting breakdowns in Alzheimer’s disease

January 2, 2023
Research Findings
‘Single-cell profiling’ is helping neuroscientists see how disease affects major brain cell types and identify common, potentially targetable pathways

Holding information in mind may mean storing it among synapses

December 29, 2022
Research Findings
Comparing models of working memory with real-world data, MIT researchers found that information resides not in persistent neural activity, but in the pattern of their connections

Small studies of 40Hz sensory stimulation confirm safety, suggest Alzheimer’s benefits

December 1, 2022
Research Findings
MIT researchers report early stage clinical study results of tests with non-invasive 40Hz light and sound treatment

Research offers insights into mechanisms underlying bipolar mania, sleep homeostasis

November 23, 2022
Recent Events
At a press conference at Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting, young Picower scientist Takato Honda presented findings of key neurons involved in the neuropsychiatric disorder and sleep homeostasis

Alzheimer’s risk gene undermines insulation of brain’s “wiring”

November 16, 2022
Research Findings
In people carrying the APOE4 risk variant, a key brain cell type mismanages cholesterol needed to insulate neurons properly—another sign that APOE4 contributes to disease by disrupting lipids in the brain

Analyzing brain waves demystifies general anesthesia

November 14, 2022
Recent Events
At Neuroscience 2022, Emery N. Brown relayed how statistical analysis of brain rhythms in patients and animals under anesthetics has revealed important information about how the drugs work.