Review Articles

This review explores how stroke induces changes in gene expression, cell behavior and brain networks, offering insights into recovery. It highlights strategies to enhance cellular reprogramming and brain network reorganization for improved outcomes.

Microglia have key roles in CNS development and neurodegeneration. Here, the authors provide an overview of microglia heterogeneity, cell-state annotation and model systems.

Emerging evidence highlights the dual role of oligodendrocytes in Alzheimer’s disease, both providing protective mechanisms against the pathology and contributing to its progression.

This comprehensive review of amygdala intercalated cells (ITCs) proposes a revised model of ITCs as a highly coordinated system that integrates diverse inputs to orchestrate brain-wide networks and shape behavioral states.

This review provides an overview of analysis and experimental design of single-cell omics in the brain, emphasizing epigenomics and spatial omics. The authors discuss how the computational and experimental designs are interlinked, with both being guided by the biological questions.

This Review provides insights for construction of molecular cell atlases and outlines key study design considerations. The authors emphasize the power of single-cell and single-nucleus genomics in revealing cellular transitions during nervous system development and disease.

Single-cell or single-nucleus RNA-sequencing experiments form a basis for biological insights about cell types and states, but they require orthogonal experiments to confirm the functional relevance of their findings. Here the authors discuss options to support such findings and their challenges.

The authors review current knowledge of the molecular identity and functions of the dura, arachnoid and pial layers of meninges and controversial aspects of meningeal biology that deserve further study to resolve ongoing debates in the field.

This Review provides a framework for incorporating APOE into Alzheimer’s disease (AD) clinical care by bridging recent advances in APOE and AD research with emerging clinical applications for APOE testing and ApoE-targeted therapies.

Mature myelin has been considered static, though recent evidence indicates it is in fact dynamic. Here, Osso and Hughes review the dynamics of mature myelin, a form of neuroplasticity, from myelin turnover to remodeling of myelin structure. The authors consider the mechanisms that regulate these dynamics and the functional implications of mature myelin remodeling.

Fang and Creed review and synthesize recent studies of the striatum and pallidal complex. Based on connectivity and organization of striatal–pallidal pathways in rodents, they propose how these structures coordinate learning and flexible behavior.

This Review explains how the neural coding of uncertainty is theoretically conceived and empirically tested. It compares the approaches of two largely separate research communities and proposes goals for the field that combine these approaches.

Engelen et al. review in animals and humans how the CNS senses cardiac, respiratory and gastric rhythmic activity, and detail the range of cognitive functions impacted, from perceptual detection up to the sense of self.

This Review provides a comprehensive overview of the neuronal heterogeneity, circuit architecture and functional roles of the external globus pallidus, with emphasis on how the latest data deviate from traditional views of the basal ganglia.

The immune system plays a critical role in neurodegenerative diseases. Resident and peripheral immune cells contribute to disease progression. Here, the authors review the role of peripheral immune cells both when infiltrating the CNS or when remaining in the periphery.

In this Review, Villeda and colleagues describe blood-to-brain communication from a systems physiology perspective, with an emphasis on blood-derived signals as potent drivers of both age-related brain dysfunction and brain rejuvenation.

Single-cell genomics reveal that Alzheimer’s dementia involves the complex interplay of virtually every major brain cell type. Cell-type-specific molecular perturbations modulate signaling pathways related to lipid handling, immune signaling and metabolic reprogramming.

Sulaman et al. detail the neuronal underpinnings of sleep–wake states and discuss their intersection with hunger, fear and thermoregulatory circuits. They propose a de-arousal model for sleep initiation and highlight lingering questions in the field.

The authors summarize changes in circuits after spinal cord injury and current strategies to target these circuits in order to improve recovery, but also advocate for new concepts of reorganizing circuits informed by multi-omic single-cell atlases.

Psychedelics are serotonergic drugs that have therapeutic potential. This Review article provides an integrative perspective on the basic neurobiology underlying the actions of psychedelics and highlights open questions in the field.