Researchers find a key mechanism in the development of nerve cells
Tuesday, September 29, 2009 - 10:14
in Biology & Nature
Chaos brews in the brains of newborns: the nerve cells are still bound only loosely to each other. Under the leadership of Academy Research Fellow Sari Lauri, a team of researchers at the University of Helsinki has been studying for years how a neural network capable of processing information effectively is created out of chaos. The team has now found a new kind of mechanism that adjusts the functional development of nerve cell contacts. The results were published in early September as the leading article of the esteemed Journal of Neuroscience.