This year the Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine was awarded to three scientists for optogenetics – a method for activating or inhibiting neurons with light. In this episode I talk with UC Berkeley scientist Miriam Morales about magnetogenetic technologies being developed to enable activation or inhibition of specific neurons in the brain with magnetic fields as a means of understanding how the brain works and restoring normal function in individuals with neurological disorders. Her research focuses on understanding how neuronal activity causally contributes to behavior. To address this question, she has developed approaches to remotely activate ion channels and control cellular activity. Her goal is to determine how the coordinated activity of neurons and glial cells shapes brain function.

LINKS

Hernandez Morales webpage:

https://miriamhmorales.com/

Magnetogenetics review article:

https://www-jneurosci-org.proxy1.library.jhu.edu/content/46/31/e0315252026

Original research articles

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8479696/pdf/main.pdf

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7204511/pdf/nihms-1574792.pdf

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13174281/

Growth hormone (GH) is produced by cells in the pituitary gland and released into the blood where it travels to the liver and therein stimulates the production of insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1). The release of GH which occurs in a pulsatile manner is controlled by neurons in the brain. The GH – IGF1 neuroendocrine system is critical for normal growth of the body during development. During his career, University of Oklahoma Professor Bill Sonntag's laboratory has established that IGF1 production declines during aging and that IGF1 acts on brain cells in ways that promote synaptic plasticity and learning and memory. In this episode I talk with Bill about IGF1's roles in neuroplasticity and brain aging, how IGF1 may affect neuronal network activity and enhance resistance of neurons to stress, and how this knowledge may applied to counteracting aging and bolstering brain function.

LINKS:

Sonntag's University of Oklahoma webpage: https://www.ouhealth.com/research-experts/william-e-sonntag-phd/

Review article on GH – IGF1 and the brain:

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4388761/pdf/nihms639724.pdf

Original research articles relevant to this podcast:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=sonntag+w+igf-1+brain&sort=date&size=200

Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) is a pro-inflammatory cytokine known for its detrimental effects on tissues in disease such as rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn's disease, and skin psoriasis. However, TNF has normal functions in the absence of inflammation. TNF is produced in low amounts by cells in the brain – particularly microglia and astrocytes – and neurons can respond to TNF in several ways. In this episode I talk with McGill University neuroscientist David Stellwagen about evidence that TNF plays important roles in regulating rapid synaptic adaptations to neural network activity. Such effects of TNF on synaptic plasticity may regulate adaptive changes in neural circuits and consequent changes in behaviors. We also talk about work in my lab showing that TNF can protect neurons against damage and degeneration under certain conditions.

LINKS

Stellwagen Laboratory: https://www.stellwagenlab.org/

Review article: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41380-026-03861-4

Original research articles:

https://www.nature.com/articles/nature04671

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9734040/pdf/41380_2022_Article_1737.pdf

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10993029/pdf/jneuro-44-e2278222024.pdf

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC40978/pdf/pnas01498-0326.pdf

https://www.nature.com/articles/nm0796-788

https://onlinelibrary-wiley-com.proxy1.library.jhu.edu/doi/epdf/10.1002/%28SICI%291098-2396%28200002%2935%3A2%3C151%3A%3AAID-SYN8%3E3.0.CO%3B2-P