Alzheimer’s may destroy memory by flipping a single molecular switch that tells neurons to prune their own connections. Researchers found that both amyloid beta and inflammation converge on the same ...

Synaptic pruning is the process in which the brain removes neurons and synapses that it does not need. This usually takes place when a person is 2–10 years old. The brain contains millions of neurons ...

The innate immune protein C1q seems to have a thing for neurons. Already implicated in synaptic pruning by microglia, now it is reported to also slow down protein production in neurons of the aging ...

Researchers from Kyushu University discovered a previously unrecognized synaptic "hotspot" that forms during adolescence, challenging the long-held view that adolescent brain development was dominated ...

Synaptic pruning is a little like sleep. We know both processes are important to healthy brain function, but we don't know exactly how they happen, nor how to reliably treat problems in the system.

Research led by SUNY Downstate Medical Center has identified a brain receptor that appears to initiate adolescent synaptic pruning, a process believed necessary for learning, but one that appears to ...