Connective Tissue & the Brain
Connective tissue is a fibrous cell-sparse network that helps to connect, support, bind, and separate neighboring tissues from one another. It exists in and around every organ of the body. […]
Tag Archives: glutamate
Not All Mutations in Autism Are Just about Loss- or Gain-of-Function
A few weeks ago I wrote about cell stress and its relationship with epilepsy. I reviewed how the accumulation of misfolded proteins within the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) can lead to […]
Yes, Scientists Get Paid to Tickle Mouse Whiskers
I can just hear Sarah Palin now: “And sometimes taxpayer money goes to projects . . . where scientists get paid to tickle mouse whiskers. I kid you not!” As […]
Sex Differences, GABA Signaling, and Autism Risk
Awhile back, I wrote about how the neurotransmitter, GABA, can behave as an excitatory signal in certain cell types rather than the inhibitory signal with which we’re more familiar. As […]
Excitatory GABA
gamma-Aminobutyric Acid, otherwise more commonly known by its acronym, “GABA,” is a primary neurotransmitter of the central nervous system. While most of us may be more familiar with the concept […]
SHANK3: Remembering the Synapse in Autism
I have to admit that, like most human beings, I can over-focus at times. On this blog, I’ve gone on and on about the embryonic origins of autism and how […]
Okay, Stop Me If You’ve Heard This One: A Sea Squirt and a Sponge Walk into a Bar…
“For nature moves continuously from lifeless things through things that are alive but not animals.” ~Aristotle Aristotle was fascinated by sponges. He could never quite figure out what they were […]
Patior, Ergo Sum – I Hurt, Therefore I Am
I’m taking a break from my usual focus on DNA, epigentics, and autism to address a scientific and ethical dilemma which for years has dogged researchers and philosophers alike. Do […]
Science Over a Cuppa 
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