New findings in mice suggest that the timing when the neurotransmitter acetylcholine is released in the brain’s hippocampus may play a key role in regulating the strength of nerve cell connections, called synapses. Understanding the complex nature of neuronal signaling at synapses could lead to better understanding of learning and memory, and novel treatments for relevant disorders, such as Alzheimer’s disease and schizophrenia. Neurons in the hippocampus, one of the parts of the brain that is thought to have a critical function in learning and memory, communicate with each other at synapses by releasing various neurotransmitters, including acetylcholine and glutamate, which stimulate electrical signals in the adjacent neurons.
