Synaptic pruning is a crucial neurodevelopmental process through which the brain refines its neural circuitry by systematically eliminating excess or weak synaptic connections. During early childhood ...

An analysis of how synaptic proteins change during early development reveals differences between mice and marmosets but also what's different in individuals with autism spectrum disorders. The ...

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.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental condition in which affected individuals experience difficulties in social communication and exhibit restricted, repetitive patterns of ...

Scientists have discovered that the adolescent brain does more than prune old connections. During the teen years, it actively builds dense new clusters of synapses in specific parts of neurons. These ...

This image shows densely accumulated dendritic spines. Researchers from Kyushu University discovered a previously unrecognized synaptic “hotspot” that forms during adolescence, challenging the ...