Secrets of Aging
What does a normally aging brain look like? Are diseases of aging such as Alzheimer’s inevitable?
By Carol BarnesSeptember 2011
Table of Contents
Cover Story
Features
What Causes Alzheimer’s?
By W. Sue T. GriffinResearchers and pharma companies have tried to attack this disease by reducing amyloid plaques, but inflammation may be the real culprit.
The 2011 Labby Multimedia Awards
By Jessica P. JohnsonIntroducing the winners of our second annual “Labbies” awards
Departments
Editorial
Hold That Thought
By Mary Beth AberlinIn the memory circuits of the aging brain and the signaling pathways of pain, science is trading mystery for mastery.
Notebook
Blood Simple
By Tia GhoseA veterinary vaccine spawned products that could clean the HIV virus from blood supplies.
To Pee or Not to Pee
By Richard P. GrantHave researchers found the seat of urination control in a primitive brain region?
Octophilosophy
By Katherine BagleyWhen it comes to studying cephalopod brains and behavior, it helps to have a philosopher around.
Adapting to Climate Change
By Jef AkstIndigenous populations are especially vulnerable to the effects of global climate change. A new research project aims to help them adapt.
Speaking of Science
Speaking of Science
September 2011′s selection of notable quotes
Thought Experiment
Puncturing the Myth
By Geoffrey BurnstockPurinergic signaling, not mystical energy, may explain how acupuncture works.
Modus Operandi
Deep Tissue Treatment
By Tia GhoseA new, genetically encoded tag for electron microscopy may revolutionize studies of specific proteins in cells and tissues.
Critic At Large
Vive la Différence
By H. Steven WileyMeasuring how individual cells differ from each other will enhance the predictive power of biology.
The Literature
Amoebae Get Organized
By Richard P. GrantEditor’s Choice in Developmental Biology
Piggyback Pathogen
By Jessica P. JohnsonEditor’s Choice in Immunology
Ribosomes in Control
By Jessica P. JohnsonEditor’s Choice in Cell Biology
Reading Frames
What Price Kindness?
By Oren HarmanExposing the life and work of a visionary and troubled scientist opens a window onto the evolution of altruism.
Profile
Beyond Expectation
By Karen HopkinPhilippa “Pippa” Marrack has made some unanticipated discoveries about how the immune system functions in health and disease.
Scientist to Watch
Corina Tarnita: The Ant Mathematician
By Jessica P. JohnsonJunior Fellow, Harvard Society of Fellows, Harvard University. Age: 28
Lab Tools
Speak, RNA
By Jeffrey M. PerkelA trip through the transcriptome
Careers
Poster Perfect
By Edyta ZielinskaHow to drive home your science with a visually pleasing poster
Capsule Reviews
Capsule Reviews
By Bob GrantArt + Science Now, Signs of Life, Perceptions of Promise, Green Light
Foundations
Animal Electricity, circa 1781
By Jessica P. JohnsonHow an Italian scientist doing Frankenstein-like experiments on dead frogs discovered that the body is powered by electrical impulses.
Contributors
Contributors
Meet some of the people featured in the September 2011 issue of The Scientist.
Multimedia
Art + Science Now
By Bob GrantThe book that serves as bio art’s encyclopedia.
Lost in Space
By Carol BarnesLooking for a more realistic way to study memory, we turned to place cells—a network of cells that record a…
The Seat of Memory
By Carol BarnesEarly on, researchers had learned that the hippocampus was the structure in the brain where long-term memories were created and…
Molecular Learning
By Carol BarnesLong-term potentiation (LTP), discovered in the 1970s, was later shown to be the molecular basis of memory. Since many diseases…
The Cytokine Cycle
By W. Sue T. GriffinThe initiating cause of Alzheimer’s disease is still unknown. However, from our studies it’s clear that many types of neuronal…
F1000 Reports
Biology Reports
Medical Reports
