BIOLOGY, NEUROSCIENCE - Nerves in the intestines help regulate the gut’s acidity, new research shows, and that helps keep their bacterial communities in balance.

NEUROSCIENCE - If behavior is a language, UO neuroscientist Luca Mazzucato is decoding its grammar. Distinct, coordinated activity in large sets of neurons can predict a rat’s future behavior, he and his team showed in a new study.

NEUROSCIENCE - New research in mice sheds light on the seemingly random brain signals that hum in the background of brains. These signals might help the brain switch between states of inattention or disengagement and states of optimal performance, UO researchers reported Oct. 14 in the journal Neuron.

Ten University of Oregon undergraduates had the chance to spend part of the summer honing their research skills through programs that offered a chance to pursue their own scholarly projects. The students were chosen for one of two types of research grants.

BIOLOGY, NEUROSCIENCE - Imagine a drug that could temporarily reenergize plasticity in the brain to treat autism or schizophrenia, or even help an adult’s aging brain pick up a new language or learn to play a musical instrument.