Max Planck Institute for Brain Research

Philipp Brand receives an ERC Starting Grant  Microbial symbionts are widespread across the animal kingdom and can...

Three Weeks of Science, New Perspectives and Discoveries for the Max Planck Junior Scholars 2026 How is scientific...

The director of the Max Planck Institute for Brain Research is among the winners of the internationally renowned Kavli...

Scientists discover RNA-driven mechanism that helps neurons endure prolonged starvation Ribosomes, the cell’s protein...

In 2025, the Max Planck Institute for Brain Research welcomes two new Research Group Leaders: Dr. Philipp Brand and Dr...

The neuroscientist is honored for her pioneering research revealing how local protein production shapes synaptic...

New integrative study uncovers the spatial organization of transcripts and proteins in the mouse hippocampus, offering...

New study shows ribosome biogenesis can occur within neuronal branches, challenging traditional textbook biology...

Gilles Laurent is awarded the 2025 Louis-Jeantet Prize for Medicine for his pioneering work on the operations of neurons...

Vanessa Stempel receives an ERC Starting Grant to investigate brain circuits supporting instinctive behaviors  ...

Erin Schuman, director at the Max Planck Institute for Brain Research in Frankfurt, has been awarded the prestigious...

Cephalopod camouflage is one of the most fascinating behaviors in the animal kingdom and is of great importance to...

A major component of the cell’s protein destruction machine moonlights at brain synapses A new study by researchers at the...

Max Planck Institute for Brain Research director and Brain Prize winner Erin Schuman has been elected to the American...

Max Planck scientist receives the most prestigious research prize in neuroscience together with two other researchers Erin...

Human beings are bilaterally symmetrical. As such, our brains are made of two halves called hemispheres, that communicate...

New study uses computer simulations to explore how patterns of spikes propagate in neuronal networks constrained by the...

Scientists discover that the mysterious ‘zone of uncertainty’ enables the brain to rapidly form new memories The neocortex...

These days, dragons are keeping Game of Thrones fans on their toes. But they are also providing important insights into...

Scientists gain insights on how deprivation-induced synaptic changes affect excitatory and inhibitory firing rates in the...

Scientists map prominent differences in the neural circuits of mice, monkeys, and human The analysis of the human brain is...

A memorial sculpture at the Max Planck Institute for Brain Research commemorates the tragic history of the predecessor...

DFG and BMBF award the neuroscientist with the most important prize for early career researchers in Germany Our...

The neuroscientist is honoured for her exceptional achievements in the life sciences and for being an inspiring role model...

Alison Barker and Vanessa Stempel joined the Max Planck Institute for Brain Research as new research group leaders in 2021...

The flash of an image on the retina sends millions of neurons to work. ESI scientists show that their responses become...

Scientists discover the brain’s internal goal map enabling animals to navigate precisely to a chosen destination. Animals...

Neuronal ribosomes dynamically change their composition in a context-dependent manner. Ribosomes are large, multi-protein...

Neurons use local protein synthesis as dominant source of protein production. To form and modify synaptic connections and...

Scientists discover a tight relationship between the local protein synthesis machinery and its nascent protein products in...

Neurons phosphorylate their proteins in order to sense and respond to changes in network activity Homeostatic scaling is a...

Max Planck scientist is recognized for outstanding achievements in the field of computational and theoretical neuroscience...

Researchers unravel a mechanism behind distinct organizational features in the visual cortex of mouse and ferrets Recent...

A novel approach to connectomics gives insights on the validity of brain models Our brains house about 85 billion neurons...

Scientists track mRNA molecules and newly synthesized proteins within living neurons Neurons communicate across vast...

A computational model gives insights into how spontaneous neural activity shapes connectivity in the developing visual...

Researchers use connectomic mapping in the developing cortex to uncover the developmental wiring rules for inhibitory...

Scientists discover a neuropeptide that reflects the current state of a fish’s social environment. Have you recently...

Membrane proteins are more efficient at reaching distal dendrites than soluble proteins. Proteins are the essential...

New study identifies a region of the thalamus as a key source of signals encoding past experiences in the neocortex. The...

The Max Planck Institute for Brain Research is presenting a series of virtual seminars in 2021 by excellent postdoctoral...

Scientists discover a brain circuit that signals the direction and distance of boundaries in the environment to help...

Neurons use homeostatic mechanisms to maintain stability despite experience-dependent network alterations. Neural circuits...

Scientists develop a computational model to predict and interpret the outcome of optogenetic experiments. Optogenetic...

Tatjana Tchumatchenko, Research Group Leader at the Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, has received this prestigious...

Professor Erin Schuman has been awarded the Diversity prize 2020 for her contribution to advancing gender equality in...

Scientists immerse themselves into the structure of networks Under the framework of a new Marie Skłodowska Curie...

Scientists find, in reptiles, a brain area previously suspected to play a role in mammalian higher cognitive processes...

Scientists find how inhibition of the protein machine which degrade unneeded or damaged proteins leads to a compensatory...

The National Academy of Sciences is recognizing Erin Schuman for her outstanding contributions to neuronal cell biology...

Scientists gain insights into properties that enable neural circuit stability after specific perturbations. A neural...

Scientists reveal surprising insights into protein synthesis in neurons. The complex architecture of brain cells requires...

The Louis-Jeantet Foundation is recognizing Erin Schuman for her work on local protein synthesis at neuronal synapses. The...

New study finds that the auditory cortex is indispensable for threat memory, in particular for naturalistic stimuli. A...

Researchers use 3-dimensional electron microscopy to map the local connectome in the cerebral cortex. Mammalian brains...

New study provides unprecedented insights on the nature of neural processing in the cortex. Brain computation is carried...

Scientists develop a mathematical model to predict the density and dynamics of proteins in the brain Proteins are the...

A genetically encodable cell-type-specific protein synthesis inhibitor Long-lasting memories in the brain are made...

Proteins, the essential building blocks and machines of all cells, have a limited lifetime. Within the span of a week or...

Chao Sun started his research in the Schuman Lab in August 2018 and investigates the “sociology” of neuronal...

With this prestigious grant of about 2.5 million Euro, Gilles Laurent, Director at the Max Planck Institute for Brain...

The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation has recently awarded prestigious fellowships to both postdocs at the Max Planck...

Neurons exhibit a unique degree of spatial compartmentalization and are able to maintain and remodel their proteomes...

The European Commission has recently awarded Anna a Marie Sklodowska-Curie Individual Fellowship to work abroad. Anna...

High-school students (10th and 11th graders) can apply till February 15, 2019 The Max Planck Junior Scholars Program...

A big challenge in proteomics is the identification of cell-type-specific proteomes in vivo. This protocol describes how...

Local translation meets protein turnover and plasticity demands at synapses, however, the location of its energy supply is...

Mitochondria are essential for local protein synthesis and synaptic plasticity in neurons In order to respond both swiftly...

Both Anna Schröder and Chao Sun have been awarded a prestigious two-year grant to support post-doctoral research in a...

Julijana Gjorgjieva is one of the four Max Planck Research Group Leaders at the Institute and received the Research Prize...

Max Planck Institute for Brain Research researcher Maria Antonietta Tosches has been nominated from a pool of...

The Society for Neuroscience (SfN) recognizes Erin Schuman for her outstanding career achievements in neuroscience and for...

Few animals provide a readout that is as objective of their perceptual state as camouflaging cephalopods. Their skin...

A unique feature that sets neurons apart from all other cells are their beautiful, highly elaborate dendritic trees. These...

Add-on Fellowship for Interdisciplinary Life Science offers funding for two years. Laura Bernáez Timón is a graduate...

The Humboldt Research Fellowship for Postdoctoral Researchers will support Raunak for a period of 24 months as of March...

New exhibition at the Max Planck Institute for Brain Research On the Max Planck Day (September 14), the Max Planck...

As a prelude to the Max Planck Day, MPI-BR scientists brought their exciting research to local bars. On September 13...

Changes in the efficacies of synapses are thought to be the neurobiological basis of learning and memory. The efficacy of...

On September 14, the Max Planck Institute for Brain Research opened an exhibition about life and work of the...

Neurovascular communication in the brain Function and homeostasis of the brain relies on communication between the complex...

The labeling and identification of long-range axonal inputs from multiple sources within densely reconstructed EM datasets...

Neuroscientists discover a mechanism for brain-wide communication when selecting a route towards a destination. Route...

Research Group Leader Julijana Gjorgjieva at the Max Planck Institute for Brain Research has received this prestigious...

New findings provide insight on how the components of different cells in the brain are altered, which could affect our...

This two-year grant will support her research project on the neural circuits underlying Drosophila (fruit fly) larvae...

Molecular atlases of turtle and lizard brains shed light on the evolution of our own brain. Our cerebral cortex, a sheet...

Neurons localize mRNAs near synapses where their translation can be regulated by synaptic demand and activity. Differences...

Max Planck Researchers identify rapid neuromodulation of interneurons in human neocortex. The human neocortex mediates...

Scientists from the Schuman Lab at the Max Planck Institute for Brain Research have investigated the variety of structures...

Research Group Leader Hiroshi Ito (Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, Frankfurt, Germany) has been awarded a Young...

Max Planck researchers Nataliya Kraynyukova and Tatjana Tchumatchenko have explored how the structure of neural networks...

A hallmark of cortical circuits is their versatility. They can perform multiple fundamental computations such as...

Anja Gemmer works in the Schuman Lab where she studies the role of oxytocin in zebrafish. Anja is delighted about the...

Tatjana’s project is part of the Priority Programme “Computational Connectomics”, a newly established research programme...

In homeostatic scaling at central synapses, the depth and breadth of cellular mechanisms that detect the offset from the...

Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Brain Research have found a way to measure newly synthesized proteins in...

Turtle dorsal cortex (dCx), a three-layered corticalarea of the reptilian telencephalon, receives inputsfrom the retina...

In mammals, such as cats or humans, the six-layered cerebral cortex is one of the most important brain areas for conscious...

As part of its 25th anniversary, Focus Magazine selected Tatjana Tchumatchenko (Max Planck Research Group Leader at our...

In the Tchumatchenko Lab, Andreas models the interactions between different types of cells in the brain causing multiple...

With the grant from the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation, Max Planck Research Group Leader Julijana Gjorgjieva will...

Postdoc Anne Biever was recently awarded a Humboldt Research Fellowship for Postdoctoral Researchers. These fellowships...

Tatjana Tchumatchenko, the leader of Theory of Neural Dynamics Group at the Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, has...

By using innovative labeling methods, Max Planck researchers develop a technique to measure newly synthesized proteins in...

All functions of the brain are generated by neural circuits with complex nonlinear interactions and feedback loops. In the...

Paul Donlin-Asp, postdoctoral fellow in the Schuman lab, was awarded a Peter and Traudl Engelhorn Foundation Postdoctoral...

Our brains house extremely complex neuronal circuits, whose detailed structures are still largely unknown. This is...

Flying through the brain thanks to a novel in-browser tool Scientists working in “connectomics,” a research...

We are happy to announce that Erin Schuman, Director at the Max Planck Institute (MPI) for Brain Research, was recently...

Wolf Singer, Director Emeritus at the Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, is one of the 21 foreign associates...

Hiroshi Ito has been awarded the Young Investigator Award of the Japan Neuroscience Society for his investigation of...

Frankfurt researchers find a simple explanation for the typical patterns of nerve cells inside neural maps The human brain...

With this prestigious grant of 2.5 million Euro, Erin Schuman, Director at the Frankfurt-based Max Planck Institute for...

Last year, Hiroshi moved from the Lab of Nobel laureates May-Britt and Edvard Moser in Trondheim, Norway to the MPI in...

Neurons communicate via spikes but how they use those short pulses to code information is still an open question. Recent...

Witnessing the birth of a tiny RNA at brain synapses Proteins are the building blocks of all cells. They are made from...

Researchers discover a “sugar-code” for neuronal membrane proteins. To rapidly carry information throughout the body...

Neurons adjust their synapses by altering the synthesis of hundreds of proteins to regulate synaptic strength and network...

Behavioral sleep is ubiquitous among animals, from insects to man. In humans, sleep is also characterized by brain...

Dog-like carnivores and some primate species may have a magnetic compass similar to that of birds. Cryptochromes are light...

The brain has an enormous capacity to store information, and to retrieve it again in a highly efficient way that is to...

Unraveling the connectivity maps between nerve cells in brains is a huge scientific endeavor – called connectomics. The...

Gustation, the sense of taste, is thought to inform the brain about which of the five basic tastes (sweet, sour, salty...

The imaging technique to investigate the connectome – the connections between neurons – is electron microscopy (EM)...

Motion direction is computed by similar types of neural circuits At first glance, the eyes of mammals and those of insects...