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Gut bacteria regulate intestinal motor circuits by metabolizing sex hormones

2026-06-04

Nature Neuroscience, Published online: 04 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41593-026-02338-5

Androgens — hormones that are generally present at higher levels in males than females — regulate intestinal transit, but their cellular targets and mechanisms of action are unclear. We identify the neurons that mediate androgen-dependent gut motility and reveal that androgen reactivation by a bacterial enzyme in the gut lumen is necessary for this vital neuroendocrine axis.

Aberrant tau accumulation caused by MAPT mutations induces early pathological changes in axonal transport that are rescued by p38α inhibition

Edoardo Moretto — 2026-06-04

Nature Neuroscience, Published online: 04 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41593-026-02266-4

Imaging axonal transport in vivo in the mouse cortex reveals that deficits in axonal transport arise at early stages of tau pathology, are caused by enlarged tau envelopes and are reversed by inhibiting MAPK p38α.

Single-cell multi-omic atlas and morphogen screening informs midbrain and hindbrain organoid engineering

Nadezhda Azbukina — 2026-06-03

Nature Neuroscience, Published online: 03 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41593-026-02316-x

By combining single-cell sequencing and morphogen screening, researchers map how signaling cues shape cell identity in mid-hindbrain organoids and identify conditions that generate novel posterior brain neuron types.

The representational geometry of emotional states in basolateral amygdala

Pia-Kelsey O’Neill — 2026-06-03

Nature Neuroscience, Published online: 03 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41593-026-02315-y

O’Neill, Posani and colleagues show that while single amygdala neurons encode multiple emotional state-related variables (for example, valence, fear and safety), population-level geometry can enable one variable to be read out cleanly without interference.

A brainstem pathway underlying vagal modulation of somatic pain and affective states

Yuan Tang — 2026-06-03

Nature Neuroscience, Published online: 03 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41593-026-02313-0

This study identifies a brainstem pathway through which vagus nerve stimulation reduces pain and negative affect, showing how the caudal nucleus of the solitary tract transforms pain signals and regulates pain-related dopamine responses.

Microbial reactivation of host androgens directs enteric neuronal regulation of gut motility

Valentina N. Lagomarsino — 2026-06-02

Nature Neuroscience, Published online: 02 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41593-026-02321-0

This study shows that androgens signal to specific enteric neurons to stimulate gut motility. Bacterial metabolism of host-derived steroids generates the ligands, revealing a dynamic host–microbe interaction that influences nervous system function.

Towards a holistic understanding of pain in the biomarker age

Choong-Wan Woo — 2026-06-01

Nature Neuroscience, Published online: 01 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41593-026-02323-y

Pain biomarkers cannot prove or disprove another person’s pain, but they need not be rejected as futile or reductionist. When developed within a bio-psycho-social framework and guided by epistemic humility and ethical safeguards, they can complement and enrich the voices of those living with pain rather than replace them.

Why pain biomarkers cannot replace the patient experience

Jan Vollert — 2026-06-01

Nature Neuroscience, Published online: 01 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41593-026-02324-x

Using neuroimaging to understand the mechanisms of pain is an important task. But we must understand that the gold standard of measuring pain will always be the self-report.