Stabilizing neuronal branching for healthy brain circuitry

Neurons form circuits in our brain by creating tree-like branches to connect with each other. Newly forming branches rely on the stability of microtubules, a railway-like system important for the transport of materials in cells. The mechanisms that regulate the stability of microtubules in branches are largely unknown. New research from the Vickie & Jack Farber Institute for Neuroscience—Jefferson Health has identified a key molecule that stabilizes microtubules and reinforces new neuronal branches.