Thomas Südhof discusses the cell-biological principles underlying the assembly of specific synaptic connections with defined properties that control neural circuits.

The human brain is made up of approximately 86 billion neurons that “talk” to each other using a combination of electrical and chemical (electrochemical) signals. The places where neurons connect and communicate with each other are called synapses. Each neuron has anywhere between a few to hundre...

In a neural circuit, synapses transfer information rapidly between neurons and transform this information during transfer. The diverse computational properties of synapses are shaped by the interactions between pre- and postsynaptic neurons. How synapses are assembled to form a neural circuit, and h...

Classical physiological work by Katz, Eccles, and others revealed the central importance of synapses in brain function, and characterized the mechanisms involved in synaptic transmission. Building on this work, major advances in the past two decades have elucidated how synapses work molecularly. In ...