Scientists have identified the key protein involved in the way nerve cells change shape while the brain is actively processing new information. Called myocyte enhancer factor 2 (MEF2), the protein switches on and off the genes that control the way nerve cells and the connections, or synapses, between them are remodelled during learning and memory processes.

The research teams, from Harvard Medical School and the Childen's Hospital, Boston, speculate that their discovery could provide new therapies for autism, neurodegenerative diseases and psychiatric disorders.