{"id":2758,"date":"2026-03-18T20:02:59","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T20:02:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/2026\/03\/18\/hidden-circuit-helps-the-brain-learn-from-mistakes-duke-university-school-of-medicine\/"},"modified":"2026-03-18T20:02:59","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T20:02:59","slug":"hidden-circuit-helps-the-brain-learn-from-mistakes-duke-university-school-of-medicine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/2026\/03\/18\/hidden-circuit-helps-the-brain-learn-from-mistakes-duke-university-school-of-medicine\/","title":{"rendered":"Hidden circuit helps the brain learn from mistakes – Duke University School of Medicine"},"content":{"rendered":"

Duke University School of Medicine <\/span>scientists<\/span> have discovered a hidden brain circuit that helps explain how we learn from <\/span>experience.<\/span> <\/span><\/span> <\/span>
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The finding published <\/span><\/span>March 18 <\/span>in Nature<\/span><\/u><\/a> solves a long-standing mystery about the cerebellum, a small region at the back of the brain essential for learning and <\/span>refining <\/span>movement<\/span>s from<\/span> walking and reaching to playing a<\/span> musical<\/span> instrument. <\/span><\/span> <\/span>
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Neuroscientists from Duke and Harvard Medical School collaborated on the study that <\/span>could also offer new clues <\/span>to<\/span> what goes <\/span>awry<\/span> in neurological conditions that <\/span>impair<\/span> learning and movement. <\/span><\/span> <\/span>
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The cerebellum relies on powerful error signals <\/span>carried by<\/span> climbing fibers<\/span>, <\/span>which are<\/span> <\/span>unique neural structures <\/span>that<\/span> <\/span>fire when moveme<\/span>nt <\/span>does<\/span>n\u2019t<\/span> go as planned. When a movement is off \u2014 a missed step or a mistimed throw \u2014 climbing fibers send a signal that something nee<\/span>ds <\/span>fix<\/span>ing<\/span>. <\/span><\/span> <\/span>
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Those signals activate Purkinje cells, the cerebellum\u2019s main output cells, triggering bursts of calcium that help rewire brain connections. These changes, known as plasticity, are how the brain learns. <\/span><\/span> <\/span>
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But<\/span>, according to<\/span> <\/span>co<\/span>-senior<\/span> study author <\/span><\/span>Court Hull, PhD<\/span><\/u><\/a>, <\/span>there\u2019s<\/span> been a lingering scientific paradox. Hull, <\/span>an associate professor of neurobiology at Duke<\/span>,<\/span> <\/span>led<\/span> <\/span>the study<\/span> alongside Harvard neuroscientist <\/span><\/span>Wade G. <\/span>Regehr<\/span>, PhD<\/span><\/u><\/a>.<\/span><\/span> <\/span>
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\u201cClimbing fibers also activate inhibitory cells that should prevent those calcium signals,\u201d <\/span>Hull<\/span> said. \u201cSo<\/span>,<\/span> the question has been: how can <\/span>climbing fibers<\/span> promote learning and suppress it at the same time?\u201d <\/span><\/span> <\/span>
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The new research shows the brain resolves that conflict by briefly shutting inhibition off. <\/span><\/span> <\/span>
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Using high-resolution electron microscopy, brain slice experiments, and recordings in living mice, <\/span>first<\/span> study author <\/span><\/span>Fernando Santos-Valencia<\/span><\/u><\/a>, a Duke graduate student,<\/span><\/span> found that climbing fibers <\/span>don\u2019t<\/span> activate all inhibitory cells equally. Instead, they preferentially target a specific group known as ML12 cells. <\/span><\/span> <\/span>
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These cells <\/span>don\u2019t<\/span> inhibit Purkinje cells directly. Instead<\/span>,<\/span> they shut down <\/span>another group of inhibitory neurons \u2014 ML<\/span>11<\/span> cells \u2014 whose normal job is to suppress learning. <\/span><\/span> <\/span>
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\u201c<\/span>Until <\/span>Fernando\u2019s <\/span>finding it was not known that this type of disinhibitory circuitry existed in the cerebellum,<\/span>\u201d Hull said. \u201c<\/span>Or how climbing fiber inputs could <\/span>engage this circuitry to promote learning.\u201d<\/span> <\/span><\/span> <\/span>
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The effect is <\/span>strong<\/span>est<\/span> when <\/span>multiple<\/span> climbing fibers fire at <\/span>on<\/span>c<\/span>e. That kind of synchronized activity often happens during sensory experiences, like<\/span> <\/span>tripping on a hidden object, hearing a loud sound, or seeing a <\/span>sudden movement.<\/span><\/span> <\/span>
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When th<\/span>ose signals arrive together, the <\/span>brain briefly releases its internal brakes. I<\/span>nhibitory activity drops<\/span>,<\/span> <\/span>allowing <\/span>Purkinje<\/span> cells <\/span>to <\/span>generate<\/span> strong <\/span>calcium signals that <\/span>reshape<\/span> <\/span>brain connections.<\/span> <\/span>Because l<\/span>earning depends on <\/span>how <\/span>the <\/span>brain <\/span>takes<\/span> in and organ<\/span>izes<\/span> sensory information<\/span>, this process links experiences to long-term learning.<\/span><\/span> <\/span>
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The <\/span>result<\/span>s help explain why synchronized climbing fiber <\/span>activity<\/span> <\/span>is <\/span>especially effective in triggering cerebellar learning.<\/span> <\/span><\/span> <\/span>
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Just as important, researchers say the study highlights why inhibition matters in the first place. <\/span><\/span> <\/span>
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\u201cThe key is <\/span>having<\/span> \u201cbrakes\u201d <\/span>that can control<\/span> neural plasticity,\u201d said <\/span><\/span>Santos-Valencia<\/span>. \u201cRather than<\/span> constantly increasing<\/span> error <\/span>messages<\/span> to produce plasticity and learning, a braking mechanism allows the brain to open a window for learning when <\/span>needed<\/span> and closing it when it\u2019s not.\u201d <\/span><\/span> <\/span>
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The discovery could eventually help scientists better understand brain disorders. <\/span><\/span> <\/span>
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\u201cAn imbalance of excitation and inhibition in the cerebellum could also lead to motor dysfunction or impaired motor learning,\u201d Hull said. <\/span><\/span> <\/span>
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\u201cThe hope is that by understanding how the circuit works to allow learning in normal conditions, we can pinpoint what elements are not working normally in <\/span>cerebellar diseases such as ataxias, or <\/span>other <\/span>diseases thought to involve the cerebellum such as autism spectrum disorders.\u201d<\/span><\/span> <\/span>
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Support for the study was provided by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, Edward <\/span>R.<\/span> and Anne G. <\/span>Lefler<\/span> Center, Nancy Lurie Marks Foundation, Alice and Joseph Brooks Fund, Ruth K. Broad Biomedical Research Foundation, Bertarelli Program in Translational Neuroscience and <\/span>Neuroengineering<\/span> and Stanley and Theodora Feldberg Fund. <\/span><\/span>  <\/span>
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Duke University School of Medicine scientists have discovered a hidden brain circuit that helps explain how we learn from experience.   The finding published March 18 in Nature solves a long-standing mystery about the cerebellum, a small region at the back of the brain essential for learning and refining movements from walking and reaching to playing a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2759,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-2758","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-science"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2758","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2758"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2758\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2759"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2758"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2758"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2758"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}