Brain News and Research

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The human brain is the center of the human nervous system and is a highly complex organ. Enclosed in the cranium, it has the same general structure as the brains of other mammals, but is over three times as large as the brain of a typical mammal with an equivalent body size.

Combination radiation treatment for brain cancer leads to better life

People with cancer that has spread to the brain – about 40 percent of all cancer cases – live longer and enjoy a better quality of life if they are treated with a combination of radiation techniques, according to research conducted, in part, at the James P. Wilmot Cancer Center at the University of Rochester Medical Center.

21 May 2004

Clusters of viral meningitis found in two Manhattan schools

Working closely with the New York City Department of Education (DOE), the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) is investigating clusters of viral meningitis in two Manhattan schools (4 students at La Guardia High School, 2 students at Stuyvesant High School).

21 May 2004

Genome research sheds light on Bardet-Biedl syndrome

By comparing the genomes of an alga, a weed and humans, a team of researchers has identified a new gene behind Bardet-Biedl syndrome (BBS), a complex condition marked by learning disabilities, vision loss and obesity.

21 May 2004

New 100 teraflop supercomputer will help simulation of brain seizures

The U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory will play a major role in the development of a new national computational science facility aimed at deploying a supercomputer capable of sustained performance of 100 trillion floating-point operations per second (teraflops) by 2007.

21 May 2004

Are we as crazy as mad cows?

When proteins in our body work properly, we can see, smell, consume and digest food, grow muscle and brain cells. But when these infinitely useful biological building blocks fail, the most pernicious diseases arise. Susan Lindquist has scrutinized the complex origami-like shapes of proteins and come to understand how structural mistakes can lead to a frightening class of neurodegenerative disorders, including “Mad Cow Disease.”

20 May 2004

Hypertension treatment could reduce hemorrhagic strokes by nearly 30 percent

Treating hypertension could cut the annual number of bleeding strokes in the United States by about one-fourth, according to a report in today’s rapid access issue of Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association.

20 May 2004

New medical device indentifies abnormal heart rhythms called atrial fibrillation

A new device identified abnormal heart rhythms called atrial fibrillation in one of 18 stroke patients in whom two standard tests failed to detect the irregularity, researchers report in today’s rapid access issue of Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association.

20 May 2004

Protein that appears to play a key role in Alzheimer's disease

A protein that allows human cancer to resist multiple anticancer drugs also appears to play a key role in Alzheimer's disease, according to research conducted at Fox Chase Cancer Center. The protein, active in brain tissue, could be a target for new drugs to treat patients with Alzheimer's.

20 May 2004

Researchers to study link between diabetes and early dementia

Understanding the link between diabetes and early dementia – as well as how diabetes relates to other causes of memory loss – is the focus of a new study at Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) and approximately 40 other medical institutions nationwide.

20 May 2004

Watching for West Nile virus, dead bird and mosquito monitoring resumes

Warmer spring weather and the coming mosquito season has the Department of Health on the lookout for West Nile virus again, working with local health departments to identify mosquitoes, track dead birds and monitor any human illness across Washington. This season brings mosquito-breeding weather and the threat of mosquito-borne disease, including West Nile virus.

20 May 2004

Brain can make errors in reassembling the color and motion of objects

You're driving along in your car and catch a glimpse of a green SUV out of the corner of your eye. A few seconds later, you glance over, and to your surprise discover that the SUV is actually brown.

19 May 2004

Centre for Life opens with the UK’s first two human embryonic stem cell lines

The UK’s first two human embryonic stem cell lines, developed separately by researchers at King’s College London and the Centre for Life in Newcastle, are to be deposited in the UK Stem Cell Bank. The deposit coincides with the official opening of the Bank by Health Minister, Lord Warner, today (Wednesday 19 May 2004).

19 May 2004

Office of Naval Research harnessing human brain power to control the maneuvers of UUVs

Even the least graceful among us has motor control the most high-tech unmanned undersea vehicle would envy, thanks to a region of the brain that allows our bodies to carry out complex maneuvers. The Office of Naval Research, which traditionally relies on the power of the human mind to achieve breakthroughs in science and technology, now also is harnessing the working principle of the brain to control the maneuvers of UUVs.

19 May 2004

A new synthetic chemical may provide framework for future drugs to treat brain-based ailments

A new synthetic chemical may provide the framework for future drugs that can treat a variety of brain-based ailments, ranging from overeating and drug dependency to neuropathic pain.

19 May 2004

Study helps to visualize how brain develops with age

The brain's center of reasoning and problem solving is among the last to mature, a new study graphically reveals. The decade-long magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) study of normal brain development, from ages 4 to 21, by researchers at NIH's National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) and University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) shows that such "higher-order" brain centers, such as the prefrontal cortex, don't fully develop until young adulthood.

18 May 2004

1.3 million Hispanics will have Alzheimer’s disease by 2050

Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias are projected to increase more than six-fold among Hispanics in the U.S. during the first half of the 21st century, according to a new report released today by the Alzheimer’s Association. This increase means that 1.3 million Hispanics will have Alzheimer’s disease by 2050, compared to fewer than 200,000 currently living with the disease.

17 May 2004

$1.4 million to investigate how strokes and other events that cut off blood flow to the brain disrupt the blood-brain barrier

The Cleveland Clinic has been awarded a four-year, $1.4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to investigate how strokes and other events that cut off blood flow to the brain disrupt the blood-brain barrier. Researchers hope to use their findings to develop new methods to limit the damage caused by such events.

17 May 2004

Research into sleeping disorder drug may help multiple sclerosis patients

A University of Nottingham academic is leading a research project looking at whether a drug produced for a sleeping disorder could improve the quality of life for thousands of multiple sclerosis patients.

17 May 2004

Vocational rehabilitation services helps people with traumatic brain injuries get back to work

More than 2 million people in the United States suffer traumatic brain injuries (TBI) each year, costing the nation nearly $1 billion in lost wages, increased government support and lost tax income in the first year alone. However, a University of Missouri-Columbia researcher has found that persons with TBI have a good chance of successfully returning to work if they receive vocational rehabilitation services.

17 May 2004

Some amnesiacs can maintain their memories for a longer period of time if they spend time sitting in a dark, quiet room

Amnesia sufferers can lose their short-term memories within one minute of the initial thought. While such things as head injuries and strokes are known to cause amnesia, very little is known about why such severe memory loss occurs. However, a University of Missouri-Columbia researcher has discovered that some amnesiacs can maintain their memories for a longer period of time if they spend time sitting in a dark, quiet room.

17 May 2004