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.

Using nanotechnology to fight dementia

In the human brain, nerve cells - so-called neurons - care for the transmission of electrical signals. They form the functional component responsible for sensations, stimuli and memories. In the presence of dementia, there is an adsorption of proteins outside the neurons, which then leads to the death of the neuronal cells. How to prevent the death of neurons is still the subject of scientific research today.

10 Oct 2018

Functional brain connections for emotional regulation emerge during infancy

Researchers in the UNC Early Brain Development Study tracking the development of the brain's emotion circuitry in infancy found that adult-like functional brain connections for emotional regulation emerge during the first year of life.

10 Oct 2018

Greater family size reduces cancer risk

Families with many children have a lower risk of cancer. Greater family size reduces the risk not only in women but also in men, a global study using data from 178 countries by the University of Zurich and the Adelaide Medical School has found.

10 Oct 2018

New AUC published for lumbar puncture and spinal fluid analysis in Alzheimer's diagnosis

In preparation for more tools that detect and measure the biology associated with Alzheimer's and other dementias earlier and with more accuracy, an Alzheimer's Association-led Workgroup has published appropriate use criteria for lumbar puncture (spinal tap) and spinal fluid analysis in the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease.

10 Oct 2018

Drug treatment at a young age could help reverse autism-like behavior in tuberous sclerosis

New research on autism has found, in a mouse model, that drug treatment at a young age can reverse social impairments. But the same intervention was not effective at an older age.

10 Oct 2018

Pioneering software system hopes to make epilepsy surgery safer and easier

A team of researchers, clinicians and engineers from UCLH, UCL, King's College London and the Epilepsy Society have developed a world-leading software system called EpiNav, which stands for epilepsy navigation, and their work is being featured on tonight's episode of the BBC's Trust Me I'm a Doctor.

10 Oct 2018

Seizures start with a hush: A spike in inhibition

Some patients describe epileptic seizures like an earthquake from within, starting slow and growing without their control. To a brain researcher, seizures are an electrical firestorm of neuronal activation in the brain.

10 Oct 2018

Study shows role of protein in tuning synaptic transmission critical for cognition

Our cognitive abilities come down to how well the connections, or synapses, between our brain cells transmit signals.

10 Oct 2018

Brown researchers uncover new clues about ALS progression

Brown University researchers have uncovered new clues about the progression of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), a surprisingly common disease that causes the death of motor neurons that control voluntary muscles such as those involved in walking, talking, chewing or breathing.

10 Oct 2018

Binge drinking history makes male and female mice react differently to stress, study shows

Researchers with the Veterans Affairs Portland Health Care System and Oregon Health & Sciences University found that a history of binge drinking made male and female mice react differently to traumatic stress.

10 Oct 2018

UTSA acquires state-of-the-art microscope to write commands directly into neurons

It's about the size of a dinner table; yet, one day may influence conversations held around the kitchen table. This is what excites researchers at the University of Texas at San Antonio as they anticipate the arrival of a state-of-the-art microscope.

10 Oct 2018

Too much shut-eye can be bad for the brain, shows new study

Preliminary results from the world's largest sleep study have shown that people who sleep on average between 7 to 8 hours per night performed better cognitively than those who slept less, or more, than this amount.

10 Oct 2018

Caltech researchers develop two new illusions with audiovisual postdictive effects

We experience the world through our senses, a constant torrent of sights, sounds, smells, and more. Our brains take these signals and process them, giving rise to our individual perceptions of the world. But sometimes our senses play tricks on us, notably in the case of perceptual illusions.

10 Oct 2018

Memory 'brainwaves' are identical in sleep and wakefulness

Identical brain mechanisms are responsible for triggering memory in both sleep and wakefulness, new research at the University of Birmingham has shown.

10 Oct 2018

Scientists identify new biomarker for Alzheimer's disease of sporadic origin

The objective of the research, undertaken in the laboratories of the IBPM, is to develop a model for studying Alzheimer's disease of sporadic origin, in other words, not due to a hereditary genetic mutation.

10 Oct 2018

Groundbreaking at-home robotic rehabilitation system for stroke patients

Researchers in Houston and elsewhere have shown that robotic systems controlled by the user's own brain activity can help patients recovering from stroke and other disabling injuries.

9 Oct 2018

Change in short-term beliefs related to dopamine function, study shows

For the first time, scientists have been able to image brain activity when people change their short-term beliefs, and to relate this brain activity to dopamine function in humans.

9 Oct 2018

'Supercharged' immune cells could help fight cancer

A type of 'supercharged' immune cell could be mass-produced to help fight cancer.

9 Oct 2018

New 3D imaging technique helps track satiety hormone

Many overweight people lack the feeling of being full. It was long thought that this was due to the disrupted transport of the satiety hormone leptin to the brain.

9 Oct 2018

Genetic link to erectile dysfunction discovered

According to a new study there may be a genetic link to erectile dysfunction. This is the first time that such as connection has been made and this could mean that newer avenues of treatment could be explored for erectile dysfunction, explain the researchers.

8 Oct 2018