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.

Study findings shed light on fundamental feature of nerve repair

Through a study of roundworm nerve cells with severed axons, researchers at Nagoya University showed that a signaling cascade that normally functions in promoting the phagocytosis of apoptotic cells also acts in inducing axon regeneration.

24 Aug 2018

Advanced microscopes determine structure of molecular complex implicated in several cancers

In a study published today in Science, UT Southwestern and Rockefeller University researchers used advanced microscopes to determine at atomic resolution the structure of a molecular complex implicated in birth defects and several cancers.

24 Aug 2018

Researchers successfully reproduce effects of traumatic brain injury in petri dish

Researchers in the University of Georgia's Regenerative Bioscience Center have succeeded in reproducing the effects of traumatic brain injury and stimulating recovery in neuron cells grown in a petri dish.

24 Aug 2018

Study uncovers link between gut bacteria and 'hedonic eating'

A study of 63 healthy people showed that those with elevated microbiome levels of the metabolite indole - produced when gut bacteria break down the amino acid tryptophan - had stronger function and connectivity in specific areas of the brain's reward network.

24 Aug 2018

New project receives $3.2 million grant to investigate secrets of programmed cell death in Alzheimer's

Most neurons in the human brain live out their lives, enduring the processes of aging before eventually dying. Some, however, choose a more violent route: suicide.

24 Aug 2018

Hand-held ophthalmology probe can image photoreceptors in the eyes of infants

Duke University researchers have developed a handheld probe that can image individual photoreceptors in the eyes of infants.

24 Aug 2018

Researchers use 'autobiographical memory' test for early prediction of Alzheimer's

Testing how well people remember past events in their lives could help medical professionals make early predictions about who is at risk for developing Alzheimer's disease, according to a new study from the University of Arizona.

24 Aug 2018

Scientists create new method of particle tracking based on machine learning

Scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have created a new method of particle tracking based on machine learning that is far more accurate and provides better automation than techniques currently in use.

24 Aug 2018

Researchers study contribution of race, ethnicity to retention of participants in TBI research

Researchers analyzed data from the Traumatic Brain Injury Model System National Data and Statistical Center to study the contribution of race and ethnicity to retention of participants in TBI research.

24 Aug 2018

Researchers uncover how RNA regulates genes during critical stage in embryonic brain development

Scientists at the Stanley Manne Children's Research Institute at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago and colleagues discovered how a type of RNA, called Evf2 enhancer RNA, regulates key genes during a critical stage in embryonic brain development.

24 Aug 2018

Finding ways to improve cell replacement therapy for Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative disease that affects dopamine signaling neurons in patients' brains. Cell-replacement therapy shows some promise as a treatment for Parkinson's. A recent paper in the journal Molecular & Cellular Proteomics reports a technical advance in selecting cells to use in this therapy.

24 Aug 2018

Study provides new clues to connection between aging and neurodegeneration

For decades researchers have worked to shed light on the causes of neurodegenerative disorders, a group of devastating conditions, including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, that involve the progressive loss of neurons and nervous system function. In recent years, numerous factors, from genetic mutations to viral infections, have been found to contribute to the development of these diseases.

23 Aug 2018

'Plastic antibodies' effectively target and eliminate tumor cells

A joint research team from Russia and the U.K. has demonstrated the possibility of developing a new type of anti-neoplastic drugs based on nanoMIPs, or "plastic antibodies." NanoMIPs are synthetic polymers that can function as antibodies, selectively binding to target proteins on the surface of cancer cells.

23 Aug 2018