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Alzheimer's Tau protein interacts with cell membranes and forms toxic complexes

The brains of patients with Alzheimer's disease contain characteristic tangles inside neurons. These tangles are formed when a protein called Tau aggregates into twisted fibrils. As a result, the neurons' transport systems disintegrate, essential nutrients can't move through, and the cells begin to die, affecting the brain's functions and giving rise to the disease's symptoms.

22 Nov 2017

Specially tailored, ultrafast light pulses can trigger neurons to fire in different patterns

Specially tailored, ultrafast pulses of light can trigger neurons to fire and could one day help patients with light-sensitive circadian or mood problems, according to a new study in mice at the University of Illinois.

17 Nov 2017

Brain astrocytes could play key role in pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease

Astrocytes, the supporting cells of the brain, could play a significant role in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD), according to a new study from the University of Eastern Finland. This is the first time researchers discovered a direct association between astrocytes and AD. Published in Stem Cell Reports, the study investigated the brain cell function of familial AD patients by using stem cell technologies.

17 Nov 2017

New dye could be used to observe electrical activity of neurons in the brain

Keele University researchers have designed a new dye that can be used to observe the electrical activity of neurons in the brain and could lead to finding a new and more efficient way of treating neurological diseases.

17 Nov 2017

Scientists identify critical player in Alzheimer's disease pathogenesis

Scientists at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute have shown that a protein called membralin is critical for keeping Alzheimer's disease pathology in check.

14 Nov 2017

Scientists devise new way to control single neurons using optogenetics

Researchers at MIT and Paris Descartes University have developed a new optogenetic technique that sculpts light to target individual cells bearing engineered light-sensitive molecules, so that individual neurons can be precisely stimulated.

13 Nov 2017

Brain research in desperate need of cutting-edge statistics, says Carnegie Mellon University's Rob Kass

Brain-related disorders impact almost everyone, either directly or through family or friends. For many of the disorders, whether they're psychiatric or neurological, there are basic scientific descriptions and valuable treatment options, but none has a satisfactory cure because the underlying mechanisms are not fully understood.

9 Nov 2017

Individual neurons slow down when we are sleep deprived, study finds

It has been established that sleep deprivation slows down our reaction time, but it has been unclear exactly how the lack of sleep affects brain activity and subsequent behavior.

8 Nov 2017

UNIGE neuroscientists succeed in correcting activity of late neurons

During the fetal stage, millions of neurons are born in the walls of the ventricles of the brain before migrating to their final location in the cerebral cortex.

8 Nov 2017

Scientists one step closer to solving puzzle of how nerves can self-heal

Monash University scientists are one step closer to solving the riddle of how nerves can self-heal. The scientists from the Biomedicine Discovery Institute (BDI) have found signals in the tiny transparent roundworm that control the mechanism by which severed nerves self-heal.

7 Nov 2017

Study shows promise and potential risk in reversing hearing loss using inner ear stem cells

Want to restore hearing by injecting stem cells into the inner ear? Well, that can be a double-edged sword.

7 Nov 2017

UMD study provides important insights into early sensory development

Some expectant parents play classical music for their unborn babies, hoping to boost their children's cognitive capacity later in life.

7 Nov 2017

Drug can safely and effectively help infants with SMA gain muscle function, study shows

More than half of the babies with infantile-onset spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) who were treated with nusinersen (Spinraza) gained motor milestones, compared to none of the babies in the control group. Infants treated with the drug also had 63 percent lower risk of death.

6 Nov 2017

Researchers identify neural circuitry responsible for rousing the brain during sleep apnea

A common and potentially serious sleep disorder, obstructive sleep apnea affects at least one-quarter of U.S. adults and is linked to increased risk of diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular disease. In a paper published today in the journal Neuron, researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center identified specific neural circuitry responsible for rousing the brain of mice in simulated apnea conditions.

2 Nov 2017

Targeting blood-clotting protein may help treat multiple sclerosis and other diseases

Picture a bare wire, without its regular plastic coating. It's exposed to the elements and risks being degraded. And, without insulation, it may not conduct electricity as well as a coated wire. Now, imagine this wire is inside your brain.

2 Nov 2017

Humans not as exceptional in using brain power as we like to think

For years, scientists assumed that humans devote a larger share of their daily calories to their brains than other animals. Although the human brain makes up only 2 percent of body weight, it consumes more than 25 percent of our baseline energy budget.

1 Nov 2017

Bioengineers develop brain sensor technique to understand cocaine addiction in adolescent mind

Several studies have provided strong evidence that adolescents--people in their teens to early twenties--have a higher vulnerability than adults to addictive substances like cocaine.

1 Nov 2017

Biogen and Ionis awarded 2017 Prix Galien USA Award for SPINRAZA

Biogen and Ionis have been awarded the prestigious 2017 Prix Galien USA Award for Best Biotechnology Product for SPINRAZA (nusinersen). The Prix Galien USA Award recognizes extraordinary achievement in scientific innovation that improves the state of human health. The award was presented at a ceremony in New York City on October 26, 2017.

30 Oct 2017

Sonic Hedgehog helps solve mysteries of Parkinson's disease

You may know Sonic Hedgehog as a Sega videogame character who saves us all from world domination. But within the realm of science, Sonic Hedgehog is also helping to solve the mysteries of Parkinson's Disease.

28 Oct 2017

Researchers provide new insight into how nematode's brain controls movement

The human brain is a mysterious supercomputer. Billions of neurons buzz within an intricate network that controls our every thought, feeling, and movement. And we've only just begun to understand how it all works.

26 Oct 2017

Neuron News and Research

Alzheimer's Tau protein interacts with cell membranes and forms toxic complexes

Specially tailored, ultrafast light pulses can trigger neurons to fire in different patterns

Brain astrocytes could play key role in pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease

New dye could be used to observe electrical activity of neurons in the brain

Scientists identify critical player in Alzheimer's disease pathogenesis

Scientists devise new way to control single neurons using optogenetics

Brain research in desperate need of cutting-edge statistics, says Carnegie Mellon University's Rob Kass

Individual neurons slow down when we are sleep deprived, study finds

UNIGE neuroscientists succeed in correcting activity of late neurons

Scientists one step closer to solving puzzle of how nerves can self-heal

Study shows promise and potential risk in reversing hearing loss using inner ear stem cells

UMD study provides important insights into early sensory development

Drug can safely and effectively help infants with SMA gain muscle function, study shows

Researchers identify neural circuitry responsible for rousing the brain during sleep apnea

Targeting blood-clotting protein may help treat multiple sclerosis and other diseases

Humans not as exceptional in using brain power as we like to think

Bioengineers develop brain sensor technique to understand cocaine addiction in adolescent mind

Biogen and Ionis awarded 2017 Prix Galien USA Award for SPINRAZA

Sonic Hedgehog helps solve mysteries of Parkinson's disease

Researchers provide new insight into how nematode's brain controls movement

Human iPSCs: A Full Guide to Advanced in Vitro Models and Applications eBook

How ELRIG Is Helping Mid-Career Scientists Navigate Leadership, Career Change and Redundancy

The role of UV-Vis in biopharma QC

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