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.

Vanderbilt and Lundbeck collaborate to develop novel approach for treating schizophrenia

Vanderbilt University has signed separate licensing and research collaboration agreements with Lundbeck, a global pharmaceutical company based in Denmark, to develop a novel approach for treating schizophrenia.

9 Jan 2018

Magic mushrooms substance Psilocybin on trial for treatment of depression

There are ongoing studies that look at the effect of hallucinogenic psychedelic substance Psilocybin or “magic mushrooms” in the treatment of depression.

9 Jan 2018

Key synaptic proteins could be targets for early interventions in patients with dementias

One of the most intriguing properties of the brain is its means to undergo synaptic plasticity which represents the basis for learning and memory, abilities that severely decline in the case of a dementia.

9 Jan 2018

Regeneron forms consortium to accelerate largest widely-available human sequencing resource

By the end of 2019, Regeneron plans to sequence the exomes of all 500,000 people within the UK Biobank resource, all with associated health records, creating an unprecedented resource linking human genetic variations to human biology and disease.

9 Jan 2018

Study finds greater attention to surprise in veterans with PTSD

Fireworks on nights other than the fourth of July or New Year's Eve might be nothing more than inconsiderate neighbors, but for veterans with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), the shock of noise and light may trigger a deeply learned expectation of danger.

9 Jan 2018

Researchers develop drug that supports cellular traffic jam theory in ALS/FTD

Neurodegeneration in ALS/FTD may be caused by TDP-43 aggregation in the cytoplasm, causing cellular traffic jams. The trial drug can sequester TDP-43.

9 Jan 2018

Monthly cycles of brain activity linked to seizures in patients with epilepsy

UC San Francisco neurologists have discovered monthly cycles of brain activity linked to seizures in patients with epilepsy.

8 Jan 2018

Researchers discover mutations in a gene related to obesity

Researchers have discovered mutations in a gene related to obesity, offering new treatment possibilities in the fight against the global epidemic.

8 Jan 2018

Bielefeld scientists discover cause of initially unclear symptoms

The sequencing of the human genome has made it possible: nowadays scientists can discover potential disorders for which there are no known patients.

5 Jan 2018

Astronauts' body temperature increases when exposed to weightlessness

Astronauts float weightlessly through space, and the condition of weightlessness is something many would love to experience.

5 Jan 2018

Experimental device could help ease tinnitus symptoms by targeting unruly nerve activity in the brain

Millions of Americans hear ringing in their ears -- a condition called tinnitus -- but a new study shows an experimental device could help quiet the phantom sounds by targeting unruly nerve activity in the brain.

5 Jan 2018

Newly described super-silenced DNA reveals novel approach to reprogram cells

Newly described stretches of super-silenced DNA reveal a fresh approach to reprogram cell identity to use in regenerative medicine studies and one day in the clinic, according to a study in Molecular Cell last week by investigators from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

5 Jan 2018

Researchers use Quest MRI to identify earliest signs of Alzheimer's disease in mice

Alzheimer's disease wreaks emotional havoc on patients, who are robbed of their memories, their dignity, and their lives. It's financially devastating as well: care for Alzheimer's patients is predicted to top $1 trillion by about the time children born today are having children of their own.

5 Jan 2018

Neonatology experts examine effects of new intravenous nutrition for extremely low birth weight preemies

At the neonatology ward of the Vienna General Hospital, physicians compared two mixtures of intravenous lipids for nutrition with support coming from the FWF. The researchers found no amelioration with respect to bile-flow complications in extremely low birth weight preterm babies in incubators, but they did discover more mature brain waves.

5 Jan 2018

Sleeping sickness actually caused by acceleration of biological clocks

Sleeping sickness could use a more encompassing moniker. An international study from the O'Donnell Brain Institute shows one of Africa's most lethal diseases is actually a circadian rhythm disorder caused by the acceleration of biological clocks controlling a range of vital functions besides sleep.

4 Jan 2018