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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.

People with TBI may have long-term sleep disturbances

People who have had a traumatic brain injury (TBI) may still have sleep problems a year and a half after being injured, according to a study published in the April 27, 2016, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. In addition, people with TBI may also be unaware of just how much their sleep is disturbed.

28 Apr 2016

More neurological resources needed to manage Zika virus infections

WFN Zika-Info-Service: World Federation of Neurology establishes Work Group on Zika virus to support international efforts - Lack of neurological resources in countries most concerned by the virus.

28 Apr 2016

Study highlights significant burden of migraine on family activities

The debilitating pain and disability of migraine also attacks the emotional, social and financial fabric of a family, according to a new study conducted by researchers at Montefiore Headache Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, affiliated with the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Vedanta Research, the Mayo Clinic and Allergan plc. The findings were published today in Volume 91, Issue 5 of Mayo Clinic Proceedings.

28 Apr 2016

Traumatic brain injury has lasting effect on sleep

Sleep-wake disturbances are a persistent problem in people who have sustained a traumatic brain injury and one that is underestimated by patients, study data indicate.

28 Apr 2016

Experimental cancer drug Nutlin-3 shows promise in cancelling effects of fragile X syndrome

A University of Wisconsin-Madison researcher who studies the most common genetic intellectual disability has used an experimental drug to reverse — in mice — damage from the mutation that causes the syndrome.

28 Apr 2016

Certain genetic markers linked with depression can also predict who may benefit from exercise

Call it personalized medicine for depression -- but the prescription in this case is exercise, which University of Florida Health researchers have found helps people with certain genetic traits.

28 Apr 2016

Scientists build semantic atlas to show how human brain organizes language

What if a map of the brain could help us decode people's inner thoughts? Scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, have taken a step in that direction by building a "semantic atlas" that shows in vivid colors and multiple dimensions how the human brain organizes language. The atlas identifies brain areas that respond to words that have similar meanings.

28 Apr 2016

Patients with impaired consciousness show uncontrolled communication between resting-state networks

An international research team has investigated interactions in different states of consciousness and has discovered that patients with severely impaired consciousness show a pathological or uncontrolled communication between resting-state networks.

28 Apr 2016

Group of gamma-protocadherins linked with neurons help regulate growth of dendrites

When you think of a neuron, imagine a tree. A healthy brain cell indeed looks like a tree with a full canopy. There's a trunk, which is the cell's nucleus; there's a root system, embodied in a single axon; and there are the branches, called dendrites.

28 Apr 2016

Researchers develop new quantitative assessment of motor control in kids with cerebral palsy

Children with cerebral palsy frequently undergo invasive surgeries -- lengthening tendons, rotating bones, transferring muscles to new locations -- in hopes of improving their physical ability to walk or move.

28 Apr 2016

Study reveals surprising results that may impair future therapeutic approaches in TGF-beta pathway

Researchers at Helmholtz Zentrum München describe how breast cancer cells challenged with a small-molecule inhibitor targeting specific invasive properties switch to an alternative mode-of-action, rendering them even more aggressive. The results may impair future therapeutic approaches in the TGF-beta pathway and are published in the journal 'Oncotarget'.

27 Apr 2016

Clinical study to evaluate safety of investigational cell therapy to treat chronic motor deficits after stroke

University Hospitals Case Medical Center is the first surgical site for a Phase 2b clinical trial study to further evaluate the safety and efficacy of an investigational cell therapy for the treatment of chronic motor deficit following an ischemic stroke.

27 Apr 2016

TSRI study reveals important traits in LCMV, Lassa virus

For the first time, scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have solved the structure of the biological machinery used by a common virus to recognize and attack human host cells.

27 Apr 2016

New rat study shows specific genetic factors may contribute to differences in addiction among humans

Why does one person who tries cocaine get addicted, while another might use it and then leave it alone? Why do some people who kick a drug habit manage to stay clean, while others relapse? And why do some families seem more prone to addiction than others?

27 Apr 2016

RADAR-CNS programme aims to improve lives of patients with brain disorders

A major new research program supported by the Innovative Medicines Initiative launches today, which will develop new ways of monitoring major depressive disorder, epilepsy, and multiple sclerosis using wearable devices and smartphone technology.

27 Apr 2016

Rapamycin drug could target neural damage linked to Leigh syndrome

Salk Institute scientists showed how an FDA-approved drug boosts the health of brain cells by limiting their energy use. Like removing unnecessary lighting from a financially strapped household to save on electricity bills, the drug--called rapamycin--prolongs the survival of diseased neurons by forcing them to reduce protein production to conserve cellular energy.

27 Apr 2016

UNC-Chapel Hill researchers identify functional brain circuit that controls alcohol binge drinking

Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have identified a circuit between two brain regions that controls alcohol binge drinking, offering a more complete picture on what drives a behavior that costs the United States more than $170 billion annually and how it can be treated.

27 Apr 2016

Study reveals new function for CACNA1C gene in psychiatric diseases

A new study shows the death of newborn brain cells may be linked to a genetic risk factor for five major psychiatric diseases, and at the same time shows a compound currently being developed for use in humans may have therapeutic value for these diseases by preventing the cells from dying.

27 Apr 2016

New fruit fly model study reveals metabolic pathway that can be targeted to treat FXS patients

Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is the most common genetically inherited cause of intellectual disability in humans. New research shows how the hormone insulin -- usually associated with diabetes -- is involved in the daily activity patterns and cognitive deficits in the fruitfly model of FXS, according to a new study from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania published online this month in Molecular Psychiatry in advance of the print issue.

27 Apr 2016

Scientists unravel mystery of disrupted communication between brain cells in Parkinson's patients

A possible cause has been found for the disrupted communication between brain cells exhibited by Parkinson's patients. Bettina Schwab, a researcher at the University of Twente in The Netherlands, discovered that this group of patients have increased concentrations of a certain type of protein. Ms Schwab defended her doctoral dissertation on Friday 22 April.

27 Apr 2016

Brain News and Research

Further Reading

People with TBI may have long-term sleep disturbances

More neurological resources needed to manage Zika virus infections

Study highlights significant burden of migraine on family activities

Traumatic brain injury has lasting effect on sleep

Experimental cancer drug Nutlin-3 shows promise in cancelling effects of fragile X syndrome

Certain genetic markers linked with depression can also predict who may benefit from exercise

Scientists build semantic atlas to show how human brain organizes language

Patients with impaired consciousness show uncontrolled communication between resting-state networks

Group of gamma-protocadherins linked with neurons help regulate growth of dendrites

Researchers develop new quantitative assessment of motor control in kids with cerebral palsy

Study reveals surprising results that may impair future therapeutic approaches in TGF-beta pathway

Clinical study to evaluate safety of investigational cell therapy to treat chronic motor deficits after stroke

TSRI study reveals important traits in LCMV, Lassa virus

New rat study shows specific genetic factors may contribute to differences in addiction among humans

RADAR-CNS programme aims to improve lives of patients with brain disorders

Rapamycin drug could target neural damage linked to Leigh syndrome

UNC-Chapel Hill researchers identify functional brain circuit that controls alcohol binge drinking

Study reveals new function for CACNA1C gene in psychiatric diseases

New fruit fly model study reveals metabolic pathway that can be targeted to treat FXS patients

Scientists unravel mystery of disrupted communication between brain cells in Parkinson's patients

Industry Focus eBook - Cell & Gene Therapy (1st Edition) eBook

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Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

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