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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.

Lab-grown mini-brains shed light on health crisis posed by Zika virus in fetal brains

Studying a new type of pinhead-size, lab-grown brain made with technology first suggested by three high school students, Johns Hopkins researchers have confirmed a key way in which Zika virus causes microcephaly and other damage in fetal brains: by infecting specialized stem cells that build its outer layer, the cortex.

25 Apr 2016

Dopamine D2 receptor gene can prolong lifespan

Researchers at the University at Buffalo Research Institute on Addictions have discovered how a gene in the brain's dopamine system can play an important role in prolonging lifespan: it must be coupled with a healthy environment that includes exercise.

25 Apr 2016

Scientists derive first molecular model of critical transporter at blood-brain barrier

Scientists from Duke-NUS Medical School have derived a structural model of a transporter at the blood-brain barrier called Mfsd2a. This is the first molecular model of this critical transporter, and could prove important for the development of therapeutic agents that need to be delivered to the brain --- across the blood-brain barrier. In future, this could help treat neurological disorders such as glioblastoma.

25 Apr 2016

Fructose common in western diet can damage brain genes

A range of diseases -- from diabetes to cardiovascular disease, and from Alzheimer's disease to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder -- are linked to changes to genes in the brain. A new study by UCLA life scientists has found that hundreds of those genes can be damaged by fructose, a sugar that's common in the Western diet, in a way that could lead to those diseases.

25 Apr 2016

Why don’t MS patients always engage with specialists? An interview with Dr Anita Rose

The recent survey you ask about was conducted by the MS Trust in 2012. It revealed that nearly one fifth of respondents had seen neither an MS specialist nurse (MSSN) nor a neurologist in the past year, and so will not have received the comprehensive annual review recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).

25 Apr 2016

UK research allays fears over dramatic increases in dementia incidence

Research conducted in the UK has found a 20% drop in the incidence of dementia over the past 2 decades, leading to an estimated 41,000 fewer cases per year in people aged 65 years and older than previously expected.

22 Apr 2016

Under-expressed miR-9 gene may contribute to schizophrenia risk

By turning skin cells into brain neurons, researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have identified that certain tiny molecules aiding in gene expression, known as microRNAs (miRNAs), are under-expressed in the brains of the 14 schizophrenia patients they studied. Their findings, published online today in the journal Cell Reports, show that one of these molecules, a miRNA known as miR-9, is a risk factor that controls the activity of hundreds of genes.

22 Apr 2016

Long way to go in better understanding brain abnormalities linked with autism

A recent review that examined all published studies on anatomical abnormalities in the brains of individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder found substantial discrepancy throughout the literature regarding the reported presence and significance of neuroanatomical findings.

22 Apr 2016

Rituximab drug more effective than fingolimod for patients with highly active multiple sclerosis

A new study indicates that rituximab is more effective than fingolimod for preventing relapses in patients with highly active multiple sclerosis switching from treatment with natalizumab.

22 Apr 2016

Unique mouse model could help study genetic origins and potential treatments for ALS

University of Florida Health researchers have developed a unique mouse model that will allow researchers around the world to better study the genetic origins and potential treatments for a neurodegenerative brain disease that causes amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, often referred to as ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease, and frontotemporal dementia.

22 Apr 2016

Scientists identify critical biological factor for transforming adult somatic cells into stem cells

In a new Cell Reports paper, a team led by John P. Cooke, M.D., Ph.D., of the Houston Methodist Research Institute, has identified and characterized a biological factor critical to the transformation of adult somatic cells (cells that are not sperm or egg cells) into stem cells.

22 Apr 2016

Spatial navigation task used to access cognitive map skills can detect preclinical Alzheimer's disease

Long before Alzheimer's disease can be diagnosed clinically, increasing difficulties building cognitive maps of new surroundings may herald the eventual clinical onset of the disorder, finds new research from Washington University in St. Louis.

22 Apr 2016

Microtubules affect mechanics of beating heart, study finds

On top of the meaning and mystery that humans heap on the heart, it is first and foremost, a muscle. And one that beats about once a second for a person's entire life, with no rest. Given its vital importance, it's ironic researchers have only recently made direct observations of its subcellular parts in motion.

22 Apr 2016

FAU's clinical trial to evaluate efficacy of RVT-101 tablet for Lewy body dementia

Florida Atlantic University's Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine is spearheading the South Florida site for the first U.S. clinical trial for Lewy body dementia (LBD), the second-most common dementia after Alzheimer's disease. The HEADWAY-DLB is a phase 2b multi-center, double-blind, placebo-controlled study to evaluate an investigational medicine, RVT-101, for dementia with Lewy bodies.

22 Apr 2016

Scientists examine PD-1-expressing regulatory T cells in aggressive brain cancer

Immunotherapy represents an exciting advance in cancer treatment that harnesses the immune system to seek and destroy cancer cells.

22 Apr 2016

Researchers identify traveling spike generator that produces brain waves

Brain waves that spread through the hippocampus are initiated by a method not seen before--a possible step toward understanding and treating epilepsy, according to researchers at Case Western Reserve University.

21 Apr 2016

Researchers develop fine-scale global map of Zika virus transmission

The southeastern US, including much of Texas through to Florida, have ideal conditions for spread of Zika virus according to a new study published in eLife.

21 Apr 2016

Hippo signaling pathway controls phases of quiescence in fruit fly central nervous system

Neural stem cells are responsible for the formation of differentiated daughter cells in the developing brain. If no new cells are needed, the stem cells may enter a resting phase called quiescence. Biologists at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz have now discovered that the phases of quiescence in the Drosophila fruit fly central nervous system are controlled by the Hippo signaling pathway. Drosophila serves as a model organism that helps geneticists to decode the molecular fundamentals of cellular biology and unravel mechanisms that are conserved in human beings and other vertebrates.

21 Apr 2016

Motivational interviewing can help reduce risky use of pain pills

As America battles an epidemic of deaths from misused pain pills, a new study suggests an inexpensive way to cut risky use of these drugs by people who have a high chance of overdosing.

21 Apr 2016

Bacteria-derived gut metabolites can affect brain’s myelin content and induce depression-like symptoms

Specific combinations of gut bacteria produce substances that affect myelin content and cause social avoidance behaviors in mice, according to a study conducted at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and published today in the medical journal eLife. This research suggests that targeting intestinal bacteria, or their metabolites, could be one way to treat debilitating psychiatric disorders and demyelinating diseases, like multiple sclerosis.

21 Apr 2016

Brain News and Research

Further Reading

Lab-grown mini-brains shed light on health crisis posed by Zika virus in fetal brains

Dopamine D2 receptor gene can prolong lifespan

Scientists derive first molecular model of critical transporter at blood-brain barrier

Fructose common in western diet can damage brain genes

Why don’t MS patients always engage with specialists? An interview with Dr Anita Rose

UK research allays fears over dramatic increases in dementia incidence

Under-expressed miR-9 gene may contribute to schizophrenia risk

Long way to go in better understanding brain abnormalities linked with autism

Rituximab drug more effective than fingolimod for patients with highly active multiple sclerosis

Unique mouse model could help study genetic origins and potential treatments for ALS

Scientists identify critical biological factor for transforming adult somatic cells into stem cells

Spatial navigation task used to access cognitive map skills can detect preclinical Alzheimer's disease

Microtubules affect mechanics of beating heart, study finds

FAU's clinical trial to evaluate efficacy of RVT-101 tablet for Lewy body dementia

Scientists examine PD-1-expressing regulatory T cells in aggressive brain cancer

Researchers identify traveling spike generator that produces brain waves

Researchers develop fine-scale global map of Zika virus transmission

Hippo signaling pathway controls phases of quiescence in fruit fly central nervous system

Motivational interviewing can help reduce risky use of pain pills

Bacteria-derived gut metabolites can affect brain’s myelin content and induce depression-like symptoms

Industry Focus eBook - Neurology/Neuroscience - 2nd edition eBook

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

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