Brain News and Research

RSS

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.

Fasudil improves memory in rats, promotes degradation of toxic tau in the eyes of fruit flies

Could a kinase inhibitor some doctors prescribe to keep blood flowing after brain surgery be used to treat neurodegeneration? New research suggests it might be worth exploring the question.

10 Feb 2016

Pediatric ALL patients treated with chemotherapy alone at risk for neurocognitive deficits

Pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) patients treated with chemotherapy alone remain at risk for attention and learning problems that persist after treatment ends, according to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital investigators.

10 Feb 2016

Study sheds light on role of red raspberries in metabolically-based chronic diseases

Components in red raspberries may have anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidative and metabolic stabilizing activity, according to a comprehensive review of the available scientific literature published in the January issue of Advances in Nutrition.

10 Feb 2016

Penn investigators devise new method to map 'transcriptome'

A new way of mapping the "transcriptome" -- the collection of RNA read-outs that are expressed by a cell's active genes -- has been devised by researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

10 Feb 2016

U of A researchers use ultrashort laser pulses to connect neurons

A research team based in the University of Alberta Faculty of Engineering has developed a method of connecting neurons, using ultrashort laser pulses--a breakthrough technique that opens the door to new medical research and treatment opportunities.

10 Feb 2016

Cancer patients who miss scheduled radiation therapy appointments have worse outcomes

Cancer patients who miss two or more radiation therapy sessions have a worse outcome than fully compliant patients, investigators at Montefiore Einstein Center for Cancer Care and Albert Einstein College of Medicine's NCI-designated Albert Einstein Cancer Center have found.

10 Feb 2016

Study shows how structural differences in the brain may relate to behavior differences in males and females

Differences in the neural wiring across development of men and women across ages, matched behavioral differences commonly associated with each of the sexes, according to an imaging-based study from researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania published February 1 in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B.

10 Feb 2016

Patients with COPD show decreased gray matter volume in certain areas of the brain

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), a condition impacting nearly 24 million Americans, is often associated with disease-specific fears and avoidance of physical activity. Little is known of the structural brain processes that occur in COPD patients. A study published in the February issue of the journal CHEST found that patients with COPD demonstrated gray matter decreases in areas of the brain that process breathlessness, fear and sensitivity to pain.

9 Feb 2016

Simple strategies may help people stave off neurodegenerative condition

Diet, exercise, a good night's sleep -- all sound recommendations for mitigating one's risk for everything from heart disease to diabetes and, as it turns out, Alzheimer's.

9 Feb 2016

Taste deficits appear to be more prevalent in MS patients

Taste deficits appear to be more prevalent among multiple sclerosis (MS) patients than previously reported and correlate with brain lesions left by the debilitating disease, a new study from the University of Pennsylvania's Smell and Taste Center and the department of Radiology found.

9 Feb 2016

Medical marijuana offers hope for kids with uncontrolled seizures

Desperate for relief, parents are taking unusual steps to help children plagued with seizures. The relief, however, comes in a most unlikely form: marijuana.

9 Feb 2016

New study pinpoints two tiny clusters of neurons responsible for changing normal breaths into sighs

"You must remember this: a kiss is just a kiss, a sigh is just a sigh." Contrary to the words immortalized by the piano singer in "Casablanca," a sigh is far more than a sigh. Heaving an unconscious sigh is a life-sustaining reflex that helps preserve lung function.

9 Feb 2016

Vienna researchers investigate new light therapy treatment for people with migraines

Migraines often involve heightened sensitivity to light. In a project funded by the Austrian Science Fund FWF, a team of researchers from the Medical University of Vienna is investigating new therapies to treat light sensitivity, which greatly disturbs those affected.

9 Feb 2016

New discovery takes medical professionals a leap forward to effectively diagnose Alzheimer's disease

Medical professionals have to conduct a long series of tests to assess a patient's memory impairment and cognitive skills, functional abilities, and behavioral changes to accurately diagnose Alzheimer's disease. They also have to execute costly brain imagining scans and even, sometimes, invasive cerebral spinal fluid tests to rule out other diseases. The process is laborious at best -- and subjective at worst.

9 Feb 2016

Aging brains work differently than younger brains, say cognitive scientists

Cognitive scientists have found more evidence that aging brains work differently than younger brains when performing the same memory task, pointing to a potentially new direction for age-related cognitive care and exploration.

9 Feb 2016

Wayne State inks exclusive license agreement with TRImaran Pharma for novel class of drugs

Wayne State University recently entered into an exclusive license agreement with TRImaran Pharma Inc. for a class of novel drugs developed at Wayne State University that aims to offer hope in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorders (PTSD), depression, ADHD and other neurological disorders.

9 Feb 2016

Researchers seek to better understand sequence of events that leads people to develop MS

A team of investigators at Brigham and Women's Hospital and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke has launched a study of individuals at risk for multiple sclerosis (MS).

9 Feb 2016

UM SOM researchers reveal genetic makeup of various strains of E. coli

A multi-disciplinary group of researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine have for the first time determined the genetic makeup of various strains of E. coli, which every year kills hundreds of thousands of people around the world.

9 Feb 2016

Past experience alters the brain circuitry responsible for object recognition

New research from the University of Guelph on the brain and memory could help in developing therapies for people with schizophrenia and Alzheimer's disease.

8 Feb 2016

Robotic nephrectomy for inferior vena cava tumor thrombus shows promise in selected patients

Renal cell carcinoma can sometimes spread to the inferior vena cava (IVC), the body's largest vein, posing a threat to the heart and brain. Robotic nephrectomy for inferior vena cava tumor thrombus has favorable outcomes in selected patients compared with open surgery, which can have a high rate of complications, report surgeons in The Journal of Urology.

8 Feb 2016

Brain News and Research

Further Reading

Fasudil improves memory in rats, promotes degradation of toxic tau in the eyes of fruit flies

Pediatric ALL patients treated with chemotherapy alone at risk for neurocognitive deficits

Study sheds light on role of red raspberries in metabolically-based chronic diseases

Penn investigators devise new method to map 'transcriptome'

U of A researchers use ultrashort laser pulses to connect neurons

Cancer patients who miss scheduled radiation therapy appointments have worse outcomes

Study shows how structural differences in the brain may relate to behavior differences in males and females

Patients with COPD show decreased gray matter volume in certain areas of the brain

Simple strategies may help people stave off neurodegenerative condition

Taste deficits appear to be more prevalent in MS patients

Medical marijuana offers hope for kids with uncontrolled seizures

New study pinpoints two tiny clusters of neurons responsible for changing normal breaths into sighs

Vienna researchers investigate new light therapy treatment for people with migraines

New discovery takes medical professionals a leap forward to effectively diagnose Alzheimer's disease

Aging brains work differently than younger brains, say cognitive scientists

Wayne State inks exclusive license agreement with TRImaran Pharma for novel class of drugs

Researchers seek to better understand sequence of events that leads people to develop MS

UM SOM researchers reveal genetic makeup of various strains of E. coli

Past experience alters the brain circuitry responsible for object recognition

Robotic nephrectomy for inferior vena cava tumor thrombus shows promise in selected patients

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

Latest News