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.

Researchers tie traumatic brain injury to toxic form of protein

University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston researchers have uncovered what may be a key molecular mechanism behind the lasting damage done by traumatic brain injury.

30 May 2013

Viewpoints: 'Good news' on Calif. insurance rates; Battle against dementia needs stronger efforts; Dental care for the disabled

The Affordable Care Act, a k a Obamacare, goes fully into effect at the beginning of next year, and predictions of disaster are being heard far and wide. ... No doubt there will be problems, as there are with any large new government initiative, and in this case, we have the added complication that many Republican governors and legislators are doing all they can to sabotage reform. Yet important new evidence -; especially from California, the law's most important test case -; suggests that the real Obamacare shock will be one of unexpected success (Paul Krugman, 5/26).

29 May 2013

Protein presenilin plays critical role in controlling neuronal traffic on microtubule highways

Imagine if you could open up your brain and look inside. What you would see is a network of nerve cells called neurons, each with its own internal highway system for transporting essential materials between different parts of the cell.

29 May 2013

UCLA researchers show that bacteria ingested in food can affect brain function

UCLA researchers now have the first evidence that bacteria ingested in food can affect brain function in humans. In an early proof-of-concept study of healthy women, they found that women who regularly consumed beneficial bacteria known as probiotics through yogurt showed altered brain function, both while in a resting state and in response to an emotion-recognition task.

29 May 2013

IUPUI assistant professor earns NSF CAREER Award for research on the brain

An assistant professor of computer science at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis has earned the prestigious CAREER Award from the National Science Foundation for research to identify the patterns by which neurons develop and connect to form a brain.

29 May 2013

Cognitive deficits of children born preterm depend on the workload of tasks

Being born preterm goes hand in hand with an increased risk for neuro-cognitive deficits. Psychologists from the Ruhr-Universit-t Bochum and the University of Warwick, UK have investigated the relation between the duration of pregnancy and cognitive abilities under varying work load conditions.

29 May 2013

Research discovery may lead to development of new therapies for neurological disorders

For several years, the pharmaceutical industry has tried to develop drugs that target a specific neurotransmitter receptor in the brain, the NMDA receptor. This receptor is present on almost every neuron in the human brain and is involved in learning and memory. NMDA receptors also have been implicated in several neurological and psychiatric conditions such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, schizophrenia and depression.

29 May 2013

Crittenton researchers receive grant to study trauma treatment in children

Crittenton Children's Center has received a two-year, $10,000 grant from the Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Research Foundation to conduct a first of its kind study addressing trauma in children.

29 May 2013

Majority of children with spastic cerebral palsy experience long-term benefits of SDR

Selective dorsal rhizotomy is a surgical procedure used to treat spasticity in some children with spastic cerebral palsy. This procedure appears to be effective, but for how long? Researchers from Montreal, Quebec, Canada, set out to find the answer to this question by studying data from the McGill University Rhizotomy Database on 102 pediatric patients with long-term follow-up.

29 May 2013

Harmless genetic variations may team up to increase risk of schizophrenia, find researchers

Using a novel method of analyzing genetic variations in families, researchers at Johns Hopkins have found that individually harmless genetic variations affecting related biochemical processes may team up to increase the risk of schizophrenia.

29 May 2013

Parachute's Safe Kids Week 2013: Be alert. Be safe. Be aware of concussions

Twelve-year-old Nathan Fraser suffered a severe concussion during hockey practice in February 2012 when he tripped over a teammate diving for a puck and crashed head first into the ice and boards. Nathan's memory was wiped out, he lost five months of school and was so sensitive to sound and light he had to wear sunglasses and special earmuffs in his own home. After a long, slow recovery, Nathan and his family are now advocates for concussion prevention and awareness, a goal of Parachute's Safe Kids Week, May 27 to June 2.

28 May 2013

Resolvins may help protect against cognitive decline after surgery

Resolvins are molecules naturally produced by the body from omega-3 fatty acids - a process that can be jumpstarted by common aspirin. In a new study, published in The FASEB Journal, researchers at Karolinska Institutet describe how resolvins could protect against the cognitive impairment that often affects recovery of surgical and critically ill patients.

28 May 2013

New MRI superresolution methods enable structural study of psychosis

A team of researchers from the UPNA/NUP-Public University of Navarre has developed new superresolution and segmentation methods for magnetic resonance images so that they can be applied to the structural study of psychosis. The aim is to be able to identify the differences that are produced in specific parts of the brain in psychotic patients with respect to their healthy relatives or other people.

28 May 2013

Study reveals that an epilepsy drug shows promise in preventing noise-induced tinnitus

An epilepsy drug shows promise in an animal model at preventing tinnitus from developing after exposure to loud noise, according to a new study by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

28 May 2013

Perceptual learning may hold promise for improving visual functions in people with central vision loss

Perceptual learning techniques may provide a useful new approach to rehabilitation in patients with central vision loss-taking advantage of visual plasticity that persists even in old age, according to a special article in the June issue of Optometry and Vision Science, official journal of the American Academy of Optometry. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

28 May 2013

Blinding and blinding assessment rarely documented in trial reports

A paper published in the current issue of P&P? tests the widely accepted assumption in drug trials: neither evaluators nor patients know whether the patient is getting drug or placebo (double blindness).

28 May 2013

Exposure to bug or weed killers is associated with higher risk of Parkinson's disease

A large analysis of more than 100 studies from around the world shows that exposure to pesticides, or bug and weed killers, and solvents is likely associated with a higher risk of developing Parkinson's disease. The research appears in the May 28, 2013, print issue of Neurology-, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

28 May 2013

New AAN guideline provides direction for use of blood thinners during surgery

A new guideline from the American Academy of Neurology will help people who take blood thinners decide whether or not to take them during surgery or other medical procedures.

28 May 2013

St James's Institute of Oncology orders two Versa HD systems to improve patient care

St James's Institute of Oncology, a leading radiotherapy center in the UK, recently ordered two Versa HD™ systems, an advanced linear accelerator designed to improve patient care and treat a wide range of tumors throughout the body.

From Elekta 28 May 2013

More evidence of high oxidative stress levels found in Down syndrome neurons

Down syndrome, the most common genetic form of intellectual disability, results from an extra copy of one chromosome. Although people with Down syndrome experience intellectual difficulties and other problems, scientists have had trouble identifying why that extra chromosome causes such widespread effects.

28 May 2013

Brain News and Research

Further Reading

Researchers tie traumatic brain injury to toxic form of protein

Viewpoints: 'Good news' on Calif. insurance rates; Battle against dementia needs stronger efforts; Dental care for the disabled

Protein presenilin plays critical role in controlling neuronal traffic on microtubule highways

UCLA researchers show that bacteria ingested in food can affect brain function

IUPUI assistant professor earns NSF CAREER Award for research on the brain

Cognitive deficits of children born preterm depend on the workload of tasks

Research discovery may lead to development of new therapies for neurological disorders

Crittenton researchers receive grant to study trauma treatment in children

Majority of children with spastic cerebral palsy experience long-term benefits of SDR

Harmless genetic variations may team up to increase risk of schizophrenia, find researchers

Parachute's Safe Kids Week 2013: Be alert. Be safe. Be aware of concussions

Resolvins may help protect against cognitive decline after surgery

New MRI superresolution methods enable structural study of psychosis

Study reveals that an epilepsy drug shows promise in preventing noise-induced tinnitus

Perceptual learning may hold promise for improving visual functions in people with central vision loss

Blinding and blinding assessment rarely documented in trial reports

Exposure to bug or weed killers is associated with higher risk of Parkinson's disease

New AAN guideline provides direction for use of blood thinners during surgery

St James's Institute of Oncology orders two Versa HD systems to improve patient care

More evidence of high oxidative stress levels found in Down syndrome neurons

Revolutionizing Life Science: An Interview with SCIEX on ASMS, the SCIEX 7500+ System, and AI-Driven Quantitation

From Discovery Biology to ELRIG Chair

Breathing New Life into Diagnostics: Plasmion's SICRIT Technology

Latest News