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.

Research shows respiratory syncytial virus can be transferred during pregnancy to unborn baby

The most common cause of lower respiratory tract infections in infants and young children, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), can be transferred during pregnancy to an unborn baby, according to Cleveland Clinic Children's Hospital research published online this week in the journal PLOS ONE.

19 Apr 2013

Three MGH projects named among Top 10 Clinical Research Achievements of 2012

Three projects led by Massachusetts General Hospital investigators have been named among the Clinical Research Forum's Top 10 Clinical Research Achievements of 2012.

19 Apr 2013

New study shows reduction of dementia risk

A new Swedish study published in the journal Neurology shows that the risk of developing dementia may have declined over the past 20 years, in direct contrast to what many previously assumed.

19 Apr 2013

Abnormal protein translation leads to Fragile X ataxia, study finds

A bizarre twist on the usual way proteins are made may explain mysterious symptoms in the grandparents of some children with mental disabilities.

19 Apr 2013

Content of exosomes mirrors aggressiveness of brain tumour, study shows

"Current wisdom says that cells are closed entities that communicate through the secretion of soluble signalling molecules. Recent findings indicate that cells can exchange more complex information - whole packages of genetic material and signalling proteins.

19 Apr 2013

Newly redesigned Flexitron brachytherapy afterloading platform to be introduced at ABS meeting

At the 2013 American Brachytherapy Society meeting April 18-20 in New Orleans, Nucletron, an Elekta company, (booth #300), will introduce its newly redesigned Flexitron remote afterloading platform.

From Elekta 19 Apr 2013

GBM brain cancer patient treated with DCVax-L celebrates 10th anniversary of cancer-free survival

Northwest Biotherapeutics, a biotechnology company developing DCVax personalized immune therapies for solid tumor cancers, announced today that Brad Silver, an All American swimming and water polo athlete who was diagnosed with Glioblastoma multiforme brain cancer in late 2002, and was treated with DCVax-L in March of 2003, just celebrated the 10th anniversary of his continued cancer-free survival.

19 Apr 2013

FDA agrees to allow ADial to move forward with Phase III trial of AD04 for alcohol use disorder

ADial Pharmaceuticals, LLC, announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has agreed to allow ADial to move forward with its plan to initiate Phase III trials of AD04 as a treatment for alcohol use disorder in certain targeted genotypes population only.

19 Apr 2013

Research shows infants experience automatic calming reaction when carried by their mothers

There is a very good reason mothers often carry their crying babies, pacing the floor, to help them calm down. New research published in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on April 18 shows that infants experience an automatic calming reaction upon being carried, whether they are mouse or human babies.

19 Apr 2013

Excess glutamate drives schizophrenia in high-risk individuals

An excess of the brain neurotransmitter glutamate may cause a transition to psychosis in people who are at risk for schizophrenia, reports a study from investigators at Columbia University Medical Center published in the current issue of Neuron.

19 Apr 2013

Family members of trauma patients can benefit by being present during critical moments of care

A critically injured person is wheeled into the emergency room. Family members rush to the patient's side. Soon, doctors and nurses begin emergency resuscitation efforts, inserting breathing tubes, pumping in blood and other fluids.

19 Apr 2013

Researcher explores new way to deliver therapy to brain metastases from primary breast cancer

An Indiana University School of Medicine breast cancer surgeon is pursuing research that will utilize glass, gold, nanotechnology and Greek mythology hoping to vanquish breast cancer that has metastasized to the brain.

19 Apr 2013

Longer looks: The timely trauma response in Boston; Problems with aging doctors; Transplants from donors with HIV

The bombs at the Boston Marathon were designed to maim and kill, and they did. Three people died within the first moments of the blast. More than a hundred and seventy people were injured. They had their limbs blown off, vital arteries severed, bones fractured, flesh torn open by shrapnel or scorched by the blasts' heat. Yet it now appears that every one of the wounded alive when rescuers reached them will survive.

19 Apr 2013

Elevated responsivity of reward regions in the brain increases risk for future substance use

Do people get caught in the cycle of overeating and drug addiction because their brain reward centers are over-active causing them to experience greater cravings for food or drugs? In a unique prospective study Oregon Research Institute senior scientist Eric Stice, Ph.D., and colleagues tested this theory, called the reward surfeit model.

19 Apr 2013

Study highlights how genes can acquire, adapt to different roles in human evolution

Researchers have designed a method that can universally test for evolutionary adaption, or positive (Darwinian) selection, in any chosen set of genes, using re-sequencing data such as that generated by the 1000 Genomes Project.

19 Apr 2013

Tel Aviv University researcher reveals the missing link between brain patterns and Alzheimer's

Evidence indicates that the accumulation of amyloid-beta proteins, which form the plaques found in the brains of Alzheimer's patients, is critical for the development of Alzheimer's disease, which impacts 5.4 million Americans.

19 Apr 2013

Scientists probe source of pulsing signal in the sleeping brain

New findings clarify where and how the brain's "slow waves" originate. These rhythmic signal pulses, which sweep through the brain during deep sleep at the rate of about one cycle per second, are assumed to play a role in processes such as consolidation of memory.

19 Apr 2013

Research: Gene behind epilepsy syndrome could play a key role in other idiopathic epilepsies

Researchers at the University Department of Neurology at the MedUni Vienna have identified a gene behind an epilepsy syndrome, which could also play an important role in other idiopathic (genetically caused) epilepsies.

18 Apr 2013

New study finds newspapers are paying more attention to the long-term impact of concussions

Newspapers are paying more attention to the severity and long-term impact of concussions and other traumatic brain injuries in ice hockey than they did 25 years ago, a new study has found.

18 Apr 2013

Health officials have reason to 'remain hypervigilant' over H7N9

"Just as the world was breathing easier about a deadly bird flu virus that killed 371 people over the past decade before dropping out of sight, a different form of bird flu has emerged in China that is causing concern among health experts," a New York Times editorial writes.

18 Apr 2013

Brain News and Research

Further Reading

Research shows respiratory syncytial virus can be transferred during pregnancy to unborn baby

Three MGH projects named among Top 10 Clinical Research Achievements of 2012

New study shows reduction of dementia risk

Abnormal protein translation leads to Fragile X ataxia, study finds

Content of exosomes mirrors aggressiveness of brain tumour, study shows

Newly redesigned Flexitron brachytherapy afterloading platform to be introduced at ABS meeting

GBM brain cancer patient treated with DCVax-L celebrates 10th anniversary of cancer-free survival

FDA agrees to allow ADial to move forward with Phase III trial of AD04 for alcohol use disorder

Research shows infants experience automatic calming reaction when carried by their mothers

Excess glutamate drives schizophrenia in high-risk individuals

Family members of trauma patients can benefit by being present during critical moments of care

Researcher explores new way to deliver therapy to brain metastases from primary breast cancer

Longer looks: The timely trauma response in Boston; Problems with aging doctors; Transplants from donors with HIV

Elevated responsivity of reward regions in the brain increases risk for future substance use

Study highlights how genes can acquire, adapt to different roles in human evolution

Tel Aviv University researcher reveals the missing link between brain patterns and Alzheimer's

Scientists probe source of pulsing signal in the sleeping brain

Research: Gene behind epilepsy syndrome could play a key role in other idiopathic epilepsies

New study finds newspapers are paying more attention to the long-term impact of concussions

Health officials have reason to 'remain hypervigilant' over H7N9

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