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.

CRI commits $29.3 million in new funds to accelerate development of cancer immunotherapies

The Cancer Research Institute, a nonprofit organization dedicated to fueling the discovery and development of immunotherapies for all forms of cancer, announced that it has committed more than $29.3 million in new funds to accelerate cancer immunology research and cancer immunotherapy clinical development in the United States, Australia, Canada, France, Sweden, Switzerland, and The Netherlands.

5 Aug 2015

Brain's electrical activity may be more primary factor in memory solidification

The permanence of memories has long thought to be mediated solely by the production of new proteins. However, new research from the University of Alberta has shown that the electrical activity of the brain may be a more primary factor in memory solidification.

5 Aug 2015

New partnership aims to provide high-tech healthcare learning opportunities for pediatric patients

A new partnership between The University of Texas at Arlington Libraries and Cook Children's Medical Center in Fort Worth will mean new high-tech healthcare learning opportunities for pediatric patients.

5 Aug 2015

Researchers reveal how insulin reaches and acts in the brain to improve memory

Researchers at the UW Medicine, Veteran's Administration Puget Sound and Saint Louis University have made a promising discovery that insulin delivered high up in the nasal cavity goes to affected areas of brain with lasting results in improving memory.

5 Aug 2015

McGill researchers identify brain structures involved in delayed gratification

Researchers at McGill have clearly identified, for the first time, the specific parts of the brain involved in decisions that call for delayed gratification. In a paper recently published in the European Journal of Neuroscience, they demonstrated that the hippocampus (associated with memory) and the nucleus accumbens (associated with pleasure) work together in making critical decisions of this type, where time plays a role.

5 Aug 2015

New study reveals how infectious proteins spread from gut to the brain

Diagnosis of deadly brain conditions could be helped by new research that shows how infectious proteins that cause the disease spread.

5 Aug 2015

Study finds evidence that gut microbes affect circadian rhythms, metabolism in mice

A study including researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory and the University of Chicago found evidence that gut microbes affect circadian rhythms and metabolism in mice.

5 Aug 2015

Cryptogenic stroke frequent and recurrent

Cryptogenic ischaemic strokes and transient ischaemic attacks frequently recur, despite having no identifiable cause, show findings from the Oxford Vascular Study.

4 Aug 2015

DBS may aid cortical plasticity in Parkinson’s patients

Deep-brain stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus may help to restore long-term potentiation-like plasticity in the motor cortex of patients with Parkinson’s disease, a study shows.

4 Aug 2015

Current psychotherapy treatments less than optimal for war veterans suffering from PTSD

Our nation's veterans continue to suffer emotional and psychological effects of war—some for decades. And while there has been greater attention directed recently toward post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and more veterans are seeking help, current psychotherapy treatments are less than optimal, according to a new narrative review published in the August 4, 2015 issue of JAMA.

4 Aug 2015

Study reveals new gene that plays crucial role in ASD

A study carried out by the Laboratoire Neurobiologie des Interactions Cellulaires et Neurophysiopathologie (CNRS/Aix-Marseille Université), in collaboration with clinicians from Marseilles Public Hospitals (AP-HM) and scientists from the Salk Institute in San Diego (US), has revealed a new gene that plays a crucial role during early development in humans and whose under-expression may induce certain autistic traits.

4 Aug 2015

Discovery could pave way for new drugs to treat people with memory problems

A team of scientists believe they have shown that memories are more robust than we thought and have identified the process in the brain, which could help rescue lost memories or bury bad memories, and pave the way for new drugs and treatment for people with memory problems.

4 Aug 2015

3D printed brain tissue could help fight brain disorders

The brain is amazingly complex, with around 86 billion nerve cells. The challenge for researchers to create bench-top brain tissue from which they can learn about how the brain functions, is an extremely difficult one.

4 Aug 2015

Researchers discover how neurons help learn new motor skills

It takes a surprisingly small cluster of brain cells deep within the cerebellum to learn how to serve a tennis ball or line up a hockey shot. Researchers at McGill University led by Kathleen Cullen from the Department of Physiology have discovered that to learn new motor skills, neurons within the cerebellum engage in elegant, virtually mathematical, computations to quickly compare expected and actual sensory feedback. They then quickly readjust, changing the strength of connections between other neurons to form new patterns in the brain in order to accomplish the task at hand.

4 Aug 2015

UVa researchers examine the number, severity of head impacts during collegiate football practices and games

Researchers at the University of Virginia examined the number and severity of subconcussive head impacts sustained by college football players over an entire season during practices and games. The researchers found that the number of head impacts varied depending on the intensity of the activity.

4 Aug 2015

Trauma may cause long-lasting effects even in people without PTSD

Trauma may cause distinct and long-lasting effects even in people who do not develop PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder), according to research by scientists working at the University of Oxford's Department of Psychiatry. It is already known that stress affects brain function and may lead to PTSD, but until now the underlying brain networks have proven elusive.

4 Aug 2015

Research finding could help reveal how the human brain learns complex motor skills

Like top musicians, songbirds train from a young age to weed out errors and trim variability from their songs, ultimately becoming consistent and reliable performers. But as with human musicians, even the best are not machines. To learn and improve, the songbird brain needs to shake up its tried-and-true patterns with a healthy dose of creative experimentation. Until now, no one has found a specific mechanism by which this could occur.

4 Aug 2015

BrightFocus announces recipients of 2015 research program grants

BrightFocus Foundation, which funds research worldwide on Alzheimer's disease, glaucoma, and macular degeneration, today announced that its 2015 research program grants have been awarded to 58 scientists in 20 states and 7 foreign countries. Part of an $11 million research investment, the grants reflect the largest annual research funding in the foundation's history.

4 Aug 2015

MD Anderson scientists reveal role of metabolic enzyme fumarase in DNA repair

DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) are the worst possible form of genetic malfunction that can cause cancer and resistance to therapy. New information published this week reveals more about why this occurs and how these breaks can be repaired.

4 Aug 2015

15th Annual Geriatric Health Care Symposium now open for registration

Registration is now open for the 15th Annual Geriatric Health Care Symposium, "Maximizing Independence for Optimal Aging," presented by the University of Louisville Institute for Sustainable Health & Optimal Aging.

3 Aug 2015