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.

Viewpoints: 'Raw judicial politics' on health law; Texas abortion trial; suicide and gender

The Affordable Care Act -- Obamacare -- has endured so many near-death experiences that digging into the details of still another effort to demolish it is admittedly not an inviting prospect. (My own reaction, I confess, to hearing some months back about the latest legal challenge -- this one aimed at the supposed effect of a single word in the 900-page statute -- was something along the lines of "wake me when it's over.") But stay with me, because this latest round, catapulted onto the Supreme Court's docket earlier this month by the same forces that brought us the failed Commerce Clause attack two years ago, opens a window on raw judicial politics so extreme that the saga so far would be funny if the potential consequences weren't so serious (Linda Greenhouse, 8/20).

22 Aug 2014

Three commonly used NSAIDs affect cell membranes, produce unwanted side effects

Researchers have discovered that three commonly used nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, or NSAIDs, alter the activity of enzymes within cell membranes. Their finding suggests that, if taken at higher-than-approved doses and/or for long periods of time, these prescription-level NSAIDs and other drugs that affect the membrane may produce wide-ranging and unwanted side effects.

22 Aug 2014

Heart-lung support technology increases number of kidneys, livers, pancreases for transplant

Using heart-lung support technology, the University of Michigan's Transplant Center was able to increase the number of kidneys, livers and pancreases available for transplant by about 20 percent.

22 Aug 2014

Subcortical brain regions play key role in memorization process during sleep

According to researchers at the University of Montreal, the regions of the brain below the cortex play an important role as we train our bodies' movements and, critically, they interact more effectively after a night of sleep.

22 Aug 2014

People with ADHD often find difficult to make optimal decisions

Which shirt do we put on in the morning? Do we drive to work or take the train? From which takeaway joint do we want to buy lunch? We make hundreds of different decisions every day.

22 Aug 2014

Physician develops new device to treat stroke more effectively

A new device developed by a physician at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and a researcher at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock could soon be available to treat stroke more effectively.

22 Aug 2014

Fungal infections that sicken HIV/AIDS patients grow on trees

Researchers have pinpointed the environmental source of fungal infections that have been sickening HIV/AIDS patients in Southern California for decades. It literally grows on trees.

22 Aug 2014

Children and adolescents with autism have surplus of synapses in brain

Children and adolescents with autism have a surplus of synapses in the brain, and this excess is due to a slowdown in a normal brain "pruning" process during development, according to a study by neuroscientists at Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC).

22 Aug 2014

Highmark Foundation grants $311,950 to support healthy programs in Western Pennsylvania schools

The Highmark Foundation has awarded schools in Western Pennsylvania with $311,950 in "Creating a Healthy School Environment" grants for innovative, healthy programs that begin in September when local students head back to schools.

22 Aug 2014

Allen Institute for Brain Science welcomes visiting scientist engineer

The Allen Institute for Brain Science welcomes a visiting scientist from Harvard and a visiting engineer from Georgia Tech: Sharad Ramanathan, Ph.D.; and Craig Forest, Ph.D. Both Ramanathan and Forest will bring their distinct knowledge and backgrounds to the expanding scientific teams at the Allen Institute.

22 Aug 2014

IMRIS receives licensing to incorporate MRI core technology into VISIUS Surgical Theatre in Canada

IMRIS Inc. today announced that the Company has received Health Canada licensing to incorporate next generation MRI core technology into the VISIUS Surgical Theatre for sales and marketing in the country.

22 Aug 2014

French Ministry of Health approves financial support for Second Sight Argus II Retinal Prosthesis System

Second Sight Medical Products Inc. today announces that the French Ministry of Health has officially approved financial support for the Argus II Retinal Prosthesis System. Through the Forfait Innovation scheme, the French Government will pay for the first wave of groundbreaking treatment for 36 patients with severe to total sight loss due to retinitis pigmentosa (RP) in France.

22 Aug 2014

Doctor offers four important benefits of laser back surgery

The spinal column is one of the most delicate and essential areas of the human body. Signals carried to and from the brain through the column control many key functions of our motor skills and nervous system.

22 Aug 2014

CEA launches new epilepsy comic book for children

The Canadian Epilepsy Alliance is thrilled to announce the launch of a new comic series designed to educate children about the most common neurological disorder in Canada, epilepsy. The Medikidz Explain Epilepsy comic series tells a fictional story based on the experiences of 14-year-old Jack, who is navigating middle school while living with epilepsy.

21 Aug 2014

NeuroDerm signs definitive investment agreements for $16 million financing round

NeuroDerm Ltd., a clinical stage pharmaceutical company developing drugs for central nervous system (CNS) diseases, today announced that it has signed definitive investment agreements for a $16 million financing round led by certain of its existing investors with the participation of new investors, including The Elias Group.

21 Aug 2014

Researchers uncover reasons for decreasing sleep quality as we age

Researchers from the United States have shed light on why people experience more fragmented sleep as they grow older.

21 Aug 2014

Researchers reveal important clue for treating absence seizures

A group of Korean researchers have succeeded in revealing a principle mechanism of a neural network in the human brain, which will provide an important clue to potential treatments for absence seizures.

21 Aug 2014

Plymouth University selects Brain Tumour Research as official charity partner

Brain Tumour Research has been chosen by Plymouth University to be an official charity partner. Brain Tumour Research was launched in April 2009 to raise awareness of, and funding for, scientific research into brain tumours and improve outcomes for brain tumour patients.

21 Aug 2014

Investigational drug focuses on slowing Alzheimer's disease progression

Patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease currently have no treatment options to slow brain cell deterioration. Researchers at Houston Methodist's Nantz National Alzheimer Center are studying an investigational drug that proposes to do just that.

21 Aug 2014

Amygdala stimulates stress responses in adults, say researchers

In contrast to evidence that the amygdala stimulates stress responses in adults, researchers at Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University have found that the amygdala has an inhibitory effect on stress hormones during the early development of nonhuman primates.

21 Aug 2014