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.

New software tools for fast, accurate reconstruction of neural networks

The human brain is the most complex of all organs, containing billions of neurons with their corresponding projections, all woven together in a highly complex, three-dimensional web. To date, mapping this vast network posed a practically insurmountable challenge to scientists.

30 Jul 2011

New fluorescent tool can track mysterious workings of cellular RNAs

The ability to tag proteins with a green fluorescent light to watch how they behave inside cells so revolutionized the understanding of protein biology that it earned the scientific teams who developed the technique Nobel Prizes in 2008.

30 Jul 2011

Individuals with dyslexia do not experience familiar language advantage

When people recognize voices, part of what helps make voice recognition accurate is noticing how people pronounce words differently. But individuals with dyslexia don't experience this familiar language advantage, say researchers.

30 Jul 2011

Resection of brain regions with fast ripples may improve seizure outcome in pediatric epilepsy: Study

New research focusing on high-frequency oscillations, termed ripples and fast ripples, recorded by intracranial electroencephalography, may provide an important marker for the localization of the brain region responsible for seizure activity.

30 Jul 2011

Scientists examine relationship between REM sleep behaviour disorders, Parkinson's disease

Patients suffering REM sleep behaviour disorders dream nightmares in which they are attacked and pursued, with the particularity that they express them by screaming, crying, punching and kicking while sleeping.

30 Jul 2011

Researchers examine drug that has potential to stop Parkinson's progression

Researchers from Michigan State University's College of Human Medicine, Van Andel Research Institute and the Translational Genomics Research Institute are investigating a drug that has the potential to not only alleviate Parkinson's symptoms but also halt the disease's progression.

30 Jul 2011

Merck reports worldwide sales of $12.2 billion for second quarter 2011

Merck, known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, today announced financial results for the second quarter of 2011.

29 Jul 2011

Customized surfaces help reveal protein clumping process linked with Alzheimer's, diabetes

When normal proteins form protein clumps in the body, then alarm bells start ringing. Such clumps, called "amyloids," are closely associated with Alzheimer's disease and type 2 diabetes, formerly called adult-onset diabetes.

29 Jul 2011

Conference to discuss latest advances in brain tumours by non-surgical means, space science

The latest advances in the treatment of brain tumours by non-surgical means, space science and non-fossil fuel energy generation, are among the topics being discussed by over 500 international scientists at Queen's University this week.

29 Jul 2011

Education can help alleviate 'brain drain' of African health workers

In a post on the New York Time's "On the Ground" blog, Rwanda Works Director Josh Ruxin writes about two Rwandan cousins who are "fighting the international brain-drain trend that is dangerously affecting medicine in the developing world, and have committed themselves to building local medical capacity in their native country" by establishing a university and medical school, called the Kigali Medical.

29 Jul 2011

Scientist discovers novel way to convert human skin cells into neurons

A scientist at the Gladstone Institutes has discovered a novel way to convert human skin cells into brain cells, advancing medicine and human health by offering new hope for regenerative medicine and personalized drug discovery and development.

29 Jul 2011

Drug to prevent brain ageing: Study

A new study shows that some chemicals given to rhesus macaques blocked a brain molecule that slows the firing of the brain's nerve cells, or neurons, as they age—prompting those nerve cells to act young again.

28 Jul 2011

Amylin, Lilly and Alkermes submit reply to FDA complete response letter for BYDUREON

Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Eli Lilly and Company and Alkermes, Inc. today announced that the companies have submitted their reply to a complete response letter issued in October 2010 by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regarding BYDUREON™ (exenatide extended-release for injectable suspension), an investigational medication for type 2 diabetes.

28 Jul 2011

New candidate gene for human benign childhood epilepsies

A new epilepsy gene, LGI2, has been found in the Lagotto Romagnolo dogs, known from their gift for truffle hunting. The gene discovery made by Professor Hannes Lohi and his research group at the University of Helsinki and the Folkhälsan Rsearch Center offers a new candidate gene for human benign childhood epilepsies characterized by seizure remission.

28 Jul 2011

Natus Medical second quarter revenue increases 10% to $58.1 million

Natus Medical Incorporated today announced financial results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2011.

28 Jul 2011

Arterial spin labeling shows areas of brain activity in chronic low back pain patients

Research from Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) uses a new imaging technique, arterial spin labeling, to show the areas of the brain that are activated when patients with low back pain have a worsening of their usual, chronic pain.

28 Jul 2011

Engineers work to design prosthetic arm that allows amputees to feel what they touch

Engineering researchers at four U.S. universities are embarking on a four-year project to design a prosthetic arm that amputees can control directly with their brains and that will allow them to feel what they touch.

28 Jul 2011

Researchers identify gene linked to Lesch-Nyhan disease

In humans, inherited mutations in a gene called HPRT1 lead to very specific self-destructive behavior. Boys with Lesch-Nyhan disease experience uncontrollable urges to bite their fingers, slam their arms into doorways and otherwise harm themselves.

28 Jul 2011

Conference to discuss new discoveries in cognitive neuroscience research

New discoveries in the field of cognitive neuroscience hold great promise for improving current teaching methods. Yet there is a significant gap between such scientific discoveries and the application of this knowledge in the classroom.

28 Jul 2011

Cognitive behavioral therapy and self-help may improve unexplained symptoms of pain, fatigue

A new type of therapy may help people with symptoms such as pain, weakness, or dizziness that can't be explained by an underlying disease, according to a study published in the July 27, 2011, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

28 Jul 2011

Brain News and Research

Further Reading

New software tools for fast, accurate reconstruction of neural networks

New fluorescent tool can track mysterious workings of cellular RNAs

Individuals with dyslexia do not experience familiar language advantage

Resection of brain regions with fast ripples may improve seizure outcome in pediatric epilepsy: Study

Scientists examine relationship between REM sleep behaviour disorders, Parkinson's disease

Researchers examine drug that has potential to stop Parkinson's progression

Merck reports worldwide sales of $12.2 billion for second quarter 2011

Customized surfaces help reveal protein clumping process linked with Alzheimer's, diabetes

Conference to discuss latest advances in brain tumours by non-surgical means, space science

Education can help alleviate 'brain drain' of African health workers

Scientist discovers novel way to convert human skin cells into neurons

Drug to prevent brain ageing: Study

Amylin, Lilly and Alkermes submit reply to FDA complete response letter for BYDUREON

New candidate gene for human benign childhood epilepsies

Natus Medical second quarter revenue increases 10% to $58.1 million

Arterial spin labeling shows areas of brain activity in chronic low back pain patients

Engineers work to design prosthetic arm that allows amputees to feel what they touch

Researchers identify gene linked to Lesch-Nyhan disease

Conference to discuss new discoveries in cognitive neuroscience research

Cognitive behavioral therapy and self-help may improve unexplained symptoms of pain, fatigue

Industry Focus eBook - Neurology/Neuroscience - 2nd edition eBook

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

Expanding access to NMR with the Fourier 80 Duo

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