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: Substance P appears to trigger formation of extraskeletal bone

For hundreds of thousands of people, injuring a muscle through an accident like falling off a bike or having surgery can result in a strange and serious complication. Their muscles start growing bones.

21 Jul 2011

Common cancer drug alleviates symptoms associated with schizophrenia

Researchers have revealed the molecular pathway that is affected during the onset of schizophrenia and successfully alleviated symptoms of the illness in mice, using a commonly used cancer drug.

21 Jul 2011

Novel vaccine for treating heroin addiction

Researchers at The Scripps Research Institute have developed a highly successful vaccine against a heroin high and have proven its therapeutic potential in animal models.

21 Jul 2011

Visual perception can be contaminated by recent memories

Taking a trip down memory lane while you are driving could land you in a roadside ditch, new research indicates. Vanderbilt University psychologists have found that our visual perception can be contaminated by memories of what we have recently seen, impairing our ability to properly understand and act on what we are currently seeing.

21 Jul 2011

Babies of stressed pregnant mums may have lasting effects

According to a new study high levels of stress during pregnancy can cause an unborn child to have lifelong mental scars. Researchers have found that a mother facing unnecessary crises can leave an imprint in the brains of her children, making them less able to cope as they get older.

20 Jul 2011

Diabetes gene linked to Alzheimer’s

Researchers from Mount Sinai School of Medicine have identified a gene that causes diabetes kills nerve cells in the brain, possibly resulting in Alzheimer’s disease.

20 Jul 2011

Falling may be an early sign of Alzheimer's

In a new study presented at the Alzheimer's Association's annual International Conference in Paris it was reported that older people whose brain scans showed signs of amyloid plaques - an early indicator of Alzheimer's disease - but who were otherwise healthy, had twice the risk of falls as people without brain amyloid.

20 Jul 2011

Alzheimer’s risk transmitted from mother to offspring: Study report

According to preliminary research adults whose mothers develop late-onset Alzheimer's disease may have an increased risk for the disease, compared with children of dads with late-onset Alzheimer's. The findings were presented at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference 2011.

20 Jul 2011

Alzheimer’s risk reduced by healthy living: study

According to a new study leading a healthy lifestyle can help prevent Alzheimer's disease. Researchers said at Alzheimer's Association International Conference in Paris on Tuesday that the number of Alzheimer's cases could be cut in half if people exercise, eat well and stop smoking. Other risks include depression, high blood pressure, diabetes and obesity. Education is also a factor, because illiteracy keeps brains from developing properly. The new findings have been published in the journal Lancet Neurology.

20 Jul 2011

Portable robotic device, videogames can help patients to recover from stroke

Today 15 million persons throughout the world suffer from an ictus every year and 5 million are left with chronic disabilities. FIK designed a system for alleviating neuromuscular disability amongst these patients from their homes and by which these can be permanently supervised by the therapist who will be able to carry out a quantitative evaluation of the therapy. To this end, they have brought together new technologies and entertainment and a greater quality of rehabilitation.

20 Jul 2011

U.S. News ranks NewYork-Presbyterian as sixth best hospital in the nation

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital ranks #1 in New York and among the top six in the U.S. out of the nearly 5,000 hospitals evaluated by U.S. News Media & World Report for their 2011-12 Best Hospitals rankings.

20 Jul 2011

Latest advances in Alzheimer's research presented at AAIC 2011

This week, more than 5,000 scientists from around the world gathered in Paris to report the latest advances in Alzheimer's research at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference 2011.

20 Jul 2011

Inherited forms of Alzheimer's can be detected years before dementia develops

Inherited forms of Alzheimer's disease may be detectable as many as 20 years before problems with memory and thinking develop, scientists will report July 20, 2011, at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease in Paris.

20 Jul 2011

New insights into sleep difficulties among older people

A new study of the brain's master circadian clock - known as the suprachiasmatic nucleus, or SCN - reveals that a key pattern of rhythmic neural activity begins to decline by middle age. The study, whose senior author is UCLA Chancellor Gene Block, may have implications for the large number of older people who have difficulty sleeping and adjusting to time changes.

20 Jul 2011

Scientists discover new dominant gene linked to Parkinson's

The newly discovered gene is known as VPS35, the sixth one which has been associated with Parkinson's disease and the third dominant gene.

20 Jul 2011

U.S. News ranks Mount Sinai Medical Center among America's Best Hospitals for 2011-2012

Mount Sinai Medical Center is among the nation's top hospitals for the fifth year in a row according to U.S. News & World Report's 2011-2012 Best Hospitals. Mount Sinai was the only hospital in South Florida to receive a prestigious national ranking in geriatric care and one of only three hospitals in South Florida to rank on a national level.

20 Jul 2011

People with small hippocampus do not face higher risk of depression

Imaging studies have repeatedly found that people with depression have smaller hippocampal volumes than healthy individuals. The hippocampus is a brain region involved in learning and memory, spatial navigation, and the evaluation of complex life situations or "contexts".

20 Jul 2011

Lack of kidney dopamine leads to high blood pressure and shorter life span

The neurotransmitter dopamine is best known for its roles in the brain - in signaling pathways that control movement, motivation, reward, learning and memory.

20 Jul 2011

Millennium submits VELCADE sNDA to FDA to add OS data for previously untreated multiple myeloma

Millennium: The Takeda Oncology Company with its parent company Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited today announced the submission of a supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for VELCADE® (bortezomib) for injection to add overall survival data after a five-year follow up to the product label.

20 Jul 2011

Falls, balance problems linked to early stages of Alzheimer's

Falls and balance problems may be early indicators of Alzheimer's disease, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis reported July 17, 2011, at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease in Paris.

20 Jul 2011