Brain News and Research

RSS

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.

Simple eye movement test spots fetal alcohol spectrum disorders

Canadian researchers have found that simple eye movement tests can effectively diagnose fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) in children.

26 Feb 2007

Chantix versus Zyban

Researchers in the United States say smokers who fail to quit smoking by using pills, should not be disheartened and should try again.

25 Feb 2007

Study on waking and dreaming during surgery

In the latest research concerning general anesthesia during surgery, researchers in Sweden say patients who wake up during the procedure and have a clear memory of the event may develop acute distress and emotional reactions, and in some cases long-term psychological symptoms.

25 Feb 2007

Alternative, diet-based method of treating brain cancer

The biologists found that KetoCal, a commercially available high-fat, low-carbohydrate diet designed to treat epilepsy in children, can significantly decrease the growth of brain tumors in laboratory mice.

22 Feb 2007

microRNAs undergo molecular editing with significant physiological consequences

Tiny molecules called microRNAs, only 19 to 21 nucleotides in length, are able to effectively silence sometimes large sets of genes. They do this by specifically binding to and neutralizing another form of RNA called messenger RNA, responsible for conveying the information from genes to the cellular machinery that uses that information to create proteins, the building blocks of the body.

22 Feb 2007

Pregnancy hormone prolactin gives hope to MS victims

Canadian scientists believe they may be some way to solving the mystery of why women suffering from multiple sclerosis (MS) go into remission while they are pregnant.

21 Feb 2007

White House orders investigation of military hospitals

The White House on Tuesday ordered an investigation into the treatment provided at U.S. military hospitals to veterans who return from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Reuters/Los Angeles Times reports.

21 Feb 2007

Reduced brain growth in alcoholics with family drinking history

The brains of alcohol-dependent individuals are affected not only by their own heavy drinking, but also by genetic or environmental factors associated with their parents- drinking, according to a new study by researchers at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA).

21 Feb 2007

Swedish brain researchers gain access to unique IBM supercomputer

Approximately 127 million people in Europe are suffering from some kind of brain disease or injury. With the long term goal to improve diagnostics and find new therapies in their sights, the Stockholm Brain Institute (SBI) and IBM have embarked on a partnership that gives Swedish brain researchers access to a unique supercomputer.

21 Feb 2007

Hormone prolactin key to repairing nerve cell damage

The mystery of why multiple sclerosis (MS) tends to go into remission while women are pregnant may be the secret to overcoming the devastating neurodegenerative disease, according to University of Calgary researchers who have shown that a pregnancy-related hormone is responsible for rebuilding the protective coating around nerve cells.

20 Feb 2007

Translationally controlled tumor protein key to organ growth

When amounts of a small protein called TCTP (translationally controlled tumor protein) are reduced in the cells of fruit flies, they are smaller than normal, indicating that the protein plays a major role in the growth and proliferation of cells, said researchers at Baylor College of Medicine in a report in current issue of the journal Nature.

20 Feb 2007

The puzzle of mystery dizziness solved

A new study has found that chronic dizziness, may have a variety of causes including anxiety disorders and brain injury.

20 Feb 2007

Smoking produces biochemical changes in human brain

New research shows for the first time that smoking produces long-lasting biochemical changes in the human brain similar to those changes previously seen in the brains of animals that used cocaine, heroin, and other illicit drugs.

20 Feb 2007

Genetic mutations make people susceptible to schizophrenia

Gene mutations governing a key brain enzyme make people susceptible to schizophrenia and may be targeted in future treatments for the psychiatric illness, according to MIT and Japanese researchers.

20 Feb 2007

Chronic dizziness may have several psychiatric and neurologic causes

Chronic dizziness may have several common causes, including anxiety disorders, migraine, traumatic brain injury and disorders in the part of the nervous system governing involuntary activities, according to a report in the February issue of Archives of Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery.

20 Feb 2007