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Fruit fly study identifies genes regulating dopamine and sleep

Dopamine in the brain influences movement, learning, motivation and sleep. In humans, problems with dopamine are linked to conditions like Parkinson's disease, depression and sleep disorders.

13 Jan 2026

Scientists discover the brain region behind high blood pressure

Scientists have discovered that a part of the brain may be behind high blood pressure.

13 Jan 2026

Researchers uncover unexpected role of the cerebellum in schizophrenia's negative symptoms

Apathy, social withdrawal, and loss of motivation — the so-called ''negative'' symptoms of schizophrenia — are among the most disabling and hardest to treat.

13 Jan 2026

ALS breakthrough: Restoring protein production in motor neuron axons

Researchers at VIB and KU Leuven have identified a molecular process that allows motor neurons to maintain protein production, a process that fails in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

12 Jan 2026

Study uncovers a neural brake that limits motivation during unpleasant situations

Most of us know the feeling: maybe it is making a difficult phone call, starting a report you fear will be criticized, or preparing a presentation that's stressful just to think about.

9 Jan 2026

Brain signals shape facial expressions before movement begins

Every time we smile, grimace, or flash a quick look of surprise, it feels effortless, but the brain is quietly coordinating an intricate performance.

9 Jan 2026

Fish study reveals how ovulation triggers sexual receptivity in females

A research team led by Hiroshima University and Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology have proposed a neuroendocrine mechanism in bony fish that signals ovulation from the ovaries to the brain, using the medaka fish as a model; the first step to elucidate the neural circuits for facilitation of sexual receptivity in female teleosts.

9 Jan 2026

APOE gene: A major driver in Alzheimer's disease

Potentially more than 90% of Alzheimer's disease cases would not occur without the contribution of a single gene (APOE), according to a new analysis led by UCL researchers.

9 Jan 2026

$Neural pain pathways found to play crucial role in bone fracture healing$

Neural pain pathways found to play crucial role in bone fracture healing

When a house catches on fire, we assume that a smoke alarm inside will serve one purpose and one purpose only: warn the occupants of danger.

8 Jan 2026

How neural circuits orchestrate facial expressions

When a baby smiles at you, it's almost impossible not to smile back. This spontaneous reaction to a facial expression is part of the back-and-forth that allows us to understand each other's emotions and mental states.

8 Jan 2026

Scientists discover how stem cells navigate and repair brain damage after stroke

Some parts of our bodies bounce back from injury in fairly short order. The outer protective layer of the eye-called the cornea-can heal from minor scratches within a single day.

8 Jan 2026

CIRM awards $7.4 million to advance stem cell-based gene therapy for Friedreich's ataxia

The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) has awarded $7.4 million to support a University of California San Diego team developing a first-of-its-kind stem cell-based gene therapy for Friedreich's ataxia, a rare inherited neurodegenerative disease that causes progressive loss of coordination, muscle strength, heart function and overall mobility.

8 Jan 2026

Separate neurons for content and context enable flexible human memory

The human brain must be able to link memory content to the circumstances in which it occurs. Researchers in Bonn have now discovered how the human brain uses two different groups of neurons to store content and context separately.

7 Jan 2026

Pain-sensing neurons in the gut spark inflammatory immune responses

Pain sensing neurons in the gut kindle inflammatory immune responses that cause allergies and asthma, according to a new study by Weill Cornell Medicine.

7 Jan 2026

Replenishing mitochondria significantly reduces chronic nerve pain, research shows

For millions living with nerve pain, even a light touch can feel unbearable. Scientists have long suspected that damaged nerve cells falter because their energy factories known as mitochondria don't function properly.

7 Jan 2026

Parkinson’s disease may stem from iron starvation rather than iron overload

This perspective argues that Parkinson’s disease may involve functional iron deficiency, where bioavailable iron is limited despite normal or elevated total iron in the brain. The authors propose that iron sequestration, not iron toxicity alone, may impair dopamine synthesis and neuronal survival.

6 Jan 2026

Charting brain cell epigenomics to reveal origins of psychiatric disorders

In a revealing Genomic Press Interview published today in Genomic Psychiatry, Dr. Maria Margarita Behrens recounts an extraordinary scientific journey that wound through four countries and multiple disciplines before arriving at fundamental questions about how the brain develops and what goes wrong in psychiatric disorders.

6 Jan 2026

Ancient animals reveal sleep’s original role in maintaining brain health

A groundbreaking new study from Bar-Ilan University shows that one of sleep's core functions originated hundreds of millions of years ago in jellyfish and sea anemones, among the earliest creatures with nervous systems.

6 Jan 2026

Simple drug treatments could help older brains cope with memory decline and postoperative recovery

Simple pharmaceutical interventions could help older brains cope with memory impairment and recovery after surgery, new studies in mice suggest.

6 Jan 2026

Two isoforms of a cellular energy sensor play distinct, opposing roles in Alzheimer's disease

A comprehensive mini-review published today after peer review in Brain Medicine by Dr. Tao Ma and colleagues at Wake Forest University School of Medicine synthesizes emerging evidence that two isoforms of a critical cellular energy sensor play distinct, and sometimes opposing, roles in Alzheimer's disease.

6 Jan 2026