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.

Fame matters more than beauty in consumer behaviour

New research from Aston University in Birmingham, UK suggests that fame really does matter more than beauty when it comes to consumer behaviour.

13 Aug 2008

Medulloblastoma in children - two studies find clues to treatment

Medulloblastoma is one of the most common and most malignant brain tumours among children and teenagers. These tumours grow very rapidly, and fifty percent of patients in the long term die from the condition. The details of the processes that lead to the growth of these tumours have remained unknown until now.

12 Aug 2008

California under pressure to ban bisphenol A in baby bottles

Growing anxiety by consumers over over the possible side-effects of a chemical commonly used in plastic baby bottles and baby formula cans has prompted California lawmakers to consider whether the use of the chemical should be banned.

12 Aug 2008

Oxygen Biotherapeutics develops gel version of Oxycyte for treating surface wounds

Oxygen Biotherapeutics, Inc. has announced that the company has developed a gel-like form of Oxycyte that it intends to investigate as a topical application for open wounds, abrasions and burns. Oxycyte is the Company's perfluorocarbon (PFC) therapeutic oxygen carrier.

12 Aug 2008

PET scans spot signs of early Alzheimer's

Scientists in Finland say a type of imaging technique known as positron emission tomography (PET) scanning may be a useful and non-invasive way of diagnosing the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease.

11 Aug 2008

Researchers identify molecular mechanism underlying a genetic brain malformation called holoprosencephaly

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists have identified one of the molecular mechanisms underlying the genetic brain malformation called holoprosencephaly (HPE).

11 Aug 2008

Subtle signs of Alzheimer's appear many years before symptoms appear

Scientists from the University of South Florida and the University of Kentucky report that people who develop Alzheimer's disease may show signs of this illness many decades earlier in life, including compromised educational achievement.

11 Aug 2008

Finding cancer's original cell key to treatments

Cancer biologists are turning their attention to the normal cells that give rise to cancers, to learn more about how tumor growth might be stopped at the earliest opportunity.

11 Aug 2008

Medulloblastoma originates in normal brain "stem" cells that turn malignant

An aggressive childhood brain tumor known as medulloblastoma originates in normal brain "stem" cells that turn malignant when acted on by a known mutant, cancer-causing oncogene, say researchers from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF).

11 Aug 2008

Prions can survive in the ground for several years

Prions, the pathogens that cause scrapie in sheep, can survive in the ground for several years, as researchers have discovered. Animals can become infected via contaminated pastures. It is not yet known whether the pathogens that cause BSE and CWD are equally resistant.

11 Aug 2008

Bristol University receives new funds for research into stress and the brain

Over £500,000 has been awarded to Bristol University academics to fund research into how stress hormones act in the brain.

11 Aug 2008

Researchers block damage to fetal brain following maternal alcohol consumption

In a study on fetal alcohol syndrome, researchers were able to prevent the damage that alcohol causes to cells in a key area of the fetal brain by blocking acid sensitive potassium channels and preventing the acidic environment that alcohol produces. The cerebellum, the portion of the brain that is responsible for balance and muscle coordination, is particularly vulnerable to injury from alcohol during development.

11 Aug 2008

Boxed warnings now on popuar sleeping pill Stilnox

The popular sleeping pill Stilnox now carries a warning about the potentially dangerous sleep-related behaviours linked to the drug.

11 Aug 2008

Therapies which boost the clearance of faulty proteins in cells may slow down ageing

Scientists say as people age, their cells become less efficient at getting rid of damaged protein and the result is a buildup of toxic material; this is particularly apparent in Alzheimer's, Parkinson's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders associated with ageing.

11 Aug 2008

Dopamine and Parkinson's

Parkinson's disease and drug addiction are polar opposite diseases, but both depend upon dopamine in the brain. Parkinson's patients don't have enough of it; drug addicts get too much of it. Although the importance of dopamine in these disorders has been well known, the way it works has been a mystery.

10 Aug 2008

Scientists stop age-related decline in an entire organ

As people age, their cells become less efficient at getting rid of damaged protein - resulting in a buildup of toxic material that is especially pronounced in Alzheimer's, Parkinson's disease, and other neurodegenerative disorders.

10 Aug 2008

Research finds a role for the GABA neurotransmitter in maintaining energy balance

Controlling body weight is a complicated process, as any frustrated dieter might attest. But as scientists continue to investigate the brain's intricate neurocircuitry and its role in maintaining energy balance, they are forming a clearer picture of the myriad events that lead to weight gain and weight loss.

10 Aug 2008

COMT gene variation affects fear processing, anxiety

Inborn differences may help explain why trauma gives some people bad memories and others the nightmare of post-traumatic stress. Scientists in Germany and the United States have reported evidence linking genes to anxious behavior. The findings appear in the August issue of Behavioral Neuroscience, published by the American Psychological Association.

10 Aug 2008

Media coverage of persistent vegetative state and end-of-life decision-making

In 1990, Theresa Schiavo, an American citizen, had a cardiac arrest that caused irreversible brain damage which led to a persistent vegetative state diagnosis. A few years later, this diagnosis became a source of conflict over the interruption of artificial nutrition.

10 Aug 2008