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.

Brain patterns of former anorexics reveal clues to disorder's lasting impact

Even after more than a year of maintaining a normalized body weight, young women who recovered from anorexia nervosa show vastly different patterns of brain activity compared to similar women without the eating disorder, Walter H. Kaye, M.D., professor of psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, and colleagues report in the December issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry.

2 Dec 2007

Neuromuscular consequences of reflexive covert orienting

The person you're speaking with may be looking at you, but are they really paying attention? Or has the person covertly shifted their attention, without moving their eyes? Dr. Brian Corneil, of the Centre for Brain and Mind at The University of Western Ontario in London, Canada has found a way of actually measuring covert attention.

2 Dec 2007

Transporters may help delay diabetes-related retinal damage

Two transporters that deliver alternative energy sources to the eye may help delay retinal damage that can occur in diabetes, researchers say.

29 Nov 2007

Pedophilia might be the result of faulty connections in the brain,

Pedophilia might be the result of faulty connections in the brain, according to new research released by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH).

29 Nov 2007

Novel imaging technique shows more gray matter in brains of autistic children

Using a novel imaging technique to study autistic children, researchers have found increased gray matter in the brain areas that govern social processing and learning by observation.

29 Nov 2007

Live kidney donors report high satisfaction rates and minimal health problems

Live kidney donors suffer minimal health problems and 90 per cent would strongly encourage other people to a become a donor if a partner or family member needed a transplant, according to a study of more than 300 people published in the December issue of the UK-based urology journal BJU International.

29 Nov 2007

Blue light and brain function

The human brain uses light not just to support vision but also to support alertness and cognitive tasks.

29 Nov 2007

Hypertension may heighten effects of Alzheimer's disease

Having hypertension, or high blood pressure, reduces blood flow in the brains of adults with Alzheimer's disease, according to a new study presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).

29 Nov 2007

Genetic selection of target stem cell populations

Human embryonic stem cells can be genetically manipulated to help select out desirable cell types, according to a University of Nottingham study published online in Molecular Therapy.

29 Nov 2007

Discovery of link between moderate exercise and decreased inflammation of damaged skin tissue

In recent years, researchers at the University of Illinois have uncovered a host of reasons for people to remain physically active as they age, ranging from better brain function to improved immune responses.

29 Nov 2007

Eltrombopag studied in Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura

There are estimated to be between 50,000 -- 100,000 individuals in the U.S. diagnosed with chronic Immune Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP), an autoimmune disease that dramatically reduces the number of platelets in their blood -- causing bruises, nosebleeds and, sometimes, life-threatening brain hemorrhages.

29 Nov 2007

FDA to review Champix/Chantix side effects

A drug which was designed to help people quit smoking is causing concern following a number of reports that it induces suicidal feelings and aggressive and erratic behaviour.

29 Nov 2007

Research suggests new direction for ALS treatment

A research team from Wake Forest University School of Medicine is the first to show that injections of a protein normally found in human cells can increase lifespan and delay the onset of symptoms in mice with ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), or Lou Gehrig's disease.

27 Nov 2007

Unprecedented increase in the use of radiologic exams on pregnant women

The past decade has seen an unprecedented increase in the use of radiologic exams on pregnant women, according to a study presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).

27 Nov 2007

Uptake of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine among children in the 1998-2002 United States birth cohorts

Since its addition to the list of routine immunizations in 2000, one childhood vaccine has helped prevent some pneumococcal-related illness, including pneumonia and otitis media.

27 Nov 2007

Brain stem-cell therapies more complicated than thought

An MIT research team's latest finding suggests that stem cell therapies for the brain could be much more complicated than previously thought.

27 Nov 2007

Insulin regulates the secretion of the antiaging hormome Klotho

Dr. Carmela Abraham, a professor of biochemistry and medicine at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM), reports this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences new findings on Klotho, an anti-aging gene that is associated with life span extension in rodents and humans.

27 Nov 2007