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.

Researchers investigate intelligent robotic devices to help people with severe disabilities

Scientists from the University of Ulster and the Indian Institute of Technology in Kanpur have teamed up to investigate how to develop intelligent robotic devices to help people with severe disabilities achieve greater independence.

21 Nov 2007

Transcranial magnetic stimulation for depression

For the first time in a large-scale study, transcranial magnetic stimulation has been shown to be an effective, non-drug treatment for major depression.

21 Nov 2007

Peptide therapy used to prevent progression of Parkinson's

Researchers have successfully used a peptide to reverse biochemical, cellular and anatomical changes that occur in the brains of mice with Parkinson's disease (PD), and report success in preventing the disease from progression.

21 Nov 2007

Scientists identify key nerve navigation pathway

Newly launched nerve cells in a growing embryo must chart their course to distant destinations, and many of the means they use to navigate have yet to surface.

21 Nov 2007

Naturally occurring brain chemical acetylcholine enhances visual processing

Neuroscientists at New York University have found that a naturally occurring chemical in the brain can enhance visual processing and suggest that this chemical may represent part of the biological basis of visual attention.

21 Nov 2007

New study finds blood-spinal cord barrier compromised in mice with ALS

The blood-spinal cord barrier is functionally impaired in areas of motor neuron damage in mice modeling amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), report researchers at the University of South Florida Center for Aging and Brain Repair.

21 Nov 2007

New discoveries about nitric oxide can provide drugs for schizophrenia

Problems with memory and social function in patients with schizophrenia may result from an imbalance in the brain’s nitric oxide system.

21 Nov 2007

Molecular foreman discovered for brain wiring

Researchers have identified a master regulatory molecule that is responsible for triggering the remodeling of neuronal connections that is critical for learning.

21 Nov 2007

Mapping the selective brain

Researchers have added a new piece to the puzzle of how the brain selectively amplifies those distinctions that matter most from the continuous cascade of sights, sounds, and other sensory input.

21 Nov 2007

Is there an objective biological basis for the experience of beauty in art?

Or is aesthetic experience entirely subjective? This question has been addressed in a paper published in this week's PLoS ONE, Cinzia Di Dio, Emiliano Macaluso and Giacomo Rizzolatti. The researchers used fMRI scans to study the neural activity in subjects with no knowledge of art criticism, who were shown images of Classical and Renaissance sculptures.

21 Nov 2007

Indomethacin a common drug for stopping preterm labor may be harmful for babies

A drug commonly used to halt premature labor may be associated with brain damage and intestinal issues in premature babies, according to a new analysis of studies on the issue publishedthis monthin American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

21 Nov 2007

Threat women face from vascular disease not widely understood

Though arterial vascular disease is widespread and often deadly among older American women, doctors too often fail to spot and treat it, according to a new report by a team of vascular surgeons from the Columbia University Medical Center and Weill Cornell Medical College campuses of NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital.

21 Nov 2007

Research shows how embryonic cells may regulate levels of retinoic acid

Human embryos that get too much or too little retinoic acid, a derivative of Vitamin A, can develop into babies with birth defects.

21 Nov 2007

Scientists find what we see depends on the patterns of neural activity in our brains

Vase or face" When presented with the well known optical illusion in which we see either a vase or the faces of two people, what we observe depends on the patterns of neural activity going on in our brains.

21 Nov 2007

Regulation of the retinoic acid gradient in zebrafish embryos

Human embryos that get too much or too little retinoic acid, a derivative of Vitamin A, can develop into babies with birth defects.

21 Nov 2007

Discovery of proteins key to normal brain function

MIT researchers have identified a family of proteins key to the formation of the communication networks critical for normal brain function.

21 Nov 2007

Effect of lead exposure on learning in children

Even very small amounts of lead in children's blood -- amounts well below the current federal standard -- are associated with reduced IQ scores, finds a new six-year Cornell study.

21 Nov 2007

Affiris GmbH granted a Europe-wide patent for key elements of its Alzheimer's vaccine

As a result, the company has exclusive rights of use to the peptide sequences for an innovative approach to vaccine development. The tolerability of the first Affiris vaccine, AFFITOPE AD01, is currently being tested as part of a phase I clinical trial. The lead investor in the company, MIG-Fonds, is extremely satisfied with the expanding patent portfolio of Affiris GmbH.

21 Nov 2007