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.

Binding up iron in the brain to combat Parkinson's and Alzheimer's

Duke University chemists are developing ways to bind up iron in the brain to combat the neurological devastation of Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases.

24 Aug 2007

Scientists induce out-of-body-like experiences

Using virtual reality goggles to mix up the sensory signals reaching the brain, scientists have induced out-of-body-like experiences in healthy people, suggesting a scientific explanation for a phenomenon often thought to be a figment of the imagination.

24 Aug 2007

Nanoparticle drug delivery system for brain tumor therapy shows promise

A nanoparticle drug delivery system designed for brain tumor therapy has shown promising tumor cell selectivity in a novel cell culture model devised by University of Nottingham scientists.

24 Aug 2007

Tympanic membrane perforation may indicate brain injury

Physicians treating patients who have suffered tympanic membrane perforation as a result of blast should also look for signs of comcomitant brain or neurologic injury, according to a study published in the August 23 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine .

24 Aug 2007

Breakthrough for Huntington's disease

A major breakthrough in the understanding and potential treatment of Huntington's disease has been made by scientists at the University of Leeds.

24 Aug 2007

Potential new strategies for treating obsessive compulsive disorder

Using genetic engineering, researchers have created an obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) - like set of behaviors in mice and reversed them with antidepressants and genetic targeting of a key brain circuit.

24 Aug 2007

New ways to control fever-induced seizures

When your body cranks up the heat, it's a sign that something's wrong and a fever is designed to help fight off the infection.

24 Aug 2007

Insight into autism's origin in the brain

In the first study of its kind, researchers have discovered that in autistic individuals, connections between brain cells may be deficient within single regions, and not just between regions, as was previously believed.

23 Aug 2007

Antipsychotic drug Risperdal approved for use in children

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the U.S. has given approval for the antipsychotic drug Risperdal to be used to treat schizophrenia and bipolar disorder in children and teenagers.

23 Aug 2007

Vaccine suppresses aggregates of tau protein - implications for Alzheimer's

A new study by NYU Medical Center researchers shows for the first time that the immune system can combat the pathological form of tau protein, a key protein implicated in Alzheimer's disease.

22 Aug 2007

Clemson scientists improve longevity of fluorescent nanoparticles

Clemson University chemists have developed a method to dramatically improve the longevity of fluorescent nanoparticles that may someday help researchers track the motion of a single molecule as it travels through a living cell.

22 Aug 2007

Call for improved treatments of stroke

A coalition of physicians representing a wide range of medical specialties has issued a call to action to improve the treatment of stroke.

22 Aug 2007

High-density diffuse optical tomography helps scan infant brains

Researchers hoping to better understand the development of the infant brain have long been stymied by a formidable obstacle: babies just don't want to sit still for brain scans.

22 Aug 2007

New understanding of neural basis for decision making, or free will

The area of the brain responsible for self-control, where the decision not to do something occurs after thinking about doing it, is separate from the area associated with taking action, scientists say in the August 22 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience.

22 Aug 2007

Natural protection provides possible new treatments for stroke

Two substances that occur naturally in the brain act to protect the brain during a stroke. This is the conclusion of a dissertation published at the Sahlgrenska Academy, and the discovery may lead to new treatments for stroke patients.

21 Aug 2007

IBA agrees to pay $1.25 million to settle lawsuit alleging it infringed Optivus' patents

Optivus Proton Therapy has announced that Belgium-based IBA has agreed to pay $1.25 million to settle a lawsuit alleging IBA infringed on three Optivus proton therapy patents.

21 Aug 2007

Weight loss in women may be a precursor for Alzheimer's

Scientists in the U.S. say they suspect that women who develop Alzheimer's disease or other forms of dementia may start losing weight at least a decade before being diagnosed with the condition.

21 Aug 2007

Depression over-diagnosed and many people just blue

An Australian psychiatrist has accused the medical profession of over-diagnosing depression, and says thousands of people are wrongly being prescribed drugs to treat it.

20 Aug 2007

Cannabis for allergic contact dermatitis

Administering a substance found in the cannabis plant can help the body's natural protective system alleviate an allergic skin disease (allergic contact dermatitis), an international group of researchers from Germany, Israel, Italy, Switzerland and the U.S. has found.

17 Aug 2007

Prophylactic cranial irradiation in small cell lung cancer significantly increases survival

Prophylactic cranial irradiation after chemotherapy significantly reduces the risk of brain metastasis and doubles one-year survival in small-cell lung cancer (SCLC), according to the results of the multicenter phase III randomized EORTC trial 08993-22993, published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

17 Aug 2007