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.

Drug abuse in the U.S. not confined to minority groups

Researchers in the U.S. say more than 10 percent of American adults at some point in their lives, abuse or become addicted to drugs.

8 May 2007

Does the time of year in which a child is conceived influence future academic achievement?

Yes, according to research by neonatologist Paul Winchester, M.D., Indiana University School of Medicine professor of clinical pediatrics. Dr. Winchester, who studied 1,667,391 Indiana students, presents his finding on May 7 at the Pediatric Academic Societies' annual meeting.

7 May 2007

Increasing SUMO protein in brain could be a way of treating epilepsy and schizophrenia

The brain contains about 100 million nerve cells, each having 10,000 connections to other nerves cells. These connections, called synapses, chemically transmit the information that controls all brain function via proteins called receptors. These processes are believed to be the basis of learning and memory.

7 May 2007

Hypertension drugs offer a double whammy

Researchers at the Wake Forest University School of Medicine in the U.S. suggest that some medications taken for high blood pressure may have other uses.

7 May 2007

Oral vaccine prevents prion disease in mice

An oral vaccine can prevent mice from developing a brain disease similar to mad cow disease, according to research presented at the American Academy of Neurology's 59th Annual Meeting in Boston.

4 May 2007

New treatments for brain hemorrhage

The first scientifically proven treatments for intracerebral hemorrhage, or "bleeding," strokes, are on the horizon, including a new drug that holds promise for slowing bleeding and limiting brain damage resulting from such a stroke, according to updated American Heart Association/American Stroke Association guidelines.

4 May 2007

Little-known cell networks vital to circadian rhythm

Circadian rhythm is the basic 24-hour cycle that involves various behaviors, including sleeping and eating, in all living organisms.

4 May 2007

Reducing levels of the protein tau can prevent seizures and neurological deficits related to Alzheimer's disease

The findings, reported in the journal Science, demonstrate that when tau is removed from mice genetically engineered to simulate Alzheimer's disease, their memory function is retained and they live a normal lifespan. Reducing tau levels also made mice more resistant to epileptic seizures.

4 May 2007

Noise effects in ion channels in the brain are much larger than previously assumed

Addressing a current issue in neuroscience, Aldo Faisal and Simon Laughlin from Cambridge University investigate the reliability of thin axons for transmitting information.

4 May 2007

New understanding of genetic mutation that contributes to autism

The investigators now know more about how the mutation causes problems with a specific gene and are testing for additional mutations of the same gene in other people with autism.

4 May 2007

Research paves the way for new therapies designed to manage heart disease in older population

Ischaemic heart disease, characterised by reduced blood flow to the heart, is Australia's and the world's leading cause of death.

4 May 2007

Study on cerebral malaria in children living in an endemic region

Scientists at CNRS and the Pasteur Institute, collaborating with physicians in Gabon, have just undertaken a study on cerebral malaria in children living in an endemic region.

4 May 2007

Losing money may be intrinsically linked with fear and pain in the brain

In a Wellcome Trust study published this week in the Journal of Neuroscience, researchers have shown that during a gambling task, losing money activated an area of the brain involved in responding to fear and pain.

4 May 2007

Study of damaged gene gives insight into causes of mental illness

Scientists have pinpointed how different types of damage in types of damage to the same gene can cause some people to suffer from schizophrenia while others have major depression.

4 May 2007

People with a sibling who have had a stroke are almost twice as likely to suffer a stroke themselves

People with a brother or sister who have had a stroke are almost twice as likely as the average American to suffer a stroke themselves, according to research presented at the American Academy of Neurology's 59th Annual Meeting in Boston.

4 May 2007

Study shows effectiveness of Peramivir in mouse model of H5N1 virus infection

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals has announced that investigators at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, reported favorable results evaluating peramivir treatment in an animal model of influenza using a highly virulent strain of H5N1 virus (an avian influenza strain that had caused fatal human infection in Viet Nam).

4 May 2007