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.

British High Court overturns earlier "right-to-food" ruling

The General Medical Council in the UK has won its appeal in the High Court against a ruling which earlier gave a seriously-ill patient the right to stop doctors withdrawing food and drink.

28 Jul 2005

Scientists discover genes linked to spread of breast cancer

In new research scientists have identified genes which enable breast cancer cells to spread to the lungs, and the discovery could very well improve diagnosis and treatment of the disease.

28 Jul 2005

Effects of ostracism are a health concern

Ostracism is more powerful now than ever because people have fewer strong family and friend support systems to fall back on when faced with exclusion in relationships, the workplace or even Internet chat rooms, says a Purdue University social psychologist.

28 Jul 2005

Habit memory - humans clearly can acquire and retain knowledge through repetition

Humans have a "robust" capacity to learn and retain new information unconsciously, retaining so-called habit memory even when conscious or declarative learning is absent, memory experts at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and the San Diego Veterans Affairs Health System report in the July 28, 2005 issue of Nature.

27 Jul 2005

New breakthrough on the origins of Alzheimer's disease

Scientists from the Flanders Interuniversity Institute for Biotechnology (VIB) associated with the University of Antwerp have achieved a new breakthrough in their research on the origins of Alzheimer's disease.

27 Jul 2005

Researchers make headway in mystery of migraines

The research, published in the new issue of the Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), reveals how gene mutations known to cause a form of inherited migraine target a cellular process involved in brain cell communication.

27 Jul 2005

What a blinking waste of time!!

According to researchers from University College London, parts of the brain are temporarily "switched off" when we blink.

27 Jul 2005

At last the news we really wanted to hear - chocolate is good for us!

Following new research that has discovered that flavanols, a plant chemical that occurs in cocoa beans, were good for human health, confectionary maker Mars, a privately owned company, yesterday unveiled new research showing that cocoa, the central ingredient in most of its products, has properties that can be used to treat diabetes, strokes and vascular disease.

27 Jul 2005

Simple measures could help to improve outcome for patients who have suffered head injuries

Doctors and other carers often overlook some important aspects of outcome amongst patients who have suffered head injuries, according to a new study published in BMC Family Practice.

27 Jul 2005

Researchers develop tiny, highly efficient heat spreader for epileptic seizure treatment device

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute researchers are developing a tiny, highly efficient heat spreader to be used in a new device to be implanted in the brain of patients who suffer from severe epileptic seizures.

26 Jul 2005

New chemical compound can accelerate stem cell mobilization

The finding has led to the development of a new chemical compound that can accelerate this process (called stem cell mobilization) in mice - which could eventually lead to more efficient stem cell harvesting for human use.

26 Jul 2005

Methamphetamine users show symptoms similar to brain injury patients

Because today's methamphetamine is stronger, more potent and wreaks greater havoc on the brain, chronic users exhibit symptoms similar to patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI), according to the Brain Injury Association of Arizona (BIAAZ).

26 Jul 2005

Single prenatal dose of methamphetamine enough to cause long-term neurodevelopmental problems in babies

In research published in the August issue of Free Radical Biology and Medicine, U of T pharmacy and pharmacology professor Peter Wells and his colleagues determined that exposing pregnant mice only once to methamphetamine led to delivery of offspring with long-term neurodevelopmental problems, including reduced motor co-ordination.

26 Jul 2005

Nerve-insulating substance called myelin can lead to functional improvements in animals with spinal cord injury

Combining partially differentiated stem cells with gene therapy can promote the growth of new "insulation" around nerve fibers in the damaged spinal cords of rats, a new study shows.

26 Jul 2005

Rush to offer new treatment for arterio-venous malformations

Rush University Medical Center will be the first in Chicago and among the first hospitals in the nation to offer a promising new treatment for arterio-venous malformations (AVMs) following its approval by the FDA on July 21.

26 Jul 2005

Neuroscientists identify how the brain processes and stores emotional experiences as long-term memories

The research, performed on rats, could help neuroscientists better understand why emotionally arousing events are remembered over longer periods than emotionally neutral events, and may ultimately find application in treatments for conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder.

26 Jul 2005

Adding spectroscopy to breast MR examinations may improve the efficiency and quality of patient care

Measuring the biochemical changes in breast tumors with magnetic resonance (MR) spectroscopy enables radiologists to more accurately distinguish benign tumors from cancerous ones, according to a study appearing in the August issue of the journal Radiology.

26 Jul 2005

Plaques in the brain more likely to be expressed as dementia in women than in men

Researchers from the Rush Alzheimer's Disease Center found that plaques and tangles in the brain, the changes seen in people with Alzheimer's disease (AD), are more likely to be expressed as dementia in women than in men.

25 Jul 2005

Fragile X-associated tremor/ataxia syndrome difficult to diagnose

Fragile X-associated tremor/ataxia syndrome can be difficult to diagnose and should have guidelines for diagnostic testing, according to a study in the July 26 issue of Neurology, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology. A second study found chemotherapy aggravated symptoms in one woman's case.

25 Jul 2005

Bodily illusions rearrange the sense of touch

The brain is bombarded by information about the physical proportions of our bodies. The most familiar sensations, such as a puff of wind or the brush of our own shirt sleeve, serve to constantly remind the brain of the body's outer bounds, creating a sense of what is known as proprioception.

25 Jul 2005

Brain News and Research

Further Reading

British High Court overturns earlier "right-to-food" ruling

Scientists discover genes linked to spread of breast cancer

Effects of ostracism are a health concern

Habit memory - humans clearly can acquire and retain knowledge through repetition

New breakthrough on the origins of Alzheimer's disease

Researchers make headway in mystery of migraines

What a blinking waste of time!!

At last the news we really wanted to hear - chocolate is good for us!

Simple measures could help to improve outcome for patients who have suffered head injuries

Researchers develop tiny, highly efficient heat spreader for epileptic seizure treatment device

New chemical compound can accelerate stem cell mobilization

Methamphetamine users show symptoms similar to brain injury patients

Single prenatal dose of methamphetamine enough to cause long-term neurodevelopmental problems in babies

Nerve-insulating substance called myelin can lead to functional improvements in animals with spinal cord injury

Rush to offer new treatment for arterio-venous malformations

Neuroscientists identify how the brain processes and stores emotional experiences as long-term memories

Adding spectroscopy to breast MR examinations may improve the efficiency and quality of patient care

Plaques in the brain more likely to be expressed as dementia in women than in men

Fragile X-associated tremor/ataxia syndrome difficult to diagnose

Bodily illusions rearrange the sense of touch

Industry Focus eBook - Neurology/Neuroscience - 2nd edition eBook

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

Expanding access to NMR with the Fourier 80 Duo

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