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.

CDCA7 identified as key player in hemimethylation sensing

DNA methylation is a process in which a methyl group is attached to the cytosine base of the DNA molecule, and a major way that DNA is epigenetically marked.

28 Aug 2024

A study confirms that smoking significantly increases the risk of stroke

Findings indicate smoking elevates stroke risk, particularly in older males with comorbidities, underscoring the need for targeted prevention strategies.

28 Aug 2024

Unraveling the mystery of viral evolution

All organisms - from fungi to mammals - have the capacity to evolve and adapt to their environments. But viruses are master shapeshifters with the ability to mutate greater than any other organism. As a result, they can evade treatments or acquire resistance to once-effective antiviral medications.

28 Aug 2024

Study identifies genetic cause of severe seizures in children

Shortly after Kelly Cervantes' daughter Adelaide was born, she started having terrible seizures. Doctors were unable to give her a solution, or even a cause.

28 Aug 2024

Novel biochip diagnoses deadly brain cancer in under an hour

Researchers at the University of Notre Dame have developed a novel, automated device capable of diagnosing glioblastoma, a fast-growing and incurable brain cancer, in less than an hour. The average glioblastoma patient survives 12-18 months after diagnosis.

28 Aug 2024

PET imaging and proteomics reveal distinct protein signatures in Alzheimer's disease progression

Researchers used PET imaging and proteomic analysis of cerebrospinal fluid to study amyloid β and tau tangle loads in Alzheimer's patients, identifying 127 proteins linked to disease progression. The findings highlight distinct molecular pathways and potential therapeutic targets.

28 Aug 2024

Deep learning reveals disparities in brain aging across Latin America and the Caribbean

Study reveals that socioeconomic inequality, pollution, and health disparities significantly contribute to brain-age gaps, with Latin American and Caribbean populations, especially women and those with cognitive impairments, being most affected.

28 Aug 2024

SARS-CoV-2 evolves differently in the brain, revealing critical insights into viral tropism

Study investigates the evolution of SARS-CoV-2 within the central nervous system (CNS) compared to the lungs in mice, revealing higher viral divergence in the CNS and highlighting the critical role of the furin cleavage site (FCS) in viral tropism and compartmentalization.

27 Aug 2024

Scientists discover how a gut insulin antagonist controls fat loss in C. elegans by modulating brain signals

Researchers have identified an endogenous insulin antagonist, INS-7, in Caenorhabditis elegans that modulates fat loss by inhibiting a gut-to-brain signaling pathway involving the neuropeptide FLP-7.

27 Aug 2024

NIH funds study on psychedelics' potential to treat methamphetamine addiction

John McCorvy, PhD, Assistant Professor in the Department of Cell Biology, Neurobiology, and Anatomy at the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW); Adam Halberstadt, PhD, Professor of Psychiatry at the University of California San Diego (UCSD) and Director of the UCSD Center for Psychedelic Research; and Kevin Murnane, PhD, Associate Professor of Pharmacology, Toxicology, and Neuroscience and Director of Basic Science Research for the Louisiana Addiction Research Center at LSU Health Shreveport, were recently awarded a five-year, $2.4 million research grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to uncover critical insights into how psychedelics could be used as a therapeutic to treat methamphetamine addiction.

27 Aug 2024

Study reveals how different types of love activate the brain

We use the word 'love' in a bewildering range of contexts - from sexual adoration to parental love or the love of nature.

27 Aug 2024

Breakthrough miniaturized brain-machine interface enables brain-to-text communication

Researchers from EPFL have developed a next-generation miniaturized brain-machine interface capable of direct brain-to-text communication on tiny silicon chips.

27 Aug 2024

Novel bottom-up approach in synthetic immunology opens a new frontier for disease treatment

Synthetic immunology, an innovative field of research which could lead to fundamentally new approaches and methods in the treatment of infectious diseases and cancer, is the topic of an article in the "Perspectives" section of the journal "Nature Nanotechnology". Herein, Heidelberg researchers Prof. Dr. Kerstin Göpfrich, Prof. Dr. Michael Platten, Prof. Dr. Friedrich Frischknecht, and Prof. Dr. Oliver T. Fackler describe a so-called bottom-up approach that uses the toolbox of nanotechnology and synthetic biology to construct systems from molecular building blocks and specifically equip them with immune functions.

27 Aug 2024

FDA-approved Alzheimer's drug induces torpor-like state in tadpoles

Researchers at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University report that they were able to successfully put tadpoles of Xenopus laevis frogs into a hibernation-like torpor state using donepezil (DNP), a drug approved by the FDA to treat Alzheimer’s.

27 Aug 2024

Dementia Australia welcomes UK approval of lecanemab to tackle Alzheimer’s

Dementia Australia welcomes the decision by the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency to approve Lecanemab for use in the UK.

27 Aug 2024

New center established to take the lead in enhancing living environments for all ages

The College of Design and Engineering (CDE) at the National University of Singapore (NUS) has established the Centre for Environment and Ageing Well (ENgAGE) to take the lead in enhancing living environments that foster the physical, psychological and social well-being of individuals across all age groups, particularly in response to the challenges brought about by demographic shifts and climate change.

27 Aug 2024

Novel approach reverses age-related cognitive decline

The authors investigate the physiological functions of Terc-53 by creating transgenic mice that overexpress this noncoding RNA. They observe that Terc-53 overexpression affects normal aging in mammals, contributing to cognitive decline and shortened lifespan.

27 Aug 2024

Acute kidney injury linked to increased risk of dementia

Acute kidney injury is associated with an increased risk of developing dementia, according to a new study published in the journal Neurology by researchers at Karolinska Institutet and others.

26 Aug 2024

Increased mental health risks in patients with brain aneurysms

Among people who had aneurysms (weakened areas in brain blood vessels), the risk of developing a mental health condition was higher than among peers without an aneurysm.

26 Aug 2024

Stem cell study identifies unique glial contributions to multiple sclerosis

A team of scientists from The New York Stem Cell Foundation (NYSCF) Research Institute and Case Western Reserve University has created the largest reported collection of stem cell models from multiple sclerosis (MS) patients and used them to identify unique ways in which glia – integral support cells in the brain – contribute to the disease.

26 Aug 2024