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Neuromodulator norepinephrine has direct action on auditory processing of complex signals

For neuroscientists studying the intricate mechanisms of hearing in the brain's auditory cortex, a major question has been how a listener can focus in a noisy environment, and how neurochemicals help neurons convey as much embedded information as possible for the rest of the brain to act on.

25 Jun 2015

Scientists redraw traditional brain map of language comprehension

For 140 years, scientists' understanding of language comprehension in the brain came from individuals with stroke. Based on language impairments caused by stroke, scientists believed a single area of the brain -- a hotdog shaped section in the temporal lobe of the left hemisphere called Wernicke's region -- was the center of language comprehension.

25 Jun 2015

Cell transplantation researchers successfully treat laboratory rats modeled with severe burns

Cell transplantation researchers have successfully used bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) to treat a variety of diseases and conditions. Now, using injections of MSCs, a research team in Brazil has successfully treated laboratory rats modeled with severe burns.

25 Jun 2015

Behavioral flexibility is controlled by specific neurons in the brain

Behavioral flexibility -- the ability to change strategy when the rules change -- is controlled by specific neurons in the brain, researchers at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (OIST) have confirmed.

24 Jun 2015

Scientists build fully functional neuron using organic bioelectronics

Scientists at Sweden's Karolinska Institutet have managed to build a fully functional neuron by using organic bioelectronics.

24 Jun 2015

Stanford researchers find how neurons work together to control movement in people with paralysis

Stanford University researchers studying how the brain controls movement in people with paralysis, related to their diagnosis of Lou Gehrig's disease, have found that groups of neurons work together, firing in complex rhythms to signal muscles about when and where to move.

24 Jun 2015

Finding may pave way for much-needed treatments for people with epilepsy

An amino acid whose role in the body has been all but a mystery appears to act as a potent seizure inhibitor in mice, according to a study by researchers at Johns Hopkins.

22 Jun 2015

Researchers develop method to recreate connections between neurons from different brain areas

Mapping the human brain's network of interconnections, known as the connectome is typically done with help from computational tools because recreating interconnections between different brain regions has been challenging in the lab. Researchers at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University have developed a method to recreate connections between neurons from two different brain areas in a dish.

19 Jun 2015

Taranis protein could hold key to a good night's sleep

Most of us need seven to eight hours of sleep a night to function well, but some people seem to need a lot less sleep. The difference is largely due to genetic variability. In research published online June 18th in Current Biology, researchers report that two genes, originally known for their regulation of cell division, are required for normal slumber in fly models of sleep: taranis and Cyclin-dependent kinase 1 (Cdk1).

19 Jun 2015

Nucleoporin proteins play significant role in maintaining embryonic stem cells

What if you found out that pieces of your front door were occasionally flying off the door frame to carry out chores around the house? That's the kind of surprise scientists at the Salk Institute experienced with their recent discovery that nucleoporins -- proteins that act as cellular 'doorways' to help manage what goes in and out of a cell's nucleus -- are actually much bigger players in expressing genes than previously thought.

19 Jun 2015

UB study sheds light on the molecular basis of cocaine addiction

Researchers at the University at Buffalo have discovered a previously unknown neural pathway that can regulate changes made in the brain due to cocaine use, providing new insight into the molecular basis of cocaine addiction.

19 Jun 2015

Scientists create new model to study latent HIV infection in brain cells

Over 35 million people worldwide are currently infected by HIV. Antiviral therapies can keep the virus from multiplying. However, no drug can cure infection so far, because various cell types continue to carry the virus in a latent, i.e. quiescent, state. Scientists of Helmholtz Zentrum München have now established a model for latent HIV infection of brain cells.

18 Jun 2015

NIBIB-funded researcher develops new technique for tissue analysis

An NIBIB-funded researcher has developed a new technique that creates digital pictures of a tissue's chemical composition using light and a computer. The technique replaces the need for dyes or stains, which can be costly and require significant time and effort to apply.

18 Jun 2015

Ruhr-Universität Bochum scientists develop mouse model to investigate SCA6

Scientists at the Ruhr-Universität Bochum established a mouse model for the human disease SCA6. SCA6 is characterised by movement deficits and caused by similar genetic alterations as Chorea Huntington. The mouse model will be used to investigate the disease mechanisms.

17 Jun 2015

TSRI chemists invent scalable method for synthesizing brain-protecting compound

Chemists at The Scripps Research Institute have invented the first practical, scalable method for synthesizing jiadifenolide, a plant-derived molecule that may have powerful brain-protecting properties.

17 Jun 2015

TSRI study confirms role of Rhes protein in Huntington's disease

Huntington's disease attacks the part of the brain that controls movement, destroying nerves with a barrage of toxicity, yet leaves other parts relatively unscathed.

17 Jun 2015

Researchers develop hPSC-based system for producing connections between neurons in the brain

Human stem cells can be differentiated to produce other cell types, such as organ cells, skin cells, or brain cells. While organ cells, for example, can function in isolation, brain cells require synapses, or connectors, between cells and between regions of the brain. In a new study published in Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience, researchers report successfully growing multiple brain structures and forming connections between them in vitro, in a single culture vessel, for the first time.

16 Jun 2015

NTCELL Phase I/IIa clinical study meets primary endpoint in patients with Parkinson’s disease

Living Cell Technologies Limited today announced results from a Phase I/IIa clinical study of NTCELL, an experimental regenerative cell therapy being studied as a disease-modifying agent in Parkinson’s disease. The study, conducted in four patients in New Zealand, met its primary endpoint of safety, showing NTCELL implantation was well tolerated, with no adverse events considered to be related to NTCELL.

15 Jun 2015

UIC study shows that brain cell density remains constant in normal aging

New, ultra-high-field magnetic resonance images (MRI) of the brain by researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago provide the most detailed images to date to show that while the brain shrinks with age, brain cell density remains constant.

14 Jun 2015