Neuroscience News and Research

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Could prebiotics benefit early life brain development? An interview with Dr Phil Burnet

Galacto-oligosaccharides are essentially sugar or saccharide molecules that have been joined together into short polymer chains.

16 Mar 2016

Distinct brain networks support retrieval of old and recent memories

When we remember events which occurred recently, the hippocampus is activated. This area in the temporal lobe of the brain is a hub for learning and memory. But what happens, if we try to remember things that took place years or decades ago? Neuroscientists at the Ruhr-University Bochum and the Osaka University have been able to give some answers to this question.

16 Mar 2016

Mindfulness meditation reduces pain without endogenous opioid system

Everyone knows that stubbing your toe hurts. What makes it stop hurting is the body's main pain-blocking process - the natural production of opioids.

16 Mar 2016

Could environmental toxins trigger amyloid plaques in the brain? An interview with Dr Paul Alan Cox

Many Chamorro villagers on the island of Guam perished from a puzzling paralytic disease that combines aspects of ALS, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's disease.

From Huron Technologies 14 Mar 2016

NIMH-supported researchers discover key secrets of the underlying brain circuitry

A few years ago, researchers supported by the National Institutes of Health discovered in rats that awake mental replay of past experiences is critical for learning and making informed choices. Now, the team has discovered key secrets of the underlying brain circuitry -- including a unique system that encodes location during inactive periods.

14 Mar 2016

Grid cells involved in broader range of cognitive process than previously thought

Evidence of grid cell activity has been seen in healthy volunteers asked to imagine moving through an environment in new UCL research funded by the Medical Research Council and Wellcome Trust.

11 Mar 2016

Conserved gene can act to inhibit lung cancer development, study finds

Scientists believe that "conserved" genes — those found in life forms that range from bacteria to plants, insects and humans — perform vital biological functions across species. And limited research on one of those genes, Nitrilase 1 (Nit1), suggested it acts to inhibit cancer development.

11 Mar 2016

Studies raise hope for new treatments, preventive approaches for schizophrenia

Emerging evidence on the development, "prodromal" characteristics, and long-term course of schizophrenia provide reasons for optimism for developing new treatments and preventive approaches for this devastating disorder, according to the special March/April issue of Harvard Review of Psychiatry.

11 Mar 2016

Findings offer novel way for creating drugs to stop mitochondria from destroying cells during stress

Malfunctioning mitochondria — the power plants in cells — are behind the damage caused by strokes, heart attacks, and neurodegenerative diseases, but little has been known about how to stop these reactors from melting down, destroying cells and tissue. Mitochondria also take up calcium, which regulates energy production.

11 Mar 2016

Scientists optimize imaging and behavior techniques to monitor activity of neurons

The cerebellum is a region of the brain that plays an important role in motor control. The Purkinje cells, a class of neurons located in this region, are a major site of information integration that regulate changes in neural connections caused by varying factors such as behavior, environment, and emotions. Thus Purkinje cells provide an ideal location for studying the mechanisms necessary for cerebellum dependent motor learning.

11 Mar 2016

Researchers develop molecule that can inhibit enzyme associated with onset of stroke

Research teams separated by 14 hours and 9,000 miles have collaborated to advance prospective treatment for the world's second-leading cause of death.

11 Mar 2016

Gar genome helps identify genetic sequences shared by human disease genes and zebrafish

Led by Drs John Postlethwait and Ingo Braasch from the Institute of Neuroscience, University of Oregon, US, in collaboration with the Broad Institute, the study of the Spotted Gar (Lepisosteus oculatus) genome reveals that it is small and manageable. Furthermore, it lacks much shuffling and duplication that occurred in the 'main' fish ancestral line; it conserved its genome.

10 Mar 2016

People newly diagnosed with multiple sclerosis share risk factors of other chronic illnesses

People newly diagnosed with multiple sclerosis may often have other chronic health conditions as well, according to a study published in the March 9, 2016 online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

10 Mar 2016

Discovery may provide potential target for new therapies to treat bipolar disorder

Bipolar disorder, which affects nearly eight million Americans, takes a toll not only on patients, but also on their families and communities.

10 Mar 2016

Scientists discover brain mechanisms that separate food consumption from cravings

Researchers investigating eating disorders often study chemical and neurological functions in the brain to discover clues to overeating. Understanding non-homeostatic eating -- or eating that is driven more by palatability, habit and food cues -- and how it works in the brain may help neuroscientists determine how to control cravings, maintain healthier weights and promote healthier lifestyles. Scientists at the University of Missouri recently discovered the chemical circuits and mechanisms in the brain that separate food consumption from cravings. Knowing more about these mechanisms could help researchers develop drugs that reduce overeating.

9 Mar 2016

Brain Awareness Week: University of Leicester to host free event to raise awareness of neurological research

The University of Leicester is to host a free event which coincides with a global initiative aimed at raising awareness of neurological research.

9 Mar 2016

Research findings may provide highly effective therapeutic strategy for treatment of Alzheimer's, AMD

For the first time, researchers at LSU Health New Orleans have shown that a protein critical to the body's ability to remove waste products from the brain and retina is diminished in age-related macular degeneration, after first making the discovery in an Alzheimer's disease brain. The research team, led by Walter Lukiw, PhD, Professor of Neurology, Neuroscience and Ophthalmology at LSU Health New Orleans Neuroscience Center, also discovered a key reason, identifying a new treatment target.

8 Mar 2016

Amputee feels texture in real-time with artificial fingertip

An amputee was able to feel smoothness and roughness in real-time with an artificial fingertip that was surgically connected to nerves in his upper arm. Moreover, the nerves of non-amputees can also be stimulated to feel roughness, without the need of surgery, meaning that prosthetic touch for amputees can now be developed and safely tested on intact individuals.

8 Mar 2016

Immune cells play vital role in rewiring connections between nerve cells

A new study out today in the journal Nature Communications shows that cells normally associated with protecting the brain from infection and injury also play an important role in rewiring the connections between nerve cells.

8 Mar 2016

UC Berkeley study provides compelling evidence in favor of 'active learning'

Scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, have captured unique images of problem-solving in action by tapping into the minds of mice. The study shows rapid rewiring in the frontal brains of mice after they learn by trial and error.

8 Mar 2016

Neuroscience News and Research

Could prebiotics benefit early life brain development? An interview with Dr Phil Burnet

Distinct brain networks support retrieval of old and recent memories

Mindfulness meditation reduces pain without endogenous opioid system

Could environmental toxins trigger amyloid plaques in the brain? An interview with Dr Paul Alan Cox

NIMH-supported researchers discover key secrets of the underlying brain circuitry

Grid cells involved in broader range of cognitive process than previously thought

Conserved gene can act to inhibit lung cancer development, study finds

Studies raise hope for new treatments, preventive approaches for schizophrenia

Findings offer novel way for creating drugs to stop mitochondria from destroying cells during stress

Scientists optimize imaging and behavior techniques to monitor activity of neurons

Researchers develop molecule that can inhibit enzyme associated with onset of stroke

Gar genome helps identify genetic sequences shared by human disease genes and zebrafish

People newly diagnosed with multiple sclerosis share risk factors of other chronic illnesses

Discovery may provide potential target for new therapies to treat bipolar disorder

Scientists discover brain mechanisms that separate food consumption from cravings

Brain Awareness Week: University of Leicester to host free event to raise awareness of neurological research

Research findings may provide highly effective therapeutic strategy for treatment of Alzheimer's, AMD

Amputee feels texture in real-time with artificial fingertip

Immune cells play vital role in rewiring connections between nerve cells

UC Berkeley study provides compelling evidence in favor of 'active learning'

Event guide: 2nd Neuroscience Innovation Partnering & Licensing Summit eBook

Advancing Neuroscience Research Through Collaboration and Patient-Centered Innovation

The impact of vibration on microscopy

How Omics Technologies Are Transforming Biological Research and Drug Discovery

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