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.

Eye state alters brain signals for mind wandering

A type of brain activity linked to arousal and attention can track mind wandering. But research is conflicting on whether this activity promotes or hinders mind wandering.

27 Jul 2026

UC Davis researcher receives grant to study perceived cognitive aging

University of California, Davis Professor of Neurology Sarah Tomaszewski Farias has been awarded a $3.3 million five-year grant from The National Institute on Aging to study if cultural differences affect how people perceive cognitive changes as they age.

27 Jul 2026

Slow-maturing microglia may enable powerful human cognitive abilities

Microglia are the most common immune cells in the brain, where they defend against intruders and engulf damaged neurons.

27 Jul 2026

Duke University engineers use robots and AI to improve gut health

Biomedical engineers at Duke University have demonstrated a method for systematically developing novel, complex combinations of probiotics and prebiotics to more effectively maintain gut health and treat various gastrointestinal diseases.

27 Jul 2026

Amyloid beta misfolding predicts Alzheimer's years before symptoms appear

Widely used Alzheimer’s biomarker P-tau 217 reliably detects the disease only at the clinical stage. The protein misfolding of amyloid beta indicates an increased risk years earlier.

27 Jul 2026

Mouse study uncovers complex neural mechanisms behind habit formation

Habit formation describes the repeated performance of a behavior until it becomes routine: in other words, the shift from deliberate to automatic decision-making.

27 Jul 2026

New blood protein biomarkers estimate timing of ALS symptoms

Months to several years before amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) symptoms arise, levels of certain blood proteins may dramatically shift.

27 Jul 2026

Iowa State study identifies potential new target for leukemia treatment

In leukemia's most aggressive forms, the blood cell factories in our bone marrow falter. Instead of dividing and multiplying at their usual prolific pace, generating hundreds of billions of new cells daily, some precursor cells stall out at an immature stage.

24 Jul 2026

New wearable patch detects environmental threats and vibrates against the skin

Researchers have created a wearable patch that can detect hazards in the environment - such as dangerous gases or heavy metals in water - and then notify wearers by vibrating against their skin.

24 Jul 2026

Individualized treatment speeds recovery for babies with opioid withdrawal

A major new study shows that individualized treatment for babies born with opioid withdrawal can speed recovery and reduce time spent in the hospital.

24 Jul 2026

Poor premature infant growth linked to lasting brain abnormalities

Research led by the University of Granada (UGR) paves the way for new intervention and monitoring strategies for this high-risk population.

24 Jul 2026

Spontaneous brain state fluctuations influence real-time memory formation

Most everyday moments are quickly forgotten, while others stay with us for a lifetime. How the brain determines which memories are retained and which are lost remains an open question.

24 Jul 2026

Cambridge scientists solve brain puzzle behind popular obesity drugs

Cambridge scientists have solved the mystery of why both stimulating and blocking a particular 'switch' in the brain can help people lose weight – findings which could help boost the effectiveness of obesity drugs.

24 Jul 2026

Two heart nerve cell types sustain cardiac stability in mice

Researchers identified two major intrinsic cardiac neuron populations in mice: Npy-positive neurons regulate parasympathetic heart rate control and support coronary perfusion, while Ddah1-positive neurons help maintain electrical stability during extreme stress. Removing Npy-positive neurons caused fatal cardiac failure, whereas loss of Ddah1-positive neurons increased susceptibility to malignant arrhythmias and sudden cardiac arrest under stress.

23 Jul 2026

Persistent financial hardship accelerates age-related cognitive decline

Persistent financial hardship accelerates age-related cognitive decline, according to a new study led by University College London (UCL) researchers.

23 Jul 2026

Study provides a practical recall-by-genotype strategy for precision psychiatry research

Clinical biobanks that combine genomic data with electronic health records (EHRs) have become powerful resources for discovering genetic variants associated with disease.

23 Jul 2026

Targeting acid ceramidase could improve healthy aging and longevity

Our population is aging. The United Nations reports that by 2050, the number of people over the age of 85 on our planet is set to triple.

23 Jul 2026

Longer activity bouts link to lower future dementia and mental health risks

A UK Biobank analysis of 66,483 adults found that longer daily moderate-to-vigorous activity bouts and less fragmented activity were associated with lower subsequent risks of inpatient diagnoses of dementia, depression, and anxiety, independent of total activity time. In neuroimaging data from 13,108 participants, these activity patterns were also associated with more favorable brain measures, although the observational analyses cannot establish cause and effect.

23 Jul 2026

Study reveals how DNA misfolding causes congenital heart disease

Congenital heart disease is the most common birth defect, affecting approximately 1 in 100 babies born each year. One of the many causes for this disorder is having only one functional copy of the gene TBX5, instead of two healthy copies, inherited from parents.

23 Jul 2026

Researchers link genome folding to gene activity and brain tissue organization in Alzheimer's

Researchers from Carnegie Mellon University's School of Computer Science, the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and the University of Washington shed new light on Alzheimer's disease that could point to new directions for treatment.

23 Jul 2026