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.

New biomarker predicts therapy response for hard-to-treat childhood cancers

A study by researchers at the University of Birmingham has identified a new biomarker for response to a specific cancer therapy, treating children with Ewing Sarcoma and other tumor types.

22 May 2026

Brain scans find no evidence of widespread inflammation in long COVID

A new brain imaging study has found no evidence of widespread brain inflammation in patients suffering from prolonged symptoms after COVID-19 infection. Instead, the most severe long COVID symptoms were associated with increased brain activity in regions involved in mood and emotion.

22 May 2026

NIH researchers discover how weight-loss drugs alter brain cells

A team of researchers at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have unveiled new details about the events GLP-1 receptor agonists trigger within neurons, which have been largely unexplored until now.

22 May 2026

Lab-grown brain models reveal how epilepsy drug alters fetal development

It is known that the antiepileptic drug valproate increases the risk of developmental disorders in unborn children.

22 May 2026

What medicine-exposed rats reveal about the next urban zoonotic threat

Researchers found that more than half of urban rats sampled from low-income communities in Salvador, Brazil, carried active pharmaceutical ingredients in their brain tissue. These pollutants were associated with altered zoonotic infection patterns, including lower Leptospira infection probability in rats carrying azithromycin and higher Capillaria infection probability in rats carrying citalopram.

22 May 2026

New study reveals nitric oxide’s widespread impact on genetics

Genes undergo extensive editing through a process called alternative splicing, which greatly increases the size of the functional genome, the working portion of our DNA that helps make each person unique. Put simply, a single gene can be edited in different ways to produce multiple sets of instructions.

22 May 2026

Disrupted sleep rhythms may increase dementia risk through impaired waste clearance

Why are conditions such as chronic stress, depression, cardiovascular disease, fragmented sleep, and aging all associated with a higher risk of dementia? In a new review piece in Science, University of Rochester Medicine neuroscientist Maiken Nedergaard, MD, DMSc, proposes that many of these seemingly different conditions may converge on the same biological problem: disruption of a sleep-dependent brain rhythm that helps clear waste from the brain.

22 May 2026

High-dose vitamin D3 in pregnancy may boost children’s memory by age 10

High-dose vitamin D3 supplementation from mid-pregnancy to early postpartum was associated with better verbal and visual memory in children at age 10. The post hoc analysis suggests prenatal vitamin D3 exposure may support selected cognitive functions, although findings require cautious interpretation.

21 May 2026

Cycling may significantly improve brain health and well-being

A new peer-reviewed publication published in Frontiers in Sports and Active Living, highlights bicycling as a powerful, accessible tool for improving brain health and overall well-being.

21 May 2026

Specific gene fusion patterns tied to solitary fibrous tumor outcomes

Specific genetic fusion patterns in solitary fibrous tumors may help identify which patients face a higher risk of metastasis, recurrence and more aggressive disease behavior, according to new research that could improve how physicians assess and eventually treat this rare cancer.

21 May 2026

Vitamin B12 analog targets deadly brain cancer cells

A new research paper was published in Volume 13 of Oncoscience on April 2, 2026, titled "Selective blood–brain barrier penetration and tumor targeting of nitrosylcobalamin in glioblastoma: Pharmacokinetics, tissue distribution, and synergistic activity with trail and temozolomide."

21 May 2026

New immuno-infrared sensor aids in early diagnosis of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease

An early start to treatment is crucial to successful therapy. A new sensor is helping with early detection.

21 May 2026

Most Americans misunderstand which sexually transmitted infections have preventive vaccines

While data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that the total number of U.S. cases of three sexually transmitted infections (STIs) declined from 2022-24, infection rates remain 13% higher than a decade ago. CDC provisional data show more than 2.2 million U.S. cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis were reported in 2024.

21 May 2026

Common vegetable oil compound shows power to fight dangerous viruses

A common vegetable oil may hold the key to fighting some of the world's most dangerous viruses.

21 May 2026

New study shows how exercise hormone reduces multiple sclerosis symptoms

A new study offers clues as to why exercise can improve neurological symptoms in people with multiple sclerosis (MS).

21 May 2026

Structured approach to a healthy lifestyle may help slow important aspects of aging

Researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine found evidence of slowed aging from lifestyle behaviors like healthy eating and exercise as part of a major clinical trial.

21 May 2026

Uneven grey matter loss serves as a powerful new biomarker for early neurodegeneration

Universitat Oberta de Catalunya Alzheimer's disease begins to weave a web in the brain and remodel neuronal tissue 15 to 20 years before the first symptoms appear. From the time this happens, however, until the disease is diagnosed and, later, enters an advanced phase, it progresses along a continuum of changes to the brain.

21 May 2026

Key neural circuit helps the brain “change gears”

Most people have experienced the feeling: switching from one task to another, only to find the brain momentarily stuck in the old mode of thinking. Sometimes, even after realizing a strategy no longer works, the mind keeps returning to it anyway.

21 May 2026

GLP-1 drugs may help curb addiction by targeting reward pathways

GLP-1 receptor agonists, already used for Type 2 diabetes and obesity, show promise in reducing alcohol and drug-seeking behaviors through central reward and dopamine-related pathways. Most evidence remains preclinical, with limited early human data, so larger clinical trials are needed before these drugs can be recommended for addiction treatment.

21 May 2026

How an AI system learned to write expert-level scientific code

ERA is an AI system that uses large language models and tree search to automatically write, test, and refine scientific software for measurable research tasks. Across bioinformatics, COVID-19 forecasting, time-series analysis, geospatial modeling, neuroscience, and numerical computation, ERA produced expert-level solutions that often surpassed established human-developed methods.

20 May 2026