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Scientists discover single neuron that enables adaptive regulation of sparseness in olfactory codes

The brain is a coding machine: it translates physical inputs from the world into visual, olfactory, auditory, tactile perceptions via the mysterious language of its nerve cells and the networks which they form. Neural codes could in principle take many forms, but in regions forming bottlenecks for information flow or in areas important for memory, sparse codes are highly desirable.

16 May 2011

Researcher says a comparison with epilepsy is an appropriate prism to view economics

Since 2008, the U.S. economy has been "seizing" uncontrollably. Now a Tel Aviv University researcher says that a comparison of the multifaceted economic downturn with the uncontrolled spasms of an epileptic is not inappropriate - and may say something about the origins of the disaster.

13 May 2011

UCSD scientists discover steroid hormone that inhibits brain inflammation

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have discovered a steroid hormone that inhibits inflammation in the brain. The findings, to be published in the May 13 issue of the journal Cell, have implications for understanding the exaggerated inflammatory responses that are characteristic features of numerous neurodegenerative diseases.

13 May 2011

Study offers hints to why Parkinson's so selectively harms dopamine-producing cells

New data offer hints to why Parkinson's disease so selectively harms brain cells that produce the chemical dopamine, say researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

13 May 2011

New computational model can analyze living cells, social networks

At first glance, a diagram of the complex network of genes that regulate cellular metabolism might seem hopelessly complex, and efforts to control such a system futile. However, an MIT researcher has come up with a new computational model that can analyze any type of complex network - biological, social or electronic - and reveal the critical points that can be used to control the entire system.

13 May 2011

Study provides evidence that adult planarians harbor pluripotent stem cells

A single adult cell from one of the most impressive masters of regeneration in the animal kingdom - the planarian - is all it takes to build a completely functional new worm, researchers have learned. The study provides the first hard evidence that adult planarians harbor pluripotent stem cells - cells capable of producing the diverse range of tissue types necessary to build a complete animal.

13 May 2011

Being mildly overweight benefits ALS patients

Patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, may be an exception to the rule that being overweight is a health hazard. In a retrospective study of over 400 ALS patients, Massachusetts General Hospital researchers found that those who were mildly obese survived longer than patients who were normal weight, underweight or even overweight.

12 May 2011

16-year-old uses supercomputing network to invent new drug cocktail for cystic fibrosis

While many 16-year-olds are content with PlayStation, Toronto-area student Marshall Zhang used the Canadian SCINET supercomputing network to invent a new drug cocktail which could one day help treat cystic fibrosis.

11 May 2011

Genetic mutation linked to Kufs disease

According to a new study, a genetic mutation thought to be responsible for the rare hereditary brain disorder Kufs disease is finally identified. The research was carried out by Dr Melanie Bahlo and her team at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute's bioinformatics department in Parkville, Australia, in partnership with neurologist and epilepsy specialists Professor Sam Berkovic and Dr Todor Arsov from the University of Melbourne, Australia.

10 May 2011

Scientists reveal nerve cells' navigation system

Johns Hopkins scientists have discovered how two closely related proteins guide projections from nerve cells with exquisite accuracy, alternately attracting and repelling these axons as they navigate the most miniscule and frenetic niches of the nervous system to make remarkably precise connections.

9 May 2011

Researchers use computer screens to detect how human brain performs visual search

In the wild, mammals survive because they can see and evade predators lurking in the shadowy bushes. That ability translates to the human world. Transportation Security Administration screeners can pick out dangerous objects in an image of our messy and stuffed suitcases. We get out of the house every morning because we find our car keys on that cluttered shelf next to the door.

9 May 2011

Mithridion's MCD-386CR receives Orphan Drug designation from FDA for PSP treatment

Mithridion, Inc., a privately-owned clinical stage drug development company focusing on serious Central Nervous System disorders, announces that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has awarded Orphan Drug designation for MCD-386CR, its lead drug candidate, for the treatment of Progressive Supranuclear Palsy.

9 May 2011

ADHD in children linked to stress and depression during pregnancy

According to the latest research women who are depressed or severely stressed during their pregnancy have a greater chance of having children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. It has been known till now that ADHD is largely inheritable but now it comes out that antenatal anxiety could contribute to 15 per cent of cases of the behavioural condition in children.

8 May 2011

Researchers find temperature-sensing protein in immune cells

Researchers at The Scripps Research Institute have found a temperature-sensing protein within immune cells that, when tripped, allows calcium to pour in and activate an immune response.

7 May 2011

$University of Oregon physicist to design fractal vision devices$

University of Oregon physicist to design fractal vision devices

University of Oregon researcher Richard Taylor is on a quest to grow flowers that will help people who've lost their sight, such as those suffering from macular degeneration, to see again.

6 May 2011

Novel neurotransmitter could fight against neurological diseases

A team of scientists has discovered that D-aspartic acid is a novel neurotransmitter that could potentially be used in the fight against neurological diseases such as Parkinson's and schizophrenia.

6 May 2011

Cocaine and nicotine employ similar mechanisms to induce synaptic plasticity in brain

The effects of nicotine upon brain regions involved in addiction mirror those of cocaine, according to new neuroscience research.

4 May 2011

New genetic discovery in megalencephalic leukoencephalopathy with subcortical cysts

White matter disease covers a large group of disorders that affect the white matter, or myelin. In children these disorders are commonly genetic and often go undiagnosed. In new research, a team led by Raúl Estévez, a lecturer from the Department of Physiological Sciences II, based at the UB's Bellvitge Health Sciences Campus, working with the researcher Marjo van der Knaap, from the University Medical Centre at VU University Amsterdam, have identified mutant GLIALCAM as responsible for 25% of cases of megalencephalic leukoencephalopathy with subcortical cysts, a rare genetic disease affecting cerebral myelin.

4 May 2011

Invention of optogenetics sheds light on how brain works

Commenting on Edward Boyden's article, Ben Barres, Head of the Neuronal & Glial Cell Biology Section of Faculty of 1000 and Professor at Stanford University School of Medicine said: "There will probably be a Nobel prize for optogenetics someday as it has revolutionized our attempts to understand how the brain works. This article provides a fascinating insight into the birth of optogenetics and the roles of the major players."

4 May 2011

Beta amyloid may inhibit specific cell motors and contribute to memory loss

A protein associated with Alzheimer's disease clogs several motors of the cell transport machinery critical for normal cell division, leading to defective neurons that may contribute to the memory-robbing disease, University of South Florida researchers report.

3 May 2011

Neurons News and Research

Scientists discover single neuron that enables adaptive regulation of sparseness in olfactory codes

Researcher says a comparison with epilepsy is an appropriate prism to view economics

UCSD scientists discover steroid hormone that inhibits brain inflammation

Study offers hints to why Parkinson's so selectively harms dopamine-producing cells

New computational model can analyze living cells, social networks

Study provides evidence that adult planarians harbor pluripotent stem cells

Being mildly overweight benefits ALS patients

16-year-old uses supercomputing network to invent new drug cocktail for cystic fibrosis

Genetic mutation linked to Kufs disease

Scientists reveal nerve cells' navigation system

Researchers use computer screens to detect how human brain performs visual search

Mithridion's MCD-386CR receives Orphan Drug designation from FDA for PSP treatment

ADHD in children linked to stress and depression during pregnancy

Researchers find temperature-sensing protein in immune cells

University of Oregon physicist to design fractal vision devices

Novel neurotransmitter could fight against neurological diseases

Cocaine and nicotine employ similar mechanisms to induce synaptic plasticity in brain

New genetic discovery in megalencephalic leukoencephalopathy with subcortical cysts

Invention of optogenetics sheds light on how brain works

Beta amyloid may inhibit specific cell motors and contribute to memory loss

Neuroscience - Third Edition eBook

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

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