Hippocampus News and Research

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The hippocampus is a part of the forebrain, located in the medial temporal lobe. It belongs to the limbic system and plays major roles in short term memory and spatial navigation. Humans and other mammals have two hippocampi, one in each side of the brain.

Stanford researchers identify iron-containing microglia in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease

Examining post-mortem tissue from the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease, Stanford University School of Medicine investigators identified what appear to be iron-containing microglia -- specialized scavenger cells that sometimes become inflammatory -- in a particular part of the hippocampus, a key brain structure whose integrity is critical to memory formation.

21 Jul 2015

Retrosplenial cortex serves as 'conjunction junction' for brain's navigation function

Ever wake at night needing a drink of water and then find your way to the kitchen in the dark without stubbing your toe?

10 Jul 2015

Georgia State University-led study identifies structural brain abnormalities in schizophrenia patients

Structural brain abnormalities in patients with schizophrenia, providing insight into how the condition may develop and respond to treatment, have been identified in an internationally collaborative study led by a Georgia State University scientist.

7 Jul 2015

New UCL research reveals how past events are reconstructed in the brain

When remembering something from our past, we often vividly re-experience the whole episode in which it occurred. New UCL research funded by the Medical Research Council and Wellcome Trust has now revealed how this might happen in the brain.

2 Jul 2015

People with recurrent depression have significantly smaller hippocampus than healthy individuals

The brains of people with recurrent depression have a significantly smaller hippocampus - the part of the brain most associated with forming new memories - than healthy individuals, a new global study of nearly 9,000 people reveals.

30 Jun 2015

Neuralstem's HK532-IGF-1 neural stem cells therapy for Alzheimer's disease presented at ISSCR Annual Meeting

Neuralstem, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company using neural stem cell technology to develop small molecule and cell therapy treatments for central nervous system diseases, announced that the poster "Human Neural Stem Cells Expressing IGF-1: A Novel Cellular Therapy for Alzheimer's Disease" was presented yesterday at the International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR) Annual Meeting in Stockholm, Sweden.

27 Jun 2015

UC Riverside psychologist awarded NIA grant to study early influences on cognitive and physical health by middle age

University of California, Riverside psychologist Chandra A. Reynolds has been awarded a $7 million, five-year grant by the National Institute on Aging to study how early childhood influences versus recent influences affect cognitive and physical health by middle age.

27 Jun 2015

Rats have happy dreams about tasty treats in the future

When rats rest, their brains simulate journeys to a desired future such as a tasty treat, finds new UCL research funded by the Wellcome Trust and Royal Society.

26 Jun 2015

Fructose stimulates reward system in the brain to a lesser degree than glucose

Fructose not only results in a lower level of satiety, it also stimulates the reward system in the brain to a lesser degree than glucose. This may cause excessive consumption accompanied by effects that are a risk to health, report researchers from the University of Basel in a study published in the scientific journal PLOS ONE. Various diseases have been attributed to industrial fructose in sugary drinks and ready meals.

26 Jun 2015

UC Berkeley study shows humans can navigate through their sense of smell

Like homing pigeons, humans have a nose for navigation because our brains are wired to convert smells into spatial information, new research from the University of California, Berkeley, shows.

19 Jun 2015

Physical activities may not protect against underlying markers for Alzheimer's disease

While participating in physical activities such as bike riding, dancing, walking and gardening and mentally stimulating activities such as crosswords and reading may reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease, they may not do so by affecting the underlying markers for the disease, according to a study published in the June 10, 2015, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

11 Jun 2015

Study can help spur beneficial lifestyle changes in patients to reduce Alzheimer's risk

Armed with new knowledge about how neurodegenerative diseases alter brain structures, increasing numbers of neurologists, psychiatrists and other clinicians are adopting quantitative brain imaging as a tool to measure and help manage cognitive declines in patients. These imaging findings can help spur beneficial lifestyle changes in patients to reduce risk for Alzheimer's disease.

5 Jun 2015

Newly discovered nerve cells trigger locomotion, supply the brain with speed-related information

Scientists at the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases and the University of Bonn led by Prof. Stefan Remy report on this in the journal "Neuron". Their investigations give new insights into the workings of spatial memory. Furthermore, they could also help improve our understanding of movement related symptoms associated with Parkinson's disease.

4 Jun 2015

Research findings challenge the model of memory forming in hippocampus

The hippocampus plays a crucial role in memory formation. However, it is not yet fully understood in what way that brain structure's individual regions are involved in the formation of memories. Neuroscientists at the Collaborative Research Center 874 at RUB have recreated this process with the aid of computer simulations.

4 Jun 2015

Feinberg physiology professor named recipient of 2015 AES Seed Grant

Today the American Epilepsy Society announced Anis Contractor, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Physiology at Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine, as the recipient of a 2015 AES Seed Grant. Dr. Contractor's proposed research seeks to address a fundamental question about cellular and circuit level excitability in the mouse model of Dravet Syndrome.

3 Jun 2015

Scientists one step closer to understanding how brain regulates memory and mood

Scientists are one step closer to understanding how the brain regulates memory and mood, thanks to the discovery of two distinct types of stem cells.

1 Jun 2015

Diabetes and poor diet can trigger Alzheimer's or Parkinson's, warns BUAP researcher

For several years a researcher was dedicated to feed rodents in his laboratory with a high caloric content and glucose concentrations, which caused them diabetes, and by scientifically assessing what occurred in animals he observed that "diabetes and poor diet is a risk factor for developing Alzheimer's or Parkinson's," warns Samuel Treviño Mora from the Meritorious University of Puebla in Mexico.

28 May 2015

Previous motherhood alters cognition, neuroplasticity in response to hormone therapy

Hormone therapy (HT) is prescribed to alleviate some of the symptoms of menopause in women. Menopausal women are more likely to be diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease but not other forms of dementia, and HT has been prescribed to treat cognitive decline in post-menopausal women with variable degrees of effectiveness.

26 May 2015

Discovery has clear implications in the quest for new epilepsy treatments

The mission of neural stem cells located in the hippocampus, one of the main regions of the brain, is to generate new neurons during the adult life of mammals, including human beings, of course, and their function is to participate in certain types of learning and responses to anxiety and stress.

18 May 2015

Small-molecule drug simultaneously rejuvenates old muscles, aging brains

Whether you're brainy, brawny or both, you may someday benefit from a drug found to rejuvenate aging brain and muscle tissue. Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, have discovered that a small-molecule drug simultaneously perks up old stem cells in the brains and muscles of mice, a finding that could lead to drug interventions for humans that would make aging tissues throughout the body act young again.

14 May 2015