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.

Study finds evidence for increased activity of the brain’s immune system long before dementia onset

Long before the onset of dementia, there is evidence for increased activity of the brain's immune system. Researchers from DZNE and the University Hospital Bonn come to this conclusion based on a study of more than 1,000 older adults.

12 Jan 2022

Metabolic vulnerabilities in malignant cells may lead to new breast cancer therapies

Metabolic differences could explain why some metastatic breast cancer cells rapidly generate tumors after migrating from primary tumors to the brain, while others linger for months or years before forming these secondary tumors, UT Southwestern scientists report in a new study.

12 Jan 2022

Link between two key parts of the brain plays a role in neuropsychiatric brain disorders

Florida State University researchers have identified a link between two key parts of the brain that play significant roles in conditions such as Alzheimer's disease, post-traumatic stress disorder, schizophrenia and depression.

12 Jan 2022

5-SENSE score can predict if patients with epilepsy will benefit from a more invasive workup

A pre-surgical workup can help determine whether patients with focal epilepsy are good candidates for surgical resection but also predict the outcome of an additional invasive exploration, according to a study published in JAMA Neurology.

12 Jan 2022

Novel insights about dopamine can help find better drugs for Parkinson's patients

New findings provide a better understanding of how the synthesis of dopamine is regulated in the brain. It may shed new light on the mechanism behind diseases such as Parkinson's.

12 Jan 2022

Uninterrupted deep sleep can help improve face-name memories

For those who rarely forget a face, but struggle with names, the remedy for boosting learning may as near as your pillow.

12 Jan 2022

Discovery of new protein could lead to effective treatments for developmental, neurological disorders

Understanding how the brain develops is crucial to formulating treatments and management protocols for a variety of developmental disorders, as well as degenerative neurological diseases. Right from the embryonic stage, brain development is facilitated by the differentiation of neurons (brain cells).

12 Jan 2022

Telemedicine at Johns Hopkins Medicine enables a stroke patient to be treated with high level of care

A patient believed to have suffered a stroke typically gets transported to the nearest emergency room for tests to determine the best course of action. Telemedicine at Johns Hopkins Medicine enabled one patient to have her stroke diagnosed and a treatment plan set up without ever stepping foot in a hospital.

11 Jan 2022

Decoding imagined language to treat people suffering from aphasia

What if it were possible to decode the internal language of individuals deprived of the ability to express themselves? This is the objective of a team of neuroscientists from the University of Geneva (UNIGE) and the University Hospitals of Geneva.

11 Jan 2022

New technologies for early clinical diagnosis of human prion diseases

Early and accurate diagnosis of human prion diseases is a long-standing difficulty. Currently, the definitive diagnosis of human prion diseases relies on pathognomonic histological features or PrPSc detection of patients' brain tissue biopsy or autopsy samples, which is not feasible in most cases.

11 Jan 2022

Study opens up prospects for using virotherapy to treat central nervous system tumors

In a study conducted at the University of São Paulo's Human Genome and Stem Cell Research Center (HUG-CELL) in Brazil, serial systemic injections of zika virus into mice with brain tumors destroyed the cancer without causing neurological damage or injuring other organs, and increased the animals' survival rate.

11 Jan 2022

Study offers new evidence on how childhood immunometabolic risk factors may lead to depression, psychosis

A growing body of research suggests that early-life infection, inflammation, and metabolic changes could contribute to psychiatric disorders – perhaps via effects during critical periods of brain development.

11 Jan 2022

First patient-derived stem cell model developed for studying oculocutaneous albinism

Researchers at the National Eye Institute have developed the first patient-derived stem cell model for studying eye conditions related to oculocutaneous albinism (OCA).

11 Jan 2022

Modular super-enhancer regulates gene expression involved in retina development

Enhancers are regions of DNA that do not code for proteins, but control how genes are expressed. Super-enhancers are clusters of enhancers that together regulate genes with important roles in cell identity.

11 Jan 2022

Developing a 'fingerprint' test that could diagnose Alzheimer’s early

In this interview, we spoke to Dr. Cynthia McMurray about her latest research into Alzheimer's disease.

11 Jan 2022

SARS-CoV-2 activates microglia in the brain

Researchers demonstrate that SARS-CoV-2 can infect the human microglia.

10 Jan 2022

Neurologist receives ERC grant to study novel light-activated drugs with antiepileptic effects

Dr. Michael Wenzel from the Department of Epileptology at the University Hospital Bonn has received a coveted Starting Grant from the European Research Council.

10 Jan 2022

New neural circuits regulating spatial learning, memory in the brain's hippocampal formation discovered

A research team led by University of California, Irvine has discovered new neural circuits that regulate spatial learning and memory in the brain's hippocampal formation.

10 Jan 2022

Poor cognition may be part of normality in older age, research says

At the first sign of cognitive trouble, people often worry Alzheimer's disease is forthcoming. But poor cognition can be part of the spectrum of normality in older age, according to new research published in JNeurosci.

10 Jan 2022

Improving air quality may reduce dementia risk in older women

Improving air quality appears to slow cognitive decline and reduce the risk of developing dementia in older women living in the U.S., according to a new study by researchers from the Keck School of Medicine of USC.

10 Jan 2022

Brain News and Research

Further Reading

Study finds evidence for increased activity of the brain’s immune system long before dementia onset

Metabolic vulnerabilities in malignant cells may lead to new breast cancer therapies

Link between two key parts of the brain plays a role in neuropsychiatric brain disorders

5-SENSE score can predict if patients with epilepsy will benefit from a more invasive workup

Novel insights about dopamine can help find better drugs for Parkinson's patients

Uninterrupted deep sleep can help improve face-name memories

Discovery of new protein could lead to effective treatments for developmental, neurological disorders

Telemedicine at Johns Hopkins Medicine enables a stroke patient to be treated with high level of care

Decoding imagined language to treat people suffering from aphasia

New technologies for early clinical diagnosis of human prion diseases

Study opens up prospects for using virotherapy to treat central nervous system tumors

Study offers new evidence on how childhood immunometabolic risk factors may lead to depression, psychosis

First patient-derived stem cell model developed for studying oculocutaneous albinism

Modular super-enhancer regulates gene expression involved in retina development

Developing a 'fingerprint' test that could diagnose Alzheimer’s early

SARS-CoV-2 activates microglia in the brain

Neurologist receives ERC grant to study novel light-activated drugs with antiepileptic effects

New neural circuits regulating spatial learning, memory in the brain's hippocampal formation discovered

Poor cognition may be part of normality in older age, research says

Improving air quality may reduce dementia risk in older women

Industry Focus eBook - Cell & Gene Therapy (1st Edition) eBook

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

Expanding access to NMR with the Fourier 80 Duo

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