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 self-administered test can find the early subtle signs of dementia sooner

Many people experience forgetfulness as they age, but it's often difficult to tell if these memory issues are a normal part of aging or a sign of something more serious

7 Dec 2021

Study investigates how vision influences the development of hearing

As it is common experience, our senses do not work in complete isolation from the others: sight helps listening (and this is maybe why it is difficult to understand people when they speak with their mask on) but can also influence taste.

6 Dec 2021

New test provides a more objective way to assess negative urgency

If you can't stop saying or doing things that you later regret, here's a diagnostic test for you: Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, have pioneered a way to better determine when acting on one's worst impulses verges on pathological.

6 Dec 2021

Study reveals the effects of cannabis use on oral microbiome and brain health

More and more states are legalizing marijuana, but little is known about how long-term cannabis use affects the microbes in the oral cavity, known as the oral microbiome.

6 Dec 2021

Antipsychotic drugs associated with increase in risk of breast cancer

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found that many commonly prescribed antipsychotic medications are associated with a significant increase in risk of breast cancer.

6 Dec 2021

Researchers discover clearest evidence to date of how memories form

In a discovery that could one day benefit people suffering from traumatic brain injury, Alzheimer's disease, and schizophrenia, UT Southwestern researchers have identified the characteristics of more than 100 memory-sensitive neurons that play a central role in how memories are recalled in the brain.

6 Dec 2021

Scientists find infection of sustentacular cells in the olfactory epithelium of COVID-19 patients

It is now widely known that COVID-19 is associated with the transient or long-term loss of olfaction (the sense of smell) but the mechanisms remain obscure.

6 Dec 2021

UC San Diego participates in the expansion of Parkinson’s Progression Markers Initiative

After a decade of pioneering research, the Parkinson's Progression Markers Initiative by The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research will see a major expansion.

6 Dec 2021

Simple web-based application can save patients from unnecessary, invasive procedures

A new study from The Neuro (Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital) and eight collaborating international epilepsy centers has developed a simple web-based application clinicians can use to predict which patients will not benefit from an invasive diagnostic work-up, preventing unnecessary, invasive procedures, saving time for patients and the clinical team, and freeing up overburdened health resources.

6 Dec 2021

Cataract surgery associated with lower risk of dementia

Cataracts affect most older adults at risk for dementia, and now researchers are finding strong evidence that cataract surgery is associated with a lower risk of developing dementia.

6 Dec 2021

Announcing the Winners of The Scientist’s Top 10 Innovations of 2021

Each year The Scientist seeks to highlight the latest and greatest tools, technologies, and techniques to hit the life science landscape.

From Resolve Biosciences 6 Dec 2021

A case of post-vaccination MIS in an adult without prior SARS-CoV-2 infection

A new case study on the report of multisystem inflammatory syndrome (MISC) in a 22-year-old woman in South Korea after vaccination.

5 Dec 2021

Targeting the brain should be the focus of ALS therapy, not just spinal cord

The brain is indeed a target for treating ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), Northwestern Medicine scientists have discovered.

4 Dec 2021

Daytime meals may reduce adverse metabolic effects associated with night shift work

A small clinical trial supported by the National Institutes of Health has found that eating during the nighttime—like many shift workers do—can increase glucose levels, while eating only during the daytime might prevent the higher glucose levels now linked with a nocturnal work life.

4 Dec 2021