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Ketamine boosts neuroplasticity through microglia in female brains

Doctors use ketamine on patients as general anesthesia before surgery. They also prescribe it in low doses for pain management, and more recently, it's been used for treatment-resistant depression where other drugs have failed.

31 Jul 2026

Brain immune cells drive recovery from ketamine anesthesia in females

During ketamine anesthesia, the brain's nerve cells fall silent-as consciousness returns, they begin to reconnect.

31 Jul 2026

Discovery of calcium channel mechanism offers clues for brain disorder treatments

DGIST (President Kunwoo Lee) announced that a research team led by Professor Byung Chang Suh of the Department of Brain Sciences has, for the first time, uncovered a novel molecular mechanism that regulates the "N-type voltage-gated calcium channel (CaV2.2)," which plays a critical role in neural signal transmission.

29 Jul 2026

Overactive brain immune response linked to rare, severe genetic epilepsy

An overactive immune response in the brain may play a role in Dravet Syndrome, a rare and severe genetic epilepsy that typically begins in infancy, according to Weill Cornell Medicine researchers.

29 Jul 2026

Experimental therapy helps brain cells bypass genetic deletions

Scientists at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC have discovered how an experimental therapy can help brain cells overcome the effects of a disease-causing genetic deletion.

28 Jul 2026

TGen joins Collaborative Research Network for Parkinson's disease research

The Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), part of City of Hope, today announced it has been selected as part of a national team to join the Collaborative Research Network (CRN), an international, multi-institutional initiative focused on addressing high-priority research questions in Parkinson's disease.

28 Jul 2026

Scientists uncover hidden brain energy dynamics during REM sleep

Our brain demands a lot of energy compared to our other organs. However, it can also make do when energy supplies are sparse, flexibly performing information processing using what is available.

27 Jul 2026

Signals traveling from the gut through the vagus nerve help form memories

When French writer Marcel Proust famously recalled his childhood from the taste of a Madeline cookie, his stomach may have done some of the work.

27 Jul 2026

Slow-maturing microglia may enable powerful human cognitive abilities

Microglia are the most common immune cells in the brain, where they defend against intruders and engulf damaged neurons.

27 Jul 2026

Mouse study uncovers complex neural mechanisms behind habit formation

Habit formation describes the repeated performance of a behavior until it becomes routine: in other words, the shift from deliberate to automatic decision-making.

27 Jul 2026

New blood protein biomarkers estimate timing of ALS symptoms

Months to several years before amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) symptoms arise, levels of certain blood proteins may dramatically shift.

27 Jul 2026

Spontaneous brain state fluctuations influence real-time memory formation

Most everyday moments are quickly forgotten, while others stay with us for a lifetime. How the brain determines which memories are retained and which are lost remains an open question.

24 Jul 2026

Two heart nerve cell types sustain cardiac stability in mice

Researchers identified two major intrinsic cardiac neuron populations in mice: Npy-positive neurons regulate parasympathetic heart rate control and support coronary perfusion, while Ddah1-positive neurons help maintain electrical stability during extreme stress. Removing Npy-positive neurons caused fatal cardiac failure, whereas loss of Ddah1-positive neurons increased susceptibility to malignant arrhythmias and sudden cardiac arrest under stress.

23 Jul 2026

Targeting acid ceramidase could improve healthy aging and longevity

Our population is aging. The United Nations reports that by 2050, the number of people over the age of 85 on our planet is set to triple.

23 Jul 2026

Compact genetic switch enables targeted gene therapy for epilepsy

Epilepsy affects over 50 million people worldwide, making it one of the most common neurological disorders.

23 Jul 2026

Short-term immunosuppressive therapy briefly restores autism-like brain changes in adult mice

A new mouse study led by UCLA Health suggests that inflammation during pregnancy can trigger autism-like changes in offspring, but also that those brain and behavior effects may be rapidly but temporarily reversible in adulthood with a short-term dose of the immunosuppressive drug rapamycin.

23 Jul 2026

New imaging platform tracks hundreds of neurons at unprecedented depths

The brain is a vast, densely interconnected network of neurons computing in parallel. Watching these computations unfold in real time could reveal how the brain processes sensation and guides behavior.

23 Jul 2026

Bee venom boosts the effects of standard Parkinson's therapy

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder caused by the loss of dopamine-producing neurons, leading to motor symptoms such as tremors, rigidity, slowed movement, and impaired balance, as well as cognitive decline.

22 Jul 2026

New study uses sleep monitoring and AI to detect Alzheimer's

Researchers from Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M) and Hospital Universitario Severo Ochoa in Leganés, part of the public health network of the Comunidad de Madrid, have developed a methodology that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to analyze brain electrical activity during sleep and facilitate the early diagnosis of Alzheimer's.

22 Jul 2026

Early electroacupuncture intervention protects pancreatic function in prediabetes

Prediabetes refers to a metabolic state in which blood glucose is higher than normal but has not yet reached the diagnostic threshold for diabetes. It may involve impaired fasting glucose, impaired glucose tolerance, or elevated glycated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), and is closely associated with progressive β-cell dysfunction.

21 Jul 2026