Brain News and Research

RSS

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 sex differences in the effects of prenatal BPA exposure on autism-related genes

A new study by researchers from Chulalongkorn University, Tohoku University, and The George Washington University is the first to identify autism candidate genes that may be responsible for the sex-specific effects of bisphenol A (BPA) on the brain.

19 Jan 2021

Researchers receive $460,000 NIH grant for brain imaging study

Michael Alosco, PhD, associate professor of neurology at Boston University School of Medicine, and Gil Rabinovici, MD, professor of neurology and radiology at the University of California San Francisco have been awarded a two-year, $460,000 grant from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, which is part of the National Institutes of Health.

19 Jan 2021

A common genetic variant identified as risk factor for stroke

A team of Geisinger researchers has identified a common genetic variant as a risk factor for stroke, especially in patients older than 65.

19 Jan 2021

Study explores how choice of foods influences aging and lifespan in fruit flies

Having a choice of foods may accelerate aging and shorten the lifespan of fruit flies, according to a study published today in the open-access eLife journal.

19 Jan 2021

Study finds genetic variants that increase the risk of bedwetting

In a large-scale study of Danish children and young people, researchers from Aarhus University have for the first time found genetic variants that increase the risk of nocturnal enuresis - commonly known as bedwetting or nighttime incontinence.

19 Jan 2021

Magnetic nanoparticles guide neurite growth in dopaminergic cells

Magnetic nanoparticles raise hopes of treatments for Parkinson’s.

19 Jan 2021

Study: Perineuronal nets are responsible for long-term stability of mental maps

A reliable sense of space is essential for daily life and memory formation. Removing sugar-coated proteins around neurons in the brains' internal gps makes the mental map of space unstable, shows in a study published in the journal Nature communications.

19 Jan 2021

Early life experiences can shape brain development in subsequent generations

Early life experiences can have an outsized effect on brain development and neurobiological health. New research is showing that those effects can be passed down to subsequent generations, reporting that the infant children of mothers who had experienced childhood emotional neglect displayed altered brain circuitry involved in fear responses and anxiety.

19 Jan 2021

New method could provide additional insight into brain tumors

A look at RNA tells us what our genes are telling our cells to do, and scientists say looking directly at the RNA of brain tumor cells appears to provide objective, efficient evidence to better classify a tumor and the most effective treatments.

19 Jan 2021

Scientists develop world's first test to accurately predict mood disorders

University of South Australia scientists have developed the world's first test to accurately predict mood disorders in people, based on the levels of a specific protein found in the brain.

19 Jan 2021

Timing may be critical when administering treatment after brain injury

Researchers from the National Institutes of Health have discovered Jekyll and Hyde immune cells in the brain that ultimately help with brain repair but early after injury can lead to fatal swelling, suggesting that timing may be critical when administering treatment.

18 Jan 2021

Personalized neuromodulation approach provides relief from severe depression symptoms

Targeted neuromodulation tailored to individual patients' distinctive symptoms is an increasingly common way of correcting misfiring brain circuits in people with epilepsy or Parkinson's disease.

18 Jan 2021

Research pinpoints brain region responsible for self-bias in working memory

A brain region involved in processing information about ourselves biases our ability to remember, according to new research published in JNeurosci.

18 Jan 2021

Can transgenic mice studies illuminate neurological complications associated with SARS-CoV-2 in humans?

The potentially deadly COVID-19 has not affected animals with corresponding severity. To understand the mechanism of severe disease, animal models have been used. This includes a mouse model that expresses human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (hACE2) under the cytokeratin 18 promoter (K18-hACE2). A new study indicates that this may not be a faithful model of human lethal infection with SARS-CoV-2.

18 Jan 2021