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 reveals a brain mechanism underlying visual hallucinations in the blind

Some people have lost their eyesight, but they continue to "see." This phenomenon, a kind of vivid visual hallucination, is named after the Swiss doctor, Charles Bonnet, who described in 1769 how his completely blind grandfather experienced vivid, detailed visions of people, animals and objects.

7 Jan 2021

Focused ultrasound shows potential to benefit people with Parkinson's disease

A scalpel-free alternative to brain surgery has the potential to benefit people with Parkinson's disease symptoms that are much more severe on one side of the body, new research suggests.

7 Jan 2021

Defective metabolism of Parkinson’s drug is linked to adverse side effects

Until now, the reason why the drug levodopa (L-Dopa), which reduces the motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease, declines in efficacy after a few years' use has been unknown.

7 Jan 2021

Study highlights the benefits of HEMS interventions to improve triage for trauma patients

Research from life-saving charity Air Ambulance Kent Surrey Sussex (KSS) in partnership with the University of Surrey has shown the benefits of dispatching HEMS to patients with a sudden, unexplained LOC of medical origin and a high prevalence of acute neurological pathology.

7 Jan 2021

Study opens the way for a potential new cure for children with hard-to-treat neuroblastoma

Researchers at the University of Gothenburg now suggest a possible cure for children with hard-to-treat forms of neuroblastoma using a new combination of drugs.

7 Jan 2021

Mass spectrometry imaging shows promise in diagnosing brain diseases

Medical professionals all want to be able to quickly and correctly diagnose diseases. Their future ability to do so will depend on identifying what biochemicals are present in tissue sections, where the biomolecules are, and at what concentrations.

7 Jan 2021

Repurposed drug can treat hearing loss in humans

According to the World Health Organization, around 466 million people worldwide have disabling hearing loss, a number the organization projects will double by 2050 to affect 1 in 10 people.

7 Jan 2021

Understanding traumatic brain injury in women

Analysis from a workshop convened by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) in 2017 reveals gaps in and opportunities for research to improve understanding of the effects of traumatic brain injury (TBI) in women.

7 Jan 2021

Study investigates control mechanism that ensures accurate chromosome inheritance during cell division

Starting as a single cell, organisms undergo millions of generations of divisions to ultimately generate the bones, heart, brain and other components that make up a living being.

6 Jan 2021

Mindfulness can help ease neuropathic pain related to breast cancer treatment

A study led by University of Ottawa researchers provides empirical evidence that mindfulness has a significant impact on the brain of women suffering from neuropathic pain related to breast cancer treatment.

6 Jan 2021

A map of brainstem circuitry reveals which neurons control fine motor skills

Writing, driving a screw or throwing darts are only some of the activities that demand a high level of skill.

6 Jan 2021

Mount Sinai and Rumi Scientific join hands to initiate autism drug discovery pipeline

The Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and Rumi Scientific announced today that they will team up to initiate a drug discovery pipeline for rare genetic disorders that carry a high risk of autism.

6 Jan 2021

Using a blood test to predict Alzheimer's disease risk during symptom-free stage

Using a blood test, a German-Dutch research team has predicted the risk of Alzheimer's disease in people who were clinically diagnosed as not having Alzheimer's disease but who perceived themselves as cognitively impaired (Subjective Cognitive Declined, SCD).

6 Jan 2021

Researchers identify the missing link between intestinal disease and brain injury in premature infants

Physicians have long known that necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), a potentially lethal inflammatory condition that destroys a premature infant's intestinal lining, is often connected to the development of severe brain injury in those infants who survive.

6 Jan 2021

Study highlights an important link between dietary fiber intake and depression

Fiber is a commonly recommended part of a healthy diet. That's because it's good for your health in so many ways--from weight management to reducing the risk of diabetes, heart disease, and some types of cancer.

6 Jan 2021

Huntington’s disease mutant gene affects brain and body growth in childhood

There is growing evidence to support the hypothesis that there is a neurodevelopmental component to the late-onset neurodegeneration occurring in the brain of huntingtin gene (HTT gene) mutation carriers, and that this increased susceptibility to brain cell death begins during childhood.

6 Jan 2021

Children’s hospitals grapple with wave of mental illness

Krissy Williams, 15, had attempted suicide before, but never with pills.

6 Jan 2021

Study: Decreased activation of LEF1 gene disrupts ordinary neuronal function

Lithium is considered the gold standard for treating bipolar disorder (BD), but nearly 70 percent of people with BD don't respond to it.

5 Jan 2021

Researchers identify natural products with potential to disrupt viral spread

Researchers at Scripps Institution of Oceanography and Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of California San Diego have broken down the genomic and life history traits of three classes of viruses that have caused endemic and global pandemics in the past and identify natural products - compounds produced in nature - with the potential to disrupt their spread.

5 Jan 2021

One-third of COVID-19 survivors manifest neurological problems

In a longitudinal study recently published on the preprint server medRxiv*, Andrea Pilotto et al. find that one-third of COVID-19 infection survivors have long-term neurological manifestations after hospitalization.

5 Jan 2021