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.

Research provides a map of coronavirus entry factors across the human body

An infection with the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 can affect multiple organs. With this in mind, researchers of the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases and Cornell University in the US have investigated cellular factors that could be significant for an infection.

3 Sep 2020

Army-funded study explores the effects of sleep deprivation in soldiers

New Army-funded study looks at effects of sleep deprivation, which can greatly affect Soldiers on the battlefield.

3 Sep 2020

$6.6 million grant awarded to develop new device for treating mental health disorders

Researchers at the University of Minnesota Medical School have been awarded a $6.6 million grant from the National Institute of Mental Health to develop a new medical device that can treat mental health disorders in a way that has never been done before using brain rhythms.

3 Sep 2020

Study: Antibiotics have prolonged effects on breast milk microbiota in mothers of preterm infants

A team led by researchers at the University of Toronto and The Hospital for Sick Children has found that mothers of preterm babies have highly individual breast milk microbiomes, and that even short courses of antibiotics have prolonged effects on the diversity and abundance of microbes in their milk.

3 Sep 2020

Sleep may serve as a marker of Alzheimer’s disease risk and progression

What would you do if you knew how long you had until Alzheimer's disease set in? Don't despair. New research from the University of California, Berkeley, suggests one defense against this virulent form of dementia -- for which no treatment currently exists -- is deep, restorative sleep, and plenty of it.

3 Sep 2020

Study shows what happens in the fetal brain affected by congenital Zika syndrome

Zika virus infection during pregnancy can cause severe abnormalities in the fetus, including malformations such as microcephaly.

3 Sep 2020

IMT School researcher awarded ERC grant to study mechanisms that regulate sleep and dreams

A researcher at the IMT School for Advanced Studies Lucca, Giulio Bernardi, has been awarded a European Research Council Starting grant, a competitive source of financing attributed to young researchers who pursue innovative research ideas.

3 Sep 2020

Researchers identify link between disrupted sleep, elevated blood pressure, and gut microbiome

In the first study of its kind, University of Illinois Chicago researchers have found associations among disrupted sleep, elevated blood pressure and changes in the gut microbiome.

3 Sep 2020

Study: Partnership between long-term care organizations can improve quality of care for residents

A study published in the Journal of the Medical Directors Association demonstrated that a partnership between long-term care organizations in two countries working in collaboration with researchers and national health care organizations can generate changes that improve quality of care for residents.

3 Sep 2020

Study shows how general anesthetic drugs act on the brain receptors

As you drift into unconsciousness before a surgery, general anesthetic drugs flowing through your blood are putting you to sleep by binding mainly to a protein in the brain called the ɣ-aminobutyric acid type A (GABAA) receptor.

3 Sep 2020

Researchers propose unified nomenclature of neurons to cure brain disease

The human brain has about 100 billion neurons, linked in intricate ways, that the Spanish neuroanatomist Ramón y Cajal compared to "the impenetrable jungles where many investigators have lost themselves."

3 Sep 2020

New approach can make immunotherapy effective against cancers

If cancer is a series of puzzles, a new study pieces together how several of those puzzles connect to form a bigger picture.

3 Sep 2020

Genomic analysis of specific E. coli strain can help develop potential vaccines

Foodborne pathogens are very common and usually benign, but certain virulent strains of pathogens can result in severe disease and even death.

3 Sep 2020

Researchers assess impact of coronavirus disease on individuals with progressive multiple sclerosis

Researchers conducting a large international study of progressive multiple sclerosis (MS) examined the impact of the global outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on their study participants.

3 Sep 2020

A global study to determine COVID-19 health and psychosocial consequences

The current paper lays out the details of a longitudinal study that aims to follow up COVID-19 patients, including any pre-existing chronic illnesses as well as the medical care they received during their illness. A significant minority of convalescents appears to have prolonged disease sequelae.

3 Sep 2020

Experimental drug for ALS shows promising results in clinical trial

An experimental medication slows the progression of the neurodegenerative disease called Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrig's disease, according to recently released results from a clinical trial run by investigators at the Sean M. Healey & AMG Center for ALS at Massachusetts General Hospital and Amylyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc., the company that manufactures the medication.

2 Sep 2020

Magnetic resonance elastography can improve the detection of epilepsy

A new study uses magnetic resonance elastography to compare the stiffness of the hippocampus in patients who have epilepsy with healthy individuals. The technique can improve the detection and characterization of the disease.

2 Sep 2020

Pharmaceutical researchers aim to create better CBD-like treatments

Cannabidiol (CBD) is an increasingly popular wellness trend. The compound, which occurs naturally in cannabis plants, is added to many products that claim to reduce anxiety, alleviate pain and more, without the intoxication of its cousin tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).

2 Sep 2020

Study finds greater Alzheimer's burden in rural Appalachia

Alzheimer's disease is more common in rural Appalachian Ohio communities than in other rural areas in the state - raising concerns about access to early, specialized care in a region where many residents face struggles getting the medical care they need, a new study has found.

2 Sep 2020

FDA grants rare disease designations to investigational brain tumor drug

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has awarded Rare Pediatric Disease Designation (RPDD) for diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) and Orphan Drug Designation for treatment of malignant glioma to OKN-007, an investigational drug discovered at the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation and being developed by Oblato, Inc.

2 Sep 2020