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New brain circuit discovery offers hope for panic disorder treatments

Our survival depends on brains that constantly search for danger and, if found, stay alert until it has passed.

21 Sep 2026

Cold plunges may boost your mood, but the evidence is still on thin ice

A Molecular Psychiatry review examined evidence linking cold exposure with mood and mental health outcomes, alongside proposed roles for catecholamines, the HPA axis, and immune-inflammatory pathways. Early studies report short-term mood improvements and physiological changes, but clinical evidence remains limited, and the proposed mechanisms have not been established as drivers of lasting psychiatric benefits.

16 Sep 2026

The music in psychedelic therapy may be more than background sound

A narrative review examines how music interacts with psychedelics, psychological support, and treatment context in psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy, arguing that its role cannot be understood as an isolated component. The authors highlight limited evidence on music-specific effects and propose studying PAP as a complex intervention, with music described according to its therapeutic function rather than fixed playlists or genres.

16 Sep 2026

Astrocyte changes may explain how stress affects mental health

A new study led by UCLA Health researchers has identified a specific type of brain cell and a tiny structure on its surface that changes when the body is under stress, which may help explain why stress can lead to anxiety and depression.

8 Sep 2026

Loneliness can reprogram the brain to increase alcohol use

Loneliness can reprogram the brain in ways that push alcohol consumption, reports a new preclinical study led by Northwestern University and the Salk Institute for Biological Studies.

25 Aug 2026

Five-week training program helps college students regulate their emotions

A five-week training intervention taught college students to better regulate their emotions in response to negative events, a new study finds.

18 Aug 2026

New cross-species map links mouse and marmoset brain regions

Most neuroscience research still runs on mice, even though much of what applies to mice does not hold up in humans. Marmosets have emerged as a bridge between species.

13 Aug 2026

Adolescents using nicotine face higher risks of mental health problems

Adolescents who use nicotine are more likely to report symptoms of anxiety, depression, and other mental health problems than their peers who do not use nicotine.

11 Aug 2026

New AI model generates detailed maps of aging in brain regions

USC researchers have developed an approach that uses artificial intelligence to generate detailed maps that highlight differences in how distinct parts of the brain age.

3 Aug 2026

A closer look at Parkinson’s brains finds tau where standard tests saw little

Researchers used single-molecule and super-resolution imaging to profile protein aggregates across six brain regions from 29 post-mortem donors, detecting high-intensity phosphorylated tau aggregates in the Parkinson’s disease putamen despite negligible conventional tau staining. PD cases with dementia showed greater tau burden than those without dementia, while the assay did not detect a PD-specific population of nanoscopic alpha-synuclein aggregates.

29 Jul 2026

Scientists trace severe irritability to the brain’s response to frustration

This review identifies maladaptive responses to frustrative non-reward as a potential mechanism underlying clinically significant irritability, particularly in youth. Animal studies reveal conserved behavioral responses, while human research links frustration to altered neural activity and highlights opportunities for cross-species treatment research.

10 Jul 2026

New review shows why antidepressants often fail in Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s depression

A Molecular Psychiatry review shows that depression in Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease may reflect disease-specific molecular, neurotransmitter, inflammatory, and circuit-level disruptions rather than standard depression biology alone. It argues that broad antidepressants often show limited efficacy in these patients and that future trials should use biomarkers, neuroimaging, and symptom profiling to guide targeted treatments.

7 Jul 2026

Study provides new insights into biological processes linked to Huntington’s disease

A study conducted by the Sant Pau Research Institute (IR Sant Pau) and Hospital de Sant Pau has identified for the first time in living individuals a brain pattern related to the tau protein that changes according to the stage of Huntington's disease.

6 Jul 2026

Scientists map how chronic stress alters somatostatin levels in the brain

Consider the brake. Not the engine, which gets all the attention, but the brake, the quiet thing that decides how fast a system is allowed to go.

1 Jul 2026

Anti-inflammatory molecule reduces excessive alcohol consumption in female mice

The drugs that keep rheumatoid arthritis in check may one day help people stop drinking. A new Scripps Research study shows that an anti-inflammatory molecule, already approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat autoimmune diseases, reduces excessive alcohol consumption in alcohol-dependent female mice.

29 Jun 2026

Electroacupuncture relieves neuropathic pain and anxiety by activating specific brain circuit

Neuropathic pain affects nearly 10% of the global population, and up to 60% of those individuals also struggle with anxiety or other mood disorders.

24 Jun 2026

Brain histamine neurons control moment-to-moment memory accessibility

The same memory can feel vivid and accessible one moment, yet stubbornly out of reach the next - even when the memory itself remains intact.

11 Jun 2026

Large study uncovers brain network differences in bipolar disorder

New research from the Mark and Mary Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute (Stevens INI) at the Keck School of Medicine of USC has discovered subtle but widespread differences in the brain's communication networks in people with bipolar disorder, offering new insight into how illness severity and treatment may relate to brain wiring.

9 Jun 2026

Female brain forms fear memories through unique molecular process

Women are twice as likely as men to develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) - and new research may offer a biological clue as to why.

8 Jun 2026

Grant funds research into molecular memories behind exaggerated fear

Experiencing a traumatic event sometimes produces long-lasting biological changes that can lead to an exaggerated fear response to future stressful events, such as what occurs in individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

29 May 2026