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Pregnancy's profound impact: How motherhood reshapes the female brain

Research discusses the impact of pregnancy on the brain, including its effects on neuroplasticity, neuroinflammation, and cognition. It also highlights the importance of studying female-specific factors in neuroscience research.

30 Apr 2023

Depressed? Anxious? Air pollution may be a factor

In the 1990s, residents of Mexico City noticed their dogs acting strangely — some didn't recognize their owners, and the animals' sleep patterns had changed.

25 Apr 2023

Emotion-focused psychotherapy for bipolar disorder increases amygdala activation

A new study in Biological Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging, published by Elsevier, identifies a therapeutic tool focused on emotional awareness that increased activation and connectivity of an emotion-regulating center in the brain.

17 Apr 2023

Study explores the association between prenatal air pollution exposure and changes in neonatal brain structure

Researchers explored the impact of air pollution exposure during pregnancy on the neonatal brain.

12 Apr 2023

Study identifies the spinoparabrachial pathway for mechanical itch

Scientists identified a brain pathway that is associated with the mechanical sensation of itching.

7 Apr 2023

The intercommunication between the central nervous system and the digestive system and its contribution to mental health status

Researchers presented a comprehensive analysis of the correlation between gut microbiota and neurological as well as psychiatric disorders.

3 Apr 2023

Early overnutrition rewires developing brains to crave unhealthy food in adulthood

People whose mothers are overweight during pregnancy and nursing may become obese as adults because early overnutrition rewires developing brains to crave unhealthy food, according to a Rutgers study in Molecular Metabolism.

20 Mar 2023

What role does dysbiosis play in Parkinson's disease?

The current study, published in the journal Revue Neurologique, is based on the hypothesis that dysbiosis, or unhealthy variations in the gut and oral microbiota, is a key component of PD pathogenesis.

19 Mar 2023

Using probiotics to treat depression

Researchers discuss whether probiotics could be used as supplementary or primary therapy to manage major depressive disorder.

15 Mar 2023

Revamping lifestyle can bolster brain health and stave off neurocognitive decline

In a recent article published in the journal Cureus, researchers at Loma Linda University Medical Center and the University of California Irvine reviewed the impact of applying the six pillars of lifestyle medicine — stress management, plant-based nutrition, avoidance of risky substances, physical activity, social connections, and restorative sleep — on neurocognitive decline and dementia.

14 Mar 2023

New discoveries made regarding autism onset in mouse models

Although autism is a common neurodevelopmental disorder, the multiple factors behind its onset are still not fully understood.

10 Mar 2023

Researchers reveal how early-life stress can disrupt operation of the brain's reward circuit

A new brain connection discovered by University of California, Irvine researchers can explain how early-life stress and adversity trigger disrupted operation of the brain's reward circuit, offering a new therapeutic target for treating mental illness.

27 Feb 2023

Maternal exposure to domestic abuse during pregnancy can affect infant brain structure

A study from researchers at the University of Bath and the University of Cape Town suggests psychological and physical violence experienced by women from their partners during pregnancy can shape baby brain development.

21 Feb 2023

Behavioral deficits associated with chronic stress involve impaired neurosteroid synthesis and signaling

The latest generation of antidepressants relieves symptoms by mimicking steroids produced by the brain to ensure neurons are effectively talking to each other.

13 Feb 2023

PTSD patients may repeatedly experience emotionally charged dreams during REM sleep

During periods of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, brain activity often resembles that of awake behavior. At times, the brain can actually be more active during REM sleep than when you're awake.

9 Feb 2023

Researchers identify brain marker that indicates vulnerability to developing PTSD

Understanding one's susceptibility to developing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is important.

1 Feb 2023

Researchers identify a specific neural mechanism behind remembering emotional events

Most people remember emotional events, like their wedding day, very clearly, but researchers are not sure how the human brain prioritizes emotional events in memory.

19 Jan 2023

Dementia risk in women may be reduced by hormone replacement therapy

Women are at greater risk for dementia than men, probably because of waning estrogen levels following menopause. Estrogen is a key female hormone linked to reproductive, sexual, and neurological functions. A new study published in the journal Alzheimer's Research & Therapy examines how hormone replacement works in women with a high genetic risk for AD.

17 Jan 2023

Better management of emotions could help limit neurodegeneration

Negative emotions, anxiety and depression are thought to promote the onset of neurodegenerative diseases and dementia.

16 Jan 2023

CNB-CSIC vaccine fully protects against SARS-CoV-2 infection of the brain

In a recent study published in the journal Nature Neuroscience, researchers in Spain described the effectiveness of a modified vaccinia virus Ankara (MVA) vector severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccine candidate in protecting against SARS-CoV-2 infection in the brain using a mouse model.

12 Jan 2023