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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.

EuroPRevent2012 to take place from May 3-5 in Dublin

EuroPRevent2012, the premier European event on cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention, brings together the latest guidelines and studies focused on reducing the global epidemic of heart disease.

26 Apr 2012

Study uses brain data to predict how large populations will respond to ads

Advertisers and public health officials may be able to access hidden wisdom in the brain to more effectively sell their products and promote health and safety, UCLA neuroscientists report in the first study to use brain data to predict how large populations will respond to advertisements.

26 Apr 2012

Strong light can treat myocardial infarction

There are lots of ways to treat a heart attack - CPR, aspirin, clot-busters and more. Now CU medical school researchers have found a new candidate: Intense light.

26 Apr 2012

Kids who are abused or bullied may age faster

The study finds that violence-related stress in children affects telomeres - special DNA sequences found at the tips of chromosomes. Telomeres, which prevent DNA from unravelling, get shorter each time cells divide, which limits the number of times cells can divide. Shorter telomeres have been linked to poorer survival and chronic diseases. Previous research has shown that smoking, obesity, mental-health disorders and stress may accelerate the process of telomere loss. This suggests that telomere length may reflect a person's biological age as well as their chronological age.

25 Apr 2012

Researchers evaluate haptic navigation aid to keep driver's eyes safely on the road

A vibrating steering wheel is an effective way to keep a driver's eyes safely on the road by providing an additional means to convey directions from a car's navigation system, researchers at Carnegie Mellon University and AT&T Labs have shown.

25 Apr 2012

Self-degradation response to antidepressant Zoloft observed in yeast cells

Princeton University researchers have observed a self-degradation response to the antidepressant Zoloft in yeast cells that could help provide new answers to lingering questions among scientists about how antidepressants work, as well as support the idea that depression is not solely linked to the neurotransmitter serotonin.

25 Apr 2012

MMP-10 gene plays a dual role in lung cancer

A single gene that promotes initial development of the most common form of lung cancer and its lethal metastases has been identified by researchers at Mayo Clinic in Florida.

25 Apr 2012

Book aims to improve overall cardiovascular health of its readers

Dr. Antonio M. Gotto Jr., dean emeritus and co-chairman of the board of overseers at Weill Cornell Medical College, is the co-author of a new book called The Living Heart in the 21st Century. The book, a new edition in The Living Heart best-selling series, is the essential resource guide for patients about cardiovascular disease prevention and treatment.

25 Apr 2012

U-M project to examine link between bipolar disorder and abnormalities in the circadian

A math professor at the University of Michigan will lead an international, $1 million project examining the links between bipolar disorder and abnormalities in the circadian, or daily, rhythms of a mammal's internal clock.

25 Apr 2012

Researchers develop five different molecular models of the voltage sensor

Every thought, every movement, every heartbeat is controlled by lightning-quick electrical impulses in the brain, the muscles, and the heart. But too much electrical excitability in the membranes of the cells can cause things like epilepsy and cardiac arrhythmia. A research group at Linköping University has now published new discoveries that can lead to new medicines for these diseases.

25 Apr 2012

AANF changes name to American Brain Foundation

The American Academy of Neurology Foundation is now the American Brain Foundation. The name change is part of an overall re-branding campaign as the organization repositions itself to become the world's leader in raising money for research to cure brain diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease, stroke, Parkinson's disease, autism, and epilepsy.

25 Apr 2012

Link between binge eating and addiction-like behaviors

A history of binge eating -- consuming large amounts of food in a short period of time -- may make an individual more likely to show other addiction-like behaviors, including substance abuse, according to Penn State College of Medicine researchers. In the short term, this finding may shed light on the factors that promote substance abuse, addiction, and relapse. In the long term, may help clinicians treat individuals suffering from this devastating disease.

25 Apr 2012

Impaired mitochondrial function may play a major role in mood and psychotic disorders

Janssen Research & Development, LLC announced today the publication of an article that reviews the growing evidence that impaired mitochondrial function may play a major role in mood and psychotic disorders.

25 Apr 2012

Magnet hospitals can save lives of very low birth weight infants

Choosing the right hospital may make the difference between life and death for very low birth weight infants, according to research led by the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing and released today in JAMA The Journal of the American Medical Association.

25 Apr 2012

Study finds negative health effects of anti-depressants

Commonly prescribed anti-depressants appear to be doing patients more harm than good, say researchers who have published a paper examining the impact of the medications on the entire body.

25 Apr 2012

Strong link between childhood physical abuse and suicidal behaviours

Adults who were physically abused during childhood are more likely than their non-abused peers to have suicidal thoughts, according to a new study from the University of Toronto.

25 Apr 2012

Biogen Idec announces positive data from oral BG-12 second Phase 3 trial on RRMS

Today Biogen Idec announced that detailed positive data from CONFIRM, the second Phase 3 clinical trial of oral BG-12 (dimethyl fumarate) in people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), will be presented in three platform presentations at the 64th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) in New Orleans.

25 Apr 2012

LCP molecules can treat prion diseases

Toxic prions in the brain can be detected with self-illuminating polymers. The originators, at Linköping University in Sweden, has now shown that the same molecules can also render the prions harmless, and potentially cure fatal nerve-destroying illnesses.

25 Apr 2012

Neuron-killing pathology of AD requires presence of a-beta and elevated p-tau levels

According to a new study, the neuron-killing pathology of Alzheimer's disease (AD), which begins before clinical symptoms appear, requires the presence of both amyloid-beta (a-beta) plaque deposits and elevated levels of an altered protein called p-tau.

24 Apr 2012

Researchers develop small endoscopic device fitted with femtosecond laser scalpel

Whether surgeons slice with a traditional scalpel or cut away with a surgical laser, most medical operations end up removing some healthy tissue, along with the bad. This means that for delicate areas like the brain, throat, and digestive tract, physicians and patients have to balance the benefits of treatment against possible collateral damage.

24 Apr 2012