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.

Nicotine protects against Parkinson's disease

If you've ever wondered if smoking offered society any benefit, a new research report published in The FASEB Journal offers a surprising answer. Nicotine protects us from Parkinson's disease, and the discovery of how nicotine does this may lead to entirely new types of treatments for the disease.

2 Aug 2011

Statins may help protect young people from future strokes

New research indicates cholesterol lowering drugs known as statins may help prevent future strokes among young people who have already had a stroke.

2 Aug 2011

Sleep Innovations launches REMedy Bed Upgrade Kit for students

Sleep Innovations, a market leader in designing and manufacturing advanced foam sleep solutions, today introduced the REMedy Bed Upgrade Kit, a unique bedding collection featuring a gel-infused memory foam mattress topper and coordinating pillow, designed to help students get the essential sleep they need for strong performance and academic achievement in school.

2 Aug 2011

Meningococcal case at Townsville child care center

Meningococcal disease - a serious infectious disease affecting the brain and related organs - has been detected at a child care centre in Townsville, Queensland, where a medical student died of the illness last week. Queensland Health has confirmed a child at the centre has been admitted to hospital with meningococcal disease.

1 Aug 2011

Stealth presents Bendavia at AHA's Cardiovascular Scientific Sessions

Stealth Peptides Inc. (Stealth), a privately held biopharmaceutical company developing innovative mitochondrial therapies for diseases with unmet medical needs, presented its lead clinical candidate, Bendavia, during the 2011 American Heart Association's (AHA) Cardiovascular Scientific Sessions.

1 Aug 2011

Scientists reveal genetic region that increases risk of meningioma

Cancer Research UK funded scientists have conducted the first whole-genome scan of the brain tumour meningioma and revealed a genetic region that increases the risk of developing the disease, according to research published in Nature Genetics today.

1 Aug 2011

New neurobehavioral model for obesity counseling

Current approaches to dietary counseling for obesity are heavily rooted in the notion of personal choice and will power - the ability to choose healthy foods and portion sizes consistent with weight loss while foregoing sweets and comfort foods.

1 Aug 2011

Methods for radiation dose optimization in head CT scans

An article in the August issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology summarizes methods for radiation dose optimization in head computed tomography (CT) scans. Head CT is the second most commonly performed CT examination, with 28 percent of the total number of CT examinations.

1 Aug 2011

Scientists study how nervous system translates sensory information into coordinated motor output

Escape responses are some of the most studied behaviors by neurobiologists who want to understand how the brain processes sensory information. The ability to evade predators plays a vital role in the process of natural selection.

30 Jul 2011

UT Southwestern's support group book shares stories of members whose wives battled cancer

When a loved one has cancer, it affects the entire family. For men, many of whom are less likely to take advantage of a support group, this can leave a void with devastating emotional consequences.

30 Jul 2011

Therapeutic hypothermia might not be effective for children after heart attack

Intravenous delivery of cold fluids to reduce body temperature quickly after a heart attack and improve neurologic outcomes may not be as effective in children as it is in adults, according to a study reported in Therapeutic Hypothermia and Temperature Management, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.

30 Jul 2011

Scientists receive funding to continue research into pathological processes supporting Alzheimer's

Neuroscientists at the University of Bristol have received a major funding boost of -550,000 from the Medical Research Council to continue their research into the pathological processes underpinning Alzheimer's disease, the most common cause of dementia, affecting around 465,000 people in the UK.

30 Jul 2011

Eight in ten Ontarians expect better access to trauma centre for life-threatening injury

More than eight in 10 Ontarians say they would want to be taken directly to a trauma centre if they were seriously injured, even if another hospital were closer, a new poll has found.

30 Jul 2011

New software tools for fast, accurate reconstruction of neural networks

The human brain is the most complex of all organs, containing billions of neurons with their corresponding projections, all woven together in a highly complex, three-dimensional web. To date, mapping this vast network posed a practically insurmountable challenge to scientists.

30 Jul 2011

New fluorescent tool can track mysterious workings of cellular RNAs

The ability to tag proteins with a green fluorescent light to watch how they behave inside cells so revolutionized the understanding of protein biology that it earned the scientific teams who developed the technique Nobel Prizes in 2008.

30 Jul 2011

Individuals with dyslexia do not experience familiar language advantage

When people recognize voices, part of what helps make voice recognition accurate is noticing how people pronounce words differently. But individuals with dyslexia don't experience this familiar language advantage, say researchers.

30 Jul 2011

Resection of brain regions with fast ripples may improve seizure outcome in pediatric epilepsy: Study

New research focusing on high-frequency oscillations, termed ripples and fast ripples, recorded by intracranial electroencephalography, may provide an important marker for the localization of the brain region responsible for seizure activity.

30 Jul 2011

Scientists examine relationship between REM sleep behaviour disorders, Parkinson's disease

Patients suffering REM sleep behaviour disorders dream nightmares in which they are attacked and pursued, with the particularity that they express them by screaming, crying, punching and kicking while sleeping.

30 Jul 2011

Researchers examine drug that has potential to stop Parkinson's progression

Researchers from Michigan State University's College of Human Medicine, Van Andel Research Institute and the Translational Genomics Research Institute are investigating a drug that has the potential to not only alleviate Parkinson's symptoms but also halt the disease's progression.

30 Jul 2011