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.

Amyloid peptide Aβ43 may serve as biomarker for diagnosis of Alzheimer's

Researchers at the RIKEN Brain Science Institute (BSI) and their collaborators have shed light on the function of a little-studied amyloid peptide in promoting Alzheimer's disease.

4 Jul 2011

Study finds two reasons behind racial disparities in stroke treatment care

African-Americans are less likely than whites to receive critical stroke treatment primarily because they do not get to a hospital soon enough for time-sensitive treatment and because of preexisting medical conditions. For patients who are eligible for treatment, no racial disparity was found.

2 Jul 2011

Infected astrocytes can cause neuroAIDS

A longstanding medical mystery - why so many people with HIV experience memory loss and other cognitive problems despite potent antiretroviral therapy - may have been solved by researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University.

2 Jul 2011

Johns Hopkins team reconstitutes single stem cells' family tree

A Johns Hopkins team has discovered in young adult mice that a lone brain stem cell is capable not only of replacing itself and giving rise to specialized neurons and glia - important types of brain cells - but also of taking a wholly unexpected path: generating two new brain stem cells.

2 Jul 2011

Significant gap exists in emergency care services for stroke patients

citywide study published online in today's issue of Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association demonstrates racial disparities in the use of clot-busting drugs to treat acute ischemic stroke, the most common type of stroke.

2 Jul 2011

T-type calcium channels could provide new approach for treating PD

Parkinson disease (PD) affects 1-2% of the population over the age of 65 years. It results from loss or loss of function of nerve cells in the brain that coordinate movement.

2 Jul 2011

Novel cerebrospinal fluid proteins found in greater concentrations in Alzheimer's patients

Researchers at the Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, have identified a series of novel proteins in human cerebrospinal fluid. The proteins, which carry specific sugar molecules, are found in greater concentrations in patients with dementia caused by Alzheimer's disease than in patients with dementia caused by other diseases. This gives hope for new forms of treatment in the future.

1 Jul 2011

Autism Speaks Weatherstone fellows publish new mouse model findings in Cell journal

Autism Speaks Weatherstone Pre-Doctoral Fellows M. Ali Bangash, a 2009 fellow, and Mehreen Kouser, a 2010 fellow, recently published new findings in the journal Cell that shed light on the biology of autism.

1 Jul 2011

Men better than women at visuo-spatial and auditory-spatial tasks

Differences in male and female behaviour are often subject to study. Women are known to be more verbally fluent, have better manual dexterity and are better at noticing things (like a new haircut). Men on the other hand often take less time parking their cars and have less trouble than women in navigating in a new city.

1 Jul 2011

Two defective genes may cause telomere elongations in cancer cells: Study

Scientists at Johns Hopkins have provided more clues to one of the least understood phenomena in some cancers: why the "ends caps" of cellular DNA, called telomeres, lengthen instead of shorten.

1 Jul 2011

Research sheds light on well-documented 'other-race effect'

Northwestern University researchers have provided new biological evidence suggesting that the brain works differently when memorizing the face of a person from one's own race than when memorizing a face from another race.

1 Jul 2011

Erratic investment responses can make a smart portfolio richer

Playing the stock market can be a risky game. And when the market behaves unpredictably, public fear can lead to erratic investment responses and market chaos.

1 Jul 2011

First ever clinical study using Brainwave Optimization technology to treat insomnia

Insomnia is the most prevalent sleep disorder, affecting up to 50 percent of the adult population in the United States on a weekly basis.

1 Jul 2011

Avastin for breast cancer still covered by Medicare despite FDA indecision

The Medicare will continue to cover Avastin for breast cancer treatment even if U.S. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Peggy Hamburg decides to withdraw Avastin for such use, according to Don McLeod, a spokesman for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid. McLeod said, in his statement, “The FDA decision, when it comes, does not affect CMS.”

1 Jul 2011

Study reveals unique pattern of brain activity when false memories are formed

How easy is it to falsify memory? New research at the Weizmann Institute shows that a bit of social pressure may be all that is needed. The study, which appears Friday in Science, reveals a unique pattern of brain activity when false memories are formed - one that hints at a surprising connection between our social selves and memory.

1 Jul 2011

Panel advises FDA to reject Avastin as breast cancer drug

The unanimous recommendation by this committee of cancer experts increases the likelihood that the drug will no longer be widely available for the treatment of breast cancer. Avastin, however, will continue to have the Food and Drug Adminstration's approval for use in treating certain other cancers.

1 Jul 2011

Researchers identify altered expression of endogenous retroviruses in BSE-infected macaques

Prion diseases such as Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans and bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in cattle are transmissible neurodegenerative diseases linked to the aggregation of the prion protein in the central nervous system.

1 Jul 2011

Nicotine receptors play crucial role in social interaction

If you think nicotine receptors are only important to smokers trying to kick the tobacco habit, think again. New research published in the FASEB Journal (http://www.fasebj.org) suggests that these receptors also play an important role in social interaction and the ability to choose between competing motivations.

1 Jul 2011

Tranexamic acid effective for patients with head injury

New research has suggested that tranexamic acid has the potential to prevent people dying from head injuries.

1 Jul 2011

Viewpoints: Abortion law debates; Medicare cost examinations; state reform building blocks

The Susan B. Anthony List's Pro-Life Leadership Pledge has garnered praise from a number of Republican presidential candidates, including Rick Santorum, Michele Bachmann, Newt Gingrich, Ron Paul and Tim Pawlenty, each of whom has signed the pledge. It has also faced some misinformed criticism, however, not only from the media but from other presidential candidates who refuse to sign on to the pledge's four basic principles.

30 Jun 2011