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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.

Scientists identify gene influencing levels of alcohol consumption

Scientists have identified a gene that appears to play a role in regulating how much alcohol people drink, in a study of over 47,000 people published today in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

5 Apr 2011

Cocaine-addicted individuals show heightened response to drug-related images

Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory and Stony Brook University (SBU) have conducted the most comprehensive study to date of how cocaine users respond to drug-related and other emotional stimuli, making use of comparisons with a matched control group and exploring the effects of recent cocaine use and abstinence. The findings appear in a paper published online in the European Journal of Neuroscience.

5 Apr 2011

National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression is now Brain & Behavior Research Foundation

The Brain & Behavior Research Foundation (formerly NARSAD, the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression) continues its 25-year mission to alleviate the suffering of mental illness by awarding grants that will lead to advances and breakthroughs in scientific research.

5 Apr 2011

Autistic individuals have strong visual abilities

Researchers directed by Dr. Laurent Mottron at the University of Montreal's Centre for Excellence in Pervasive Development Disorders have determined that people with autism concentrate more brain resources in the areas associated with visual detection and identification, and conversely, have less activity in the areas used to plan and control thoughts and actions.

5 Apr 2011

Acamprosate can help treat patients with autism, Fragile X syndrome

In small, early clinical trials, adults and children with autism and Fragile X syndrome have shown improved communication and social behavior when treated with acamprosate, according to Craig Erickson, M.D., assistant professor of psychiatry at the Indiana University School of Medicine and chief of the Riley Hospital for Children Christian Sarkine Autism Treatment Center at Indiana University Health.

5 Apr 2011

Neuropeptide ghrelin impacts alcoholism, binge-eating and sugar consumption

The substance ghrelin plays an important role in various addictions, such as alcoholism and binge-eating. It also impacts on sugar consumption, which is due, in part, to genetic factors, reveals new research from the University of Gothenburg, Sweden.

5 Apr 2011

Alcohol binge-drinking in teen years could affect decision-making and related behaviors as adults

Adolescents represent the majority of people who binge drink. This may come as a surprise to some, but recent surveys indicate that episodes of heavy alcohol drinking within the previous two weeks are reported by 12 percent of 8th graders, 22 percent of 10th graders, 28 percent of 12th grade seniors and 44 percent of college students.

5 Apr 2011

UC researchers sequence individual glioblastoma genomes and track abnormalities through the bloodstream

Medical scientists know this about glioblastoma multiforme: the malignant brain tumor is aggressive, it is elusive, and it appears in different permutations.

5 Apr 2011

Risperdal Consta can reduce risk of hospitalisation in patients with schizophrenia

New data from an independent prospective study presented last week at the 19th European Congress of Psychiatry shows treatment with Risperdal Consta is associated with a lower risk of hospitalisation in patients with schizophrenia compared to treatment with other antipsychotics over a 12-month period.

5 Apr 2011

Food addicts appear to have high neural activity in brain

Persons with an addictive-like eating behavior appear to have greater neural activity in certain regions of the brain similar to substance dependence, including elevated activation in reward circuitry in response to food cues, according to a report posted online today that will appear in the August print issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

5 Apr 2011

Lilly presents results of JAK2, Hedgehog inhibitor preclinical cancer studies at 102nd AACR

Eli Lilly and Company announced results today from two preclinical studies of molecules that target genetic mutations and disable specific signaling pathways that can lead to cancer. The studies evaluated two unique molecules – a JAK2 inhibitor and a Hedgehog inhibitor – with results presented during the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) 102nd Annual Meeting in Orlando, Fla.

5 Apr 2011

Diets may cause loss of lean muscle mass

According to boomer-generation brother and sister authors Dian Griesel, Ph.D. and Tom Griesel, every well-known diet to date is destined to deliver loss of lean muscle mass, moodiness, disappointment and failure.

5 Apr 2011

Study suggests causal link between HSV1 and Alzheimer's disease

Laboratories at the University of New Mexico (UNM), Brown University, and House Ear Institute (HEI) have developed a new technique to observe herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV1) infections growing inside cells. HSV1, the cause of the common cold sore, persists in a latent form inside nerve cells.

5 Apr 2011

New insight into Parkinson's disease

As Parkinson's Awareness Month gets underway, a Canadian-led international study is providing important new insight into Parkinson's disease and paving the way for new avenues for clinical trials.

5 Apr 2011

Researchers identify new gene that can influence person's risk of developing epilepsy

Vanderbilt University researchers have identified a new gene that can influence a person's risk for developing epilepsy. The findings, reported in the March 29 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, could improve molecular diagnostic tools and point to novel therapeutic targets for epilepsy.

5 Apr 2011

Promising results for new depression treatment

A new, non-invasive treatment for depression that delivers barely perceptible electric currents to the scalp has had promising results in a Sydney trial, and researchers are now looking for participants for a follow up study.

4 Apr 2011

Avanir files IND for NUEDEXTA/AVP-923 Phase II clinical trial for central neuropathic pain in MS patients

Avanir Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that it has filed an Investigational New Drug (IND) application with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to begin a large Phase II clinical trial of AVP-923, an investigational drug for the treatment of central neuropathic pain in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). The FDA has acknowledged receipt of the submission and the company expects that the IND filing will be subject to standard 30-day review.

4 Apr 2011

Stealth announces Bendavia Phase I clinical study results against ischemia reperfusion injury

Stealth Peptides Inc., a privately held biopharmaceutical company developing innovative therapies, announced today the results of a healthy volunteers Phase I clinical study of Bendavia™, a novel compound that targets the mitochondrion to treat ischemia reperfusion injury.

4 Apr 2011

Researchers pinpoint effects of enhanced adult neurogenesis in hippocampus

Adult mice engineered to have more newborn neurons in their brain memory hub excelled at accurately discriminating between similar experiences - an ability that declines with normal aging and in some anxiety disorders.

4 Apr 2011

NAA joins with organizations worldwide to raise awareness about autism

The National Autism Association joins with organizations worldwide in recognizing April as Autism Awareness month. With one in 110 children now diagnosed with autism, and autism mortality rates doubling that of the general population, NAA is once again calling upon legislators and government health agencies to declare autism a national health emergency.

4 Apr 2011

Brain News and Research

Further Reading

Scientists identify gene influencing levels of alcohol consumption

Cocaine-addicted individuals show heightened response to drug-related images

National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression is now Brain & Behavior Research Foundation

Autistic individuals have strong visual abilities

Acamprosate can help treat patients with autism, Fragile X syndrome

Neuropeptide ghrelin impacts alcoholism, binge-eating and sugar consumption

Alcohol binge-drinking in teen years could affect decision-making and related behaviors as adults

UC researchers sequence individual glioblastoma genomes and track abnormalities through the bloodstream

Risperdal Consta can reduce risk of hospitalisation in patients with schizophrenia

Food addicts appear to have high neural activity in brain

Lilly presents results of JAK2, Hedgehog inhibitor preclinical cancer studies at 102nd AACR

Diets may cause loss of lean muscle mass

Study suggests causal link between HSV1 and Alzheimer's disease

New insight into Parkinson's disease

Researchers identify new gene that can influence person's risk of developing epilepsy

Promising results for new depression treatment

Avanir files IND for NUEDEXTA/AVP-923 Phase II clinical trial for central neuropathic pain in MS patients

Stealth announces Bendavia Phase I clinical study results against ischemia reperfusion injury

Researchers pinpoint effects of enhanced adult neurogenesis in hippocampus

NAA joins with organizations worldwide to raise awareness about autism

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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