Brain News and Research

RSS

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.

Early intervention and close follow-up can help prevent hearing loss in children

Early intervention and close follow-up are key to rehabilitating hearing loss in children, says Paul R. Kileny, Ph.D., director of the University of Michigan's Audiology and Electrophysiology program.

25 Mar 2011

HCG hormone therapy may benefit patients with intractable pain

Results from a small study of intractable pain patients being treated with the human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) hormone reported that they had experienced pain free hours in the past month. These results were presented at a poster session at the American Academy of Pain Medicine's 27th Annual Meeting.

25 Mar 2011

Parkinson's disease drugs may lead to impulse control disorders

Mayo Clinic researchers found that dopamine agonists used in treating Parkinson's disease result in impulse control disorders in as many as 22 percent of patients.

25 Mar 2011

New platinum coil technology makes minimally invasive surgery for brain aneurysms safer and cheaper

Loyola University Hospital is the first center in the Midwest to use new technology that makes minimally invasive surgery for life-threatening brain aneurysms significantly safer and cheaper.

25 Mar 2011

New findings may make morphine a safer, more effective drug for chronic pain control

An orphan drug originally used for HIV treatment has been found to short-circuit the process that results in additional sensitivity and pain from opioid use. The study by researchers at the Indiana University School of Medicine is reported in the March 25, 2011 issue of Brain, Behavior and Immunity.

25 Mar 2011

Study demonstrates bisphenol A effect on animal embryonic development

Bisphenol A, whose impact on reproduction and development is the subject of numerous studies, induces anomalies in the inner ear of embryos of certain vertebrates.

25 Mar 2011

Stemedica begins allogeneic mesenchymal stem cell Phase I/II trial in patients with ischemic stroke

Stemedica Cell Technologies, Inc., a leader in adult allogeneic stem cell manufacturing, research and development, announced today that its specially formulated ischemic adult allogeneic mesenchymal stem cells have been successfully used to treat the first patient in an ischemic stroke study conducted at the University of California, San Diego.

25 Mar 2011

UC Berkeley, UCSF partner to help develop neural prostheses for brain repair

Neuroscientists and engineers at UCSF and UC Berkeley have joined forces to help pioneer a new frontier of brain repair - the development of devices that would allow patients with such conditions as stroke, spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury and Lou Gehrig's disease to control prosthetics through thoughts alone.

25 Mar 2011

Study finds risk of heart attack among patients with TIA

Patients who have suffered a "mini stroke" are at twice the risk of heart attack than the general population, according to research reported in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association.

25 Mar 2011

Quantum dots allow stem cell therapy monitoring for brain injury

A new technique using "quantum dots" produced through nanotechnology is a promising approach to monitoring the effects of stem cell therapies for stroke and other types of brain damage, reports the April issue of Neurosurgery, official journal of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons.

25 Mar 2011

New study implicates microRNAs in panic disorder

A new study published in the current issue of Biological Psychiatry now implicates one type of molecular switch, microRNAs, in panic disorder.

25 Mar 2011

Serotonin influences sexual preference: Study

Researchers from Beijing's National Institute of Biological Sciences, China have found a chemical in the brain controls sexual preference in mice. The study published in the journal Nature said that male mice bred without serotonin lose their preference for females. This is the first study that shows that a neurotransmitter plays a role in sexual preference in mammals. However it is still a long way before similar conclusions can be drawn for humans the experts believe.

24 Mar 2011

Mosquitoes carry risk of Murray Valley encephalitis warn Victorian health authorities

After detecting some new cases of Murray Valley encephalitis in chickens, health authorities have warned Victorians to protect themselves from mosquito bites. Victoria's chief health officer, Dr John Carnie warned that the deadly disease had been detected in "sentinel" chickens at Cobram, Rutherglen, Toolamba and Bendigo. “These latest detections follow positive results in chickens in similar areas a month ago, including Barmah and Kerang… Evidence of the virus is again present in these areas,” Dr Carnie said.

24 Mar 2011

FDA clears MASEP Infini's gamma ray neurosurgery system

MASEP Infini, an innovator in global medical technology, today announced 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration of its new Infini gamma ray neurosurgery system with patented Independent Beam Switch Control with Programmable Arcs, automated collimator exchange and three-dimensional patient positioning, and MASEP Infini's proven Rotary Focusing technology.

24 Mar 2011

Imaging with voltage-sensitive dye captures real-time brain dynamics

The dye incorporates in the brain cells' membrane and changes fluorescence whenever these receive or send electrical signals. Hence, high resolution camera systems allow to simultaneously capture activities of millions of nerve cells across several square millimeters across the brain.

24 Mar 2011

Mother's gene variation can influence alcohol-related disorders in fetus

Exposure to alcohol in the womb doesn't affect all fetuses equally. Why does one woman who drinks alcohol during pregnancy give birth to a child with physical, behavioral or learning problems -- known as fetal alcohol spectrum disorder -- while another woman who also drinks has a child without these problems?

24 Mar 2011

New research provides evidence that brain's sensory recalibration can occur instantly

New research provides the first evidence that sensory recalibration - the brain's automatic correcting of errors in our sensory or perceptual systems - can occur instantly.

24 Mar 2011

Brain's pleasure and reward circuitry gets a big boost after a sleepless night

A sleepless night can make us cranky and moody. But a lesser known side effect of sleep deprivation is short-term euphoria, which can potentially lead to poor judgment and addictive behavior, according to new research from the University of California, Berkeley.

24 Mar 2011

Iodine 131 exposure during childhood increases risk of developing thyroid cancer

Alan H. Lockwood, MD, professor of neurology and nuclear medicine in the University at Buffalo's School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences calls the Japanese Health Ministry's advice not to give tap water to infants "prudent."

24 Mar 2011

Dopamine agonists used in treatment of Parkinson's disease may lead to impulse control disorders

Mayo Clinic researchers found that dopamine agonists used in treating Parkinson's disease result in impulse control disorders in as many as 22 percent of patients.

24 Mar 2011

Brain News and Research

Further Reading

Early intervention and close follow-up can help prevent hearing loss in children

HCG hormone therapy may benefit patients with intractable pain

Parkinson's disease drugs may lead to impulse control disorders

New platinum coil technology makes minimally invasive surgery for brain aneurysms safer and cheaper

New findings may make morphine a safer, more effective drug for chronic pain control

Study demonstrates bisphenol A effect on animal embryonic development

Stemedica begins allogeneic mesenchymal stem cell Phase I/II trial in patients with ischemic stroke

UC Berkeley, UCSF partner to help develop neural prostheses for brain repair

Study finds risk of heart attack among patients with TIA

Quantum dots allow stem cell therapy monitoring for brain injury

New study implicates microRNAs in panic disorder

Serotonin influences sexual preference: Study

Mosquitoes carry risk of Murray Valley encephalitis warn Victorian health authorities

FDA clears MASEP Infini's gamma ray neurosurgery system

Imaging with voltage-sensitive dye captures real-time brain dynamics

Mother's gene variation can influence alcohol-related disorders in fetus

New research provides evidence that brain's sensory recalibration can occur instantly

Brain's pleasure and reward circuitry gets a big boost after a sleepless night

Iodine 131 exposure during childhood increases risk of developing thyroid cancer

Dopamine agonists used in treatment of Parkinson's disease may lead to impulse control disorders

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

Latest News