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.

Discovery of brain's memory 'buffer' in single cells

Individual nerve cells in the front part of the brain can hold traces of memories on their own for as long as a minute and possibly longer, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found.

27 Jan 2009

Statins may treat cerebral cavernous malformation

In a finding that could save thousands of lives a year, University of Utah School of Medicine researchers have shown that a blood vessel disorder leading to unpredictable, sometimes fatal, hemorrhagic strokes, seizures, paralysis or other problems is treatable with the same statin drugs that millions of people take to control high cholesterol.

27 Jan 2009

Early treatment with rasagiline (Azilect) for Parkinson's best

There is hope that the drug rasagiline can do what no other medication for Parkinson's disease now does -- slow the progression of a devastating degenerative brain disease that eventually robs people of their ability to move and function.

27 Jan 2009

We need 5 to 10 percent of calories from omega-6 fatty acids

Omega-6 fatty acids - found in vegetable oils, nuts and seeds - are a beneficial part of a heart-healthy eating plan, according to a science advisory published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

27 Jan 2009

Diabetes epidemic shows no signs of abating

In the United States, nearly 13 percent of adults age 20 and older have diabetes, but 40 percent of them have not been diagnosed, according to epidemiologists from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), whose study includes newly available data from an Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT).

27 Jan 2009

New method captures microRNAs before they disappear

One of the tiniest entities in the human genome - are great escape artists.

27 Jan 2009

TP53 gene variant may lead to early onset of brain tumor

People with a particular gene variant may be more likely to develop brain tumors, and at an earlier age, than people without the gene, according to a study published in the January 27, 2009, print issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

27 Jan 2009

Anticholinergic medications linked to cognitive decline in seniors

A study published in Journal of the American Geriatrics Society suggested that the use of certain medications in elderly populations may be associated with cognitive decline.

27 Jan 2009

Researchers refine breast cancer identification

Not all breast cancers are the same, and not all will have fatal consequences.

27 Jan 2009

Musical babies - just days after they're born

Scientists have discovered that newborn babies are able to pick up a beat days after birth.

27 Jan 2009

Obesity may be contagious!

Professor Nikhil Dhurandhar says a common cold virus can interfere with our normal body processes and make us fat - he has reached this rather astonishing conclusion following ten years of research with both animals and humans into the virus, Adenovirus-36.

27 Jan 2009

Breastfed babies less likely to be neglected

An international team of specialists have carried out a study which has revealed that mothers who breastfeed are less likely to neglect their children.

27 Jan 2009

Researchers develop "virtual patient" to help train the pharmacists of the future

Keele University has developed a “virtual patient” to help train the pharmacists of the future.

23 Jan 2009

Researchers learn some of nicotine's secrets

Duke University Medical System researchers have discovered there are differing taste pathways for nicotine, which could provide a new approach for future smoking-cessation products.

23 Jan 2009

Researchers create precise biosensor for detecting blood glucose

Researchers have created a precise biosensor for detecting blood glucose and potentially many other biological molecules by using hollow structures called single-wall carbon nanotubes anchored to gold-coated "nanocubes."

23 Jan 2009

Leaky membranes: Another sign of old age

As parts of us age, even the membrane bound nuclei , which house the genetic instructions for life that are "written" in our DNA, begin to show considerable wear and tear, suggests a new report in the January 23rd issue of the journal Cell, a Cell Press publication.

23 Jan 2009

Inflammation worsens danger due to atherosclerosis

Current research suggests that inflammation increases the risk of plaque rupture in atherosclerosis.

23 Jan 2009

Gene provides hope for restoring injured nerves

University of Utah scientists identified a worm gene that is essential for damaged nerve cells to regenerate, and showed they could speed nerve regeneration by over-activating the gene - a step toward new treatments for nerves injured by trauma or disease

23 Jan 2009

Topical treatment wipes out herpes with RNAi

Whether condoms or abstinence, most efforts to prevent sexually transmitted diseases have a common logic: keep the pathogen out of your body altogether.

21 Jan 2009

Slices of living human brain tissue are helping scientists identify new stroke therapies

Slices of living human brain tissue are helping scientists learn which drugs can block the waves of death that engulf and engorge brain cells following a stroke.

21 Jan 2009