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.

3-D microscopic views of tiny mouse brains available online

A multi-institutional consortium including Duke University has created startlingly crisp 3-D microscopic views of tiny mouse brains - unveiled layer by layer - by extending the capabilities of conventional magnetic resonance imaging.

10 Jul 2007

Brain lesions may be sign of more widespread disease in the brain

Lesions commonly seen on MRI in the brains of older patients may be a sign of potentially more extensive injury to the brain tissue, according to a recent study conducted by researchers at the Duke University Medical Center, in Durham, NC.

10 Jul 2007

Scientists identify two brain networks in Parkinson's

The disease that causes tremors, rigidity and slowed movements in a million Americans also targets another brain network that regulates cognitive thought and the ability to carry out everyday tasks.

10 Jul 2007

People with early Parkinson's more likely to develop hallucinations, sleepiness and swelling

People with early Parkinson's disease report a higher than anticipated development or worsening of hallucinations, sleepiness, and swelling.

10 Jul 2007

National study to treat addiction to prescription pain medications

Researchers funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health, launched the first large-scale national study evaluating a treatment for addiction to prescription opioid analgesics (i.e., painkillers) such as Vicodin and OxyContin.

10 Jul 2007

New gene mutation linked to frontotemporal dementia

Researchers have identified a new gene mutation linked to frontotemporal dementia, according to a study published in the July 10, 2007, issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

10 Jul 2007

Delays in cancer diagnosis for children remain poorly understood

Though delays in the diagnosis of cancer in children are short and attributable to clinical presentation and healthcare system complexity, the impact of such delays on prognosis remains unclear, according to a new study.

10 Jul 2007

Delays in cancer diagnosis for children remain poorly understood

10 Jul 2007

Easing agonising deaths of terminally ill babies "tantamount to euthanasia"

A doctor in Scotland who gave a paralysing drug to two terminally ill babies, has told a General Medical Council (GMC) panel he felt the children were suffering.

10 Jul 2007

Anti-smoking drug Chantix works for alcohol too

According to researchers a popular anti-smoking pill may also curb the urge to drink alcohol.

10 Jul 2007

New skin patch offers help for Alzheimer's victims

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the United States has given approval for the first skin patch to treat Alzheimer's disease.

9 Jul 2007

Potential new treatment pathway for Parkinson's

In the vast majority of Parkinson's disease (PD) patients, the disorder arises not because of a genetic defect, but because some external insult triggers the death of dopamine-producing neurons.

9 Jul 2007

New method to detect vCJD infection

Scientists have made significant advances towards the development of a technique that could be used to confirm whether someone is infected with variant CJD.

9 Jul 2007

Researchers discover brain pathway of depression in rats

Scientists' hunt for the cause of depression has implicated so many suspects and found so many treatments with different mechanisms that the condition remains an enigma.

9 Jul 2007

Soil increases the oral transmissibility of deadly prions

The rogue proteins that cause chronic wasting disease (CWD) exhibit a dramatic increase in their infectious nature when bound to common soil particles, according to a new study.

9 Jul 2007

The brain predicts our perception of the outside world

The human brain anticipates our perception of the outside world. For example, it is capable of predicting if we are going to perceive tactile stimulation of weak intensity or, on the contrary, if a more intense stimulation will be perceived more or less painfully.

9 Jul 2007

New criteria for probable Alzheimer's disease

An international group of Alzheimer's disease (AD) experts have proposed new criteria for the reasearch diagnosis of the condition, as they argue the existing criteria are out of date due to unprecedented growth of scientific knowledge in the field. The proposal is put forward in a Position Paper published early Online and in the August edition of The Lancet Neurology.

9 Jul 2007