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Aging brain easily distracted

Canadian researchers have found more evidence that older adults aren't able to filter out distracting information as well as younger adults.

25 Nov 2008

Scientists discover that blocking a neuropeptide receptor decreases nicotine addiction

The study was published in an online Early Edition issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences , the week of November 24.

24 Nov 2008

Neurons in adult brain can remodel their connections

In work reported in the Nov. 24 online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) , Elly Nedivi, associate professor of neurobiology at the Picower Institute for Learning and Memory, and colleagues found that a type of neuron implicated in autism spectrum disorders remodels itself in a strip of brain tissue only as thick as four sheets of tissue paper at the upper border of cortical layer 2.

24 Nov 2008

Neurotic individuals more comfortable with clear negative information than uncertainty

Some individuals would rather receive clear negative information than deal with ambiguity or uncertainty, according to new research out of the University of Toronto.

20 Nov 2008

Brain reorganizes to compensate for loss of vision

A new study from Georgia Tech shows that when patients with macular degeneration focus on using another part of their retina to compensate for their loss of central vision, their brain seems to compensate by reorganizing its neural connections.

20 Nov 2008

Cognitive training may benefit 'Baby Boomers'

Posit Science Corporation researcher, Dan Tinker, presented evidence at the Society for Neuroscience Annual Conference in Washington, DC this week indicating that cognitive training may benefit Baby Boomers.

19 Nov 2008

Computational model provides insight into function of brain's visual cortex

Computational neuroscientists at Carnegie Mellon University have developed a computational model that provides insight into the function of the brain's visual cortex and the information processing that enables people to perceive contours and surfaces, and understand what they see in the world around them.

19 Nov 2008

Kynurenic acid in brain shows potential as schizophrenia target

New research has traced elevated levels of a specific compound in the brain to problem-solving deficits in patients with schizophrenia.

18 Nov 2008

New evidence on how proteins help cells fix broken DNA

Aucott et al. report the first in vivo experiments on the heterochromatin protein 1 (HP1) family, which sidles up to silent DNA.

17 Nov 2008

How is our left brain is different from our right?

Since the historical discovery of the speech center in the left cortex in 150 years ago, functional differences between left and right hemisphere have been well known; language is mainly handled by left hemisphere, while spatial recognition is more specialized to the right hemisphere.

17 Nov 2008

Researchers identify regions of female brain that respond more strongly to masculine faces

Scientists have long known that women's preferences for masculine men change throughout their menstrual cycles.

12 Nov 2008

Interaction between gene variants may alter brain function in schizophrenia

A collaborative study led by investigators from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) is giving what may be the first look at how interactions between genes underlie a key symptom of schizophrenia, impaired working memory.

8 Nov 2008

Brain scans show bullies may enjoy seeing others in pain

Unusually aggressive youth may actually enjoy inflicting pain on others, research using brain scans at the University of Chicago shows.

8 Nov 2008

The interaction between genes and behavior

Our DNA determines a lot about who we are and how we play with others, but recent studies of social animals (birds and bees, among others) show that the interaction between genes and behavior is more of a two-way street than most of us realize.

7 Nov 2008

Impulse control area in brain affected in teens with genetic vulnerability for alcoholism

A new study suggests that genetic factors influence size variations in a certain region of the brain, which could in turn be partly responsible for increased susceptibility to alcohol dependence.

7 Nov 2008

Discovery of new target in brain for treating schizophrenia

Research from the University of Pittsburgh could expand the options for controlling schizophrenia by identifying a brain region that responds to more than one type of antipsychotic drug.

6 Nov 2008

Magnet restores colour perception in partially-sighted patient

A researcher from the University of Essex has succeeded in inducing the experience of colour in the blind part of a partially sighted patient's visual field.

3 Nov 2008

Brain's 'hate circuit' identified

People who view pictures of someone they hate display activity in distinct areas of the brain that, together, may be thought of as a 'hate circuit', according to new research by scientists at UCL (University College London).

28 Oct 2008

Memory function varies after damage to key area of the brain

Scientists at the University of Liverpool have discovered dramatic differences in the memory performance of patients with damage to the hippocampus, an area of the human brain key to memory.

23 Oct 2008

Could brain abnormality predict drug addiction?

Scientists at The University of Nottingham are to use MRI technology to discover whether abnormalities in the decision-making part of the brain could make some people more likely to become addicted to drugs.

22 Oct 2008