Grey Matter News and Research

RSS

Grey matter is a major component of the central nervous system, consisting of neuronal cell bodies, neuropil (dendrites and both unmyelinated axons and myelinated axons), glial cells (astroglia and oligodendrocytes) and capillaries.

CPAP Therapy increases gray-matter volume in obstructive sleep apnea patients

Obstructive sleep apnea patients had reductions of grey-matter volume at baseline but showed significant grey-matter volume increase after three months of CPAP therapy, according to a research abstract that will be presented Monday, June 7, 2010, in San Antonio, Texas, at SLEEP 2010, the 24th annual meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies LLC.

7 Jun 2010

Psychologists and neuroscientists study link between brain volume reduction and anorexia

A team of American psychologists and neuroscientists have found that adult brain volume, which can be reduced by Anorexia Nervosa, can be regained. The research, published in the International Journal of Eating Disorders, revealed that through specialist treatment patients with the eating disorder can reverse this symptom and regain grey matter volume.

26 May 2010

Adults with SCA show poorer performance on neurocognitive tests: Study

Compared with a group of healthy study participants, adults with sickle cell anemia showed poorer performance on neurocognitive tests, which was associated with anemia and age, according to a study in the May 12 issue of JAMA.

13 May 2010

Neuralstem's stem cell treatment for ALS featured on CNN with Dr. Sanjay Gupta

Neuralstem, Inc. announced that its stem cell treatment for ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig's disease), currently in a FDA-approved Phase I clinical trial, was featured on CNN last night with Dr. Sanjay Gupta, in the piece entitled "Stem Cell Medical Breakthrough".

30 Apr 2010

Study combines CT and VBM to provide accurate picture of autistic brain

A new study, the first of its kind, combines two complementary analytical brain imaging techniques, to provide a more comprehensive and accurate picture of the neuroanatomy of the autistic brain. The study, published in the April issue of neuroimaging journal Human Brain Mapping, was conducted by researchers at The Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital - The Neuro, McGill University and the Universit- de Montr-al.

15 Apr 2010

Flu infection during pregnancy may increase risk of schizophrenia in offspring

Rhesus monkey babies born to mothers who had the flu while pregnant had smaller brains and showed other brain changes similar to those observed in human patients with schizophrenia, a study at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in collaboration with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has found.

12 Mar 2010

Prenatal cocaine exposure affects sustained attention and self-regulated behavior in children

Children exposed to cocaine in the womb face serious consequences from the drug, but fortunately not in certain critical physical and cognitive areas as previously believed, according to a new comprehensive review of research on the subject from scientists at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. When a pregnant woman uses cocaine, it can interrupt the flow of nutrients and oxygen to the baby, putting such children at risk for premature birth, low birth weight and many other problems.

2 Mar 2010

Study: People can reduce their sensitivity to pain by thickening their brain

People can reduce their sensitivity to pain by thickening their brain, according to a new study published in a special issue of the American Psychological Association journal, Emotion. Researchers from the Universit- de Montr-al made their discovery by comparing the grey matter thickness of Zen meditators and non-meditators.

25 Feb 2010

Elevated cerebrospinal fluid levels of P-tau231 may be an early diagnostic biomarker for Alzheimer's disease

Researchers at NYU School of Medicine have found that elevated cerebrospinal fluid levels of phosphorylated tau231 (P-tau231), a damaged tau protein found in patients with Alzheimer's disease, may be an early diagnostic biomarker for Alzheimer's disease in healthy adults.

23 Feb 2010

Highly fit MS patients perform better on tests of cognitive function than less-fit patients: Study

Highly fit multiple sclerosis patients perform significantly better on tests of cognitive function than similar less-fit patients, a new study shows.

18 Feb 2010

fMRI study shows neural network may be brain's back burner for social decision making

When we put an idea on the back burner, it goes into a processing area of the brain called the default-mode network. This network enables us to hold the low-priority idea in abeyance until a time when we aren't busy with something else.

11 Feb 2010

Study calls for individualized therapeutic interventions for MS patients

Fewer African Americans than Caucasians develop multiple sclerosis (MS), statistics show, but their disease progresses more rapidly, and they don't respond as well to therapies, a new study by neurology researchers at the University at Buffalo has found.

6 Feb 2010

Women of Baycrest to find answers: why women are more vulnerable to Alzheimer's disease than men

"Beat Brain Sag: Ladies, Give Your Grey Matter a Lift!" is an event for both women and men who want to take charge of their lives before cognitive decline takes charge of them. Presented by the Women of Baycrest in partnership with Baycrest's Aging, Innovation & the Mind Speaker Series, the event will be held Wednesday, February 10, 2010, 7 p.m., at The Guvernment.

3 Feb 2010

Study assesses gray matter concentration deficits in multiple brain areas of people with OSA

A study in the Feb. 1 issue of the journal SLEEP found gray matter concentration deficits in multiple brain areas of people with severe obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). The study suggests that the memory impairment, cardiovascular disturbances, executive dysfunctions, and dysregulation of autonomic and respiratory control frequently observed in OSA patients may be related to morphological changes in brain structure.

1 Feb 2010

Chronic insomnia may be associated with reduced cortical volume, says study

Chronic and severely stressful situations, like those connected to depression and posttraumatic stress disorder, have been associated with smaller volumes in "stress sensitive" brain regions, such as the cingulate region of the cerebral cortex and the hippocampus, a brain region involved in memory formation.

27 Jan 2010

Common variations in genes associated with microcephaly may explain differences in brain size

A group of Norwegian and American researchers have shown that common variations in genes associated with microcephaly - a neuro-developmental disorder in which brain size is dramatically reduced - may explain differences in brain size in healthy individuals as well as in patients with neurological and psychiatric disorders.

22 Dec 2009

IRB approves Neuralstem's Phase I trial to treat ALS with spinal cord stem cells

Neuralstem, Inc. today announced that its Phase I trial to treat Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease) with its spinal cord stem cells has been approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) at Emory University in Atlanta, GA.

19 Dec 2009

Behavioral intervention can improve cognitive performance in children

Carnegie Mellon University scientists Timothy Keller and Marcel Just have uncovered the first evidence that intensive instruction to improve reading skills in young children causes the brain to physically rewire itself, creating new white matter that improves communication within the brain.

10 Dec 2009

Rats exposed to passive smoking become dependent on nicotine, reveals study

Rats passively exposed to tobacco smoke become dependent on nicotine, according to a new study by Dr. Adrie Bruijnzeel and colleagues from the University of Florida in the US. Their findings of how rats' brains respond to exposure to tobacco smoke have implications for the study of the effects of tobacco smoke on the human brain even from passive exposure to other smokers, and for future studies testing new treatments for tobacco addiction. Their work has just been published online in Springer's journal Psychopharmacology.

9 Dec 2009

DTI helps identify distorted nerve fiber bundles around brain tumors in thalamic JPA children

A new study published this week in the Journal of Neurosurgery: Pediatrics finds that operative plans for removing Juvenile Pilocytic Astrocytoma, or JPA, tumors in the thalamus of the brain can be augmented with Diffusion Tensor Imaging, or DTI. The sensitivity of DTI imaging allows for the visualization of nerve fiber bundles in the brain.

5 Dec 2009