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Decoding the human brain

'Nature' journals are synonymous with the very best in research. Earlier this year, an article by University of Leicester bioengineer Professor Rodrigo Quian Quiroga not only appeared in Nature Reviews Neuroscience, but also featured on the magazine cover. In the article, Prof. Quian Quiroga and co-author Dr. Stefano Panzeri discuss new methodologies that are enabling scientists to better understand how our brain processes information.

19 May 2009

Sodium channel-blocking agent shows promise as a potential treatment for cystic fibrosis

Cystic fibrosis patients may benefit from a new therapy that increases airway hydration, preventing the buildup of mucous, which is a key factor in the disease, according to researchers at Parion Sciences in Durham, N.C.

17 May 2009

Discovery of molecular defect involved in hearing loss

Scientists from The Scripps Research Institute have elucidated the action of a protein, harmonin, which is involved in the mechanics of hearing.

13 May 2009

From implantable devices to electric vehicles, UB Professor focuses on power sources

A University at Buffalo professor who has garnered more than 140 patents for power sources for tiny biomedical devices now is working to develop batteries that could power much larger devices, such as electric vehicles.

13 May 2009

Potential molecular target for new schizophrenia treatments

A study on schizophrenia has implicated machinery that maintains the flow of potassium in cells and revealed a potential molecular target for new treatments. Expression of a previously unknown form of a key such potassium channel was found to be 2.5 fold higher than normal in the brain memory hub of people with the chronic mental illness and linked to a hotspot of genetic variation.

5 May 2009

New anticonvulsant compound prevents seizure progression in model of epilepsy

Carnegie Mellon University researchers have identified a new anticonvulsant compound that has the potential to stop the development of epilepsy. The findings are published in the March issue of the journal Epilepsia.

4 May 2009

New target for the treatment of depression

An acid-sensitive protein in the brain may represent a new target for the treatment of depression, according to animal research in the April 29 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience.

30 Apr 2009

New sequencing technique looks at medical potential of King Kong toxin

King Kong toxin, a component of the venom in some poisonous marine snails, has a peculiar power to go with its peculiar name.

29 Apr 2009

Hybrid metal and organic nanoparticles for targeting, imaging, and treating cancer

Using a set of three biocompatible polymers and a nanoparticle containing gadolinium, a team of investigators at the Colorado School of Mines has created a nanoparticle platform that has the potential to target, image, and treat cancer.

27 Apr 2009

Discovery of ion channel turns ear on its head

Scientists thought they had a good model to explain how the inner ear translates vibrations in the air into sounds heard by the brain.

23 Apr 2009

Researchers discover that gene switches on during development of epilepsy

A discovery made by researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine while studying mice may help explain how some people without a genetic predisposition to epilepsy can develop the disorder.

23 Apr 2009

Organic biosensor detects onset of acute myocardial ischemia

Engineering researchers at the University of Arkansas have fabricated and tested a unique biosensor that measures concentrations of potassium and hydrogen ions in the human heart with high specificity.

22 Apr 2009

Researchers study why people who are obese become hypertensive

When Francois Abboud began his work at the University of Iowa in 1960, little was known about the constant physiological chatter between the brain and the blood vessels.

22 Apr 2009

A nanoscale motor in the ear

Utah and Texas researchers have learned how quiet sounds are magnified by bundles of tiny, hair-like tubes atop "hair cells" in the ear: when the tubes dance back and forth, they act as "flexoelectric motors" that amplify sound mechanically.

22 Apr 2009

Disruption of copper regulation key to prion diseases

An investigation of a rare, inherited form of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease suggests that disrupted regulation of copper ions in the brain may be a key factor in this and other prion diseases.

16 Apr 2009

Singapore scientists synthesize gold to shed light on cells' inner workings

Highly fluorescent gold nanoclusters for sub-cellular imaging have been synthesized by researchers at the Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (IBN), one of the research institutes of Singapore's A*STAR (Agency for Science, Technology and Research).

16 Apr 2009

Alzheimer's controversy solved

For a decade, Alzheimer's disease researchers have been entrenched in debate about one of the mechanisms believed to be responsible for brain cell death and memory loss in the illness.

15 Apr 2009

Researchers show how PCBs may alter in utero, neonatal brain development

In three new studies - including one appearing online in the Public Library of Science - Biology (PLoS - Biology) - UC Davis researchers provide compelling evidence of how low levels of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) alter the way brain cells develop.

13 Apr 2009

Basic guides to PCR, labeling neurons featured in Cold Spring Harbor Protocols

Along with new cutting-edge methods, Cold Spring Harbor Protocols is home to an in-depth library of basic laboratory methods.

1 Apr 2009

Scientists develop new agents to fight superbugs

Experts from Queen's University Belfast have developed new agents to fight MRSA and other hospital-acquired infections that are resistant to antibiotics.

24 Mar 2009