Neurons News and Research

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Study: Eye contact seems to act as an invitation for mimicry

Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery but how do our brains decide when and who we should copy? Researchers from The University of Nottingham have found that the key may lie in an unspoken invitation communicated through eye contact.

17 Aug 2011

Fluctuations in brain signals explained: Spontaneous electrical background rhythms in the brain influence fMRI

Until now, brain scans obtained using fMRI – one of the most important imaging methods in use today – have been affected by fluctuations in the brain activity measured which could not be explained. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Leipzig and the Charité in Berlin have now shown that certain electric background rhythms in the brain, known as Alpha oscillations, alter the fMRI signal obtained with visual stimuli. To do this, they used a new approach in which quickly changing brain activity, which cannot be captured by the scanner, was measured using

16 Aug 2011

Biochemist develops polymer material to convert precursor cells into functional neurones

Nervous system diseases are especially difficult to treat, as it is not easy to replace the parts of the neural puzzle which are damaged. The key is in developing functional neurons from in vitro-treated, cells but for this it is essential that the support on which these cells are based simulate the characteristics of the nervous system.

16 Aug 2011

Regular exercise could help prevent brain damage linked with Alzheimer's

Regular exercise could help prevent brain damage associated with neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's, according to research published this month in Elsevier's journal Brain, Behavior, and Immunity.

16 Aug 2011

New measurement technologies provide scientists more complete look at neurological activity

In 1991, Carl Lewis was both the fastest man on earth and a profound long jumper, perhaps the greatest track-and-field star of all time in the prime of his career. On June 14th of that year, however, Carl Lewis was human. Leroy Burrell blazed through the 100-meters, besting him by a razor-thin margin of three-hundredths of a second. In the time it takes the shutter to capture a single frame of video, Lewis's three-year-old world record was gone.

12 Aug 2011

New model for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

By isolating cells from patients' spinal tissue within a few days after death, researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health have developed a new model of the paralyzing disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

12 Aug 2011

Scientists identify new therapeutic target for ADHD, other neuropsychiatric disorders

A biochemical pathway long associated with diarrhea and intestinal function may provide a new therapeutic target for treating ADHD other neuropsychiatric disorders, according to a team of scientists from China and the United States reporting Aug. 11 in Science.

12 Aug 2011

SIGMAR1 gene mutation associated with development of juvenile ALS

Researchers from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have identified a mutation on the SIGMAR1 gene associated with the development of juvenile amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

12 Aug 2011

Research: p38α MAPK protein plays a role in addiction, depression-like behavior

Researchers studying mice are getting closer to understanding how stress affects mood and motivation for drugs.

11 Aug 2011

Insight into how neural circuit forms motor plan

The voluntary movements we make must be "prepared" in our brain before they are executed. However, be it perfect timing, a false-start, or a delayed reaction, the neural circuitry underlying movement preparation is not well understood.

11 Aug 2011

New research uncovers role of p38alpha in mood disorders, addiction

Stressful experiences increase addictive drug consumption and can precipitate bouts of anxiety or depression in vulnerable people. Although the mechanisms linking stress and human behaviors are not well understood, animal models of some aspects of these behaviors have been developed and have been used to define some of the molecular events that may be responsible for stress vulnerability in people.

11 Aug 2011

Researchers helps explain how the adult brain cleans out dead brain cells and produces new ones

Adult brains generate thousands of new brain cells called neurons each day; however only a small fraction of them survive. The rest die and are consumed by scavenger cells called phagocytes. Until now, scientists have not fully understood how this process works, which phagocytes are unique in the brain, and how the removal of dead neurons influences the production of new neurons.

10 Aug 2011

Cancer-causing fusion protein works by silencing tumor suppressor gene IL-2Rγ

Mariusz A. Wasik, MD, professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, and Qian Zhang, MD, PhD, research assistant professor, both from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, and their colleagues, found that a cancer-causing fusion protein works by silencing the tumor suppressor gene IL-2R common gamma-chain.

10 Aug 2011

Scientist determines how nyctalopin gene makes night vision possible

A scientist from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute has determined how a particular gene makes night vision possible. The study, which was published in the August 10, 2011 edition of The Journal of Neuroscience, focuses on a gene called nyctalopin. Mutations in the gene result in inherited "night blindness," a loss of vision in low-light environments.

10 Aug 2011

New technique can help scientists rapidly map myelination

Like explorers mapping a new planet, scientists probing the brain need every type of landmark they can get. Each mountain, river or forest helps scientists find their way through the intricacies of the human brain.

10 Aug 2011

Anisotropic encoding of three-dimensional space by place and grid cells

Animal's brains are only roughly aware of how high-up they are in space, meaning that in terms of altitude the brain's 'map' of space is surprisingly flat, according to new research.

8 Aug 2011

Human brain cells created from skin cells: Potential for Alzheimer’s

This feat comes a year after researchers at Stanford University performed the same feat in mice, turning cells from the rodents' skin into neurons. The lab-created brain cells act the same as normal human brain cells, the researchers found. These cells have the same ability to send electric signals; they seem to express the same genes in the same ways; and they are able to communicate with other brain cells, as demonstrated in a lab dish and when implanted into mice.

5 Aug 2011

Scientists convert human skin cells into forebrain neurons

Columbia University Medical Center researchers have for the first time directly converted human skin cells into functional forebrain neurons, without the need for stem cells of any kind.

5 Aug 2011

Researchers study factors linked with concussion occurrence and recovery in athletes

With sports camps starting up again, many schools are putting measures in place to prevent concussions. But what if some people are just genetically predisposed to getting them? Ryan Tierney, a professor of kinesiology at Temple University, has been studying the genes of college athletes to figure out whether this is the case.

5 Aug 2011

Roadmap to overcome obstacles for using induced pluripotent stem cells

The possibility of developing stem cells from a patient's own skin and using them to treat conditions as diverse as Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease and cancer has generated tremendous excitement in the stem cell research community in recent years. Such therapies would avoid the controversial need for using stem cells derived from human embryos, and in theory, also bypass immunological problems inherent in using cells from one person to treat another.

5 Aug 2011