Brain | Page 323 | Science Codex

Researchers hone in on why female newborns are better protected from brain injury

MADISON, Wis. - Each year, thousands of newborn babies suffer complications during pregnancy or birth that deprive their brains of oxygen and nutrient-rich blood and result in brain injury. This deprivation results in hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE), which can lead to long-term neurological issues such as learning disabilities, cerebral palsy or even death.

Researchers have known for some time that male infants are more vulnerable to HIE than females, but why this gender difference exists has remained a mystery.

Mesh-like scaffold is disordered in Alzheimer's-affected cells

SAN ANTONIO (Feb. 4, 2016)--Brain cell death in Alzheimer's disease is linked to disruption of a skeleton that surrounds the nucleus of the cells, a researcher in the School of Medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio said.

The finding is expected to open new avenues of study of how to prevent the earliest biological events that result in Alzheimer's.

Mature drivers favor checks on over 70s, new study finds

The majority of older drivers are in favour of tighter rules on checking the health and suitability of over-70s to drive - even if those checks could take them off the road themselves - according to a new report. The Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) worked with Dr Carol Hawley at Warwick Medical School, the University of Warwick, to survey more than 2,600 drivers and former drivers on their opinions, habits and motoring history.

Neurobiological changes explain how mindfulness meditation improves health

Over the past decade, mindfulness meditation has been shown to improve a broad range of health and disease outcomes, such as slowing HIV progression and improving healthy aging. Yet, little is known about the brain changes that produce these beneficial health effects.

Some chronic viral infections could contribute to cognitive decline with aging

PITTSBURGH, Feb. 4, 2016 - Certain chronic viral infections could contribute to subtle cognitive deterioration in apparently healthy older adults, according to a study led by researchers from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and Johns Hopkins University that was recently published in the journal Alzheimer's Disease and Associated Disorders.

Functional MRI may help identify new, effective painkillers for chronic pain sufferers

Chicago - New research may allow new, more effective and safer pain medications to reach patients who suffer from chronic pain sooner.

Taser shock disrupts brain function, has implications for police interrogations

More than two million citizens have been Tased by police as Taser stun guns have become one of the preferred less-lethal weapons by police departments across the United States during the past decade. But what does that 50,000-volt shock do to a person's brain?

Targeting the mind/body connection in stress

Our ability to cope with stress depends on how efficiently our body and mind regulate their response to it. Poor recovery from extremely stressful encounters can trigger post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, or even chronic somatic dysfunction (such as pain and fatigue) in some people. Insight into the multi-level sequence of events -- from cellular changes to brain function, emotional responses, and observed behavior -- will help medical professionals make more informed decisions concerning interventions.

Modelling how the brain makes complex decisions

Researchers have constructed the first comprehensive model of how neurons in the brain behave when faced with a complex decision-making process, and how they adapt and learn from mistakes.

The mathematical model, developed by researchers from the University of Cambridge, is the first biologically realistic account of the process, and is able to predict not only behaviour, but also neural activity. The results, reported in The Journal of Neuroscience, could aid in the understanding of conditions from obsessive compulsive disorder and addiction to Parkinson's disease.

Breakthrough in generating embryonic cells that are critical for human health

RIVERSIDE, Calif. - Neural crest cells arise early in the development of vertebrates, migrate extensively through the embryo, and differentiate to give rise to a wide array of diverse derivatives. Their contributions include a large proportion of our peripheral nerves, the melanocytes that provide skin color and protection from damaging UV light, as well as many different cell types in our face, including muscle, bone, cartilage and tooth-forming cells.

Alzheimer's plaques found in middle-aged people with brain injuries

MINNEAPOLIS - A new study suggests that people with brain injuries following head trauma may have buildup of the plaques related to Alzheimer's disease in their brains. The research is published in the Feb. 3, 2016, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

A corresponding editorial states that over the past decade the rate of emergency department visits related to traumatic brain injury (TBI) has increased by 70 percent. The editorial also says an estimated three to five million Americans live with a TBI-related disability.

Head injury patients develop brain clumps associated with Alzheimer's disease

Scientists have revealed that protein clumps associated with Alzheimer's disease are also found in the brains of people who have had a head injury.

Although previous research has shown that these clumps, called amyloid plaques, are present shortly after a brain injury - this study shows the plaques are still present over a decade after the injury.

Same switches program taste and smell in fruit flies

DURHAM, N.C. -- A new study sheds light on how fruit flies get their keen sense of smell.

Duke University biologist Pelin Volkan and colleagues have identified a set of genetic control switches that interact early in a fly's development to generate dozens of types of olfactory neurons, specialized nerve cells for smell.

The same gene network also plays a role in programming the fly neurons responsible for taste, the researchers report in the journal PLOS Genetics.

Parasitic ants alter how captive ants recognize nest mates

Enslaved Formica worker ants are more genetically and chemically diverse and less aggressive towards non-nest mates than free-living Formica ant colonies, according to a study published February 3, 2016 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Candice W. Torres and Neil D. Tsutsui from University of California - Berkeley.

Scientists discover how plants tailor growth to the seasons

Dmitri A. Nusinow, Ph.D., assistant member at the Danforth Plant Science Center and researchers in his lab studying plants' circadian clock have discovered a gene that allows plants to remember daylight during the long nights of winter, helping them tailor their growth appropriately to the seasons. The gene, PCH1 accumulates at dusk and stabilizes light signals in the early hours of the night, keeping the plant from growing too much during extended dark periods.