Bipolar Disorder News and Research

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Bipolar disorder, also known as manic-depressive illness, is a brain disorder that causes unusual shifts in mood, energy, activity levels, and the ability to carry out day-to-day tasks. Symptoms of bipolar disorder are severe. They are different from the normal ups and downs that everyone goes through from time to time. Bipolar disorder symptoms can result in damaged relationships, poor job or school performance, and even suicide. But bipolar disorder can be treated, and people with this illness can lead full and productive lives.

New Insights into the Biological Basis of Bipolar Disorder

According to research published in Nature on January 22nd, 2025, an international team of psychiatric genetics researchers has discovered 298 regions of the genome with DNA variations that increase the risk for bipolar disorder, more than four times the number previously found.

24 Jan 2025

New Discovery Sheds Light on How Monoamines Regulate Brain Rhythms

A collaborative effort between Mount Sinai and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center has shed valuable light on how monoamine neurotransmitters such as serotonin, dopamine, and now histamine help regulate brain physiology and behavior through chemical bonding of these monoamines to histone proteins, the core DNA-packaging proteins of our cells.

9 Jan 2025

Bipolar Disorder and Epilepsy Share Genetic Roots

A team of researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences has uncovered compelling evidence of a genetic link between bipolar disorder type I (BD-I) and epilepsy, potentially revolutionizing our understanding of these complex neuropsychiatric conditions.

1 Oct 2024

New Initiative Targets High-Risk Genes to Understand Neurodevelopmental and Psychiatric Disorders

Neurodevelopmental and psychiatric disorders (NPD) including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, autism, and depression are detrimental to individuals, their families and society as a whole, and in many cases still lack effective treatments.

13 Sep 2024

Researchers Identify Genetic Overlap Between Dyslexia and ADHD

According to a study, dyslexia and ADHD are unique from developmental and mental health diseases like autism, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia since they share many genes and frequently co-occur in individuals.

11 Sep 2024

New Research Highlights Brain Connectivity as Key Factor in Cognitive Aging

How variations in cognitive abilities, cognitive reserve, and SVD-related neuropathologies impacted SFC in aging adults.

22 Jul 2024

Ancient DNA Reveals Reason for High Multiple Sclerosis and Alzheimer’s Rates in Europe

Researchers have created the world’s largest ancient human gene bank by analysing the bones and teeth of almost 5,000 humans who lived across western Europe and Asia up to 34,000 years ago.

10 Jan 2024

Uncovering New Insights Into Primate Brain Evolution

In a recent research investigation, scientists from Yale University unveiled the molecular pathways responsible for the developmental distinctions that set primates apart from mice.

27 Oct 2023

Study: Swimming and Tubing Can Alter Stream Chemistry and Microbiology

With Labor Day approaching, many people are preparing to go tubing and swimming at local streams and rivers.

19 Sep 2023

Genetic Risk of Depression Linked to Increased Risk of Other Psychiatric Disorders

Recent research reveals that people who are hospitalized for depression are at an increased risk of developing conditions like substance abuse, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and anxiety, depending on their genetic predisposition to the individual disorder.

30 Aug 2023

DSCAM Gene Triplication Causes Excessive Inhibitory Signaling in the Brain of Down Syndrome Mouse

An extra copy of a gene that controls synapse formation in the cortex causes excessive inhibitory signaling and may contribute to Down syndrome, according to a new study publishing April 20th in the open access journal PLOS Biology by Bing Ye of the University of Michigan, US, and colleagues.

21 Apr 2023

Lieber Institute awarded $1 million grant to foster racial diversity across neuroscience

The Lieber Institute for Brain Development has received a $1 million, two-year grant from the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative to support the work of the African Ancestry Neuroscience Research Initiative (AANRI) to promote racial equity throughout the field of neuroscience.

28 Feb 2023

Researchers determine small protein’s structure, likely to pave the way for advanced treatments

For the first time, researchers have deciphered the atomic structure of a protein that transports one of the body’s most vital neurotransmitters into neurons.

9 Jun 2022

Researchers discover 15 genetic 'hotspots' that speed up or slow down brain aging

Researchers from a USC-led consortium have discovered 15 "hotspots" in the genome that either speed up brain aging or slow it down -; a finding that could provide new drug targets to resist Alzheimer's disease and other degenerative brain disorders, as well as developmental delays.

6 Apr 2022

New research demonstrates genetic markers in leadership positions

The locations of nine core genetic markers related with leadership have been discovered in a recent study led by the National University of Singapore (NUS) Business School.

From National University of Singapore (NUS) 21 Mar 2022

Study takes a deep dive into the molecular biology of the brain in bipolar disorder patients

In a comprehensive study involving one of the largest-ever samples of post-mortem brains, scientists at the Lieber Institute for Brain Development, in collaboration with researchers at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and Bloomberg School of Public Health, have pinpointed significant differences in gene expression in two specific regions of the brains of hundreds of patients who had bipolar disorder.

8 Mar 2022

Three proteins as potential new therapeutic targets in movement disorders

Three members of a family of proteins have been identified that are important to helping us fine tune the activity of brain chemicals which enable us to walk or stand at will, scientists report.

11 Feb 2022

Scientists discover hotspots in the 'dark genome' associated with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder

Scientists investigating the DNA outside our genes - the 'dark genome' - have discovered recently evolved regions that code for proteins associated with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

24 Dec 2021

Genetic liability to mental health conditions may affect a person's choice of residence

Living in cities has been highlighted as an environmental risk factor for schizophrenia and, to a lesser extent, other mental health conditions. However, few studies have explored genetic effects on the choice of residence.

28 Oct 2021

Eating mushrooms may benefit a person's mental health, study reveals

Mushrooms have been making headlines due to their many health advantages. Not only do they lower one's risk of cancer and premature death, but new research led by Penn State College of Medicine also reveals that these superfoods may benefit a person's mental health.

From Penn State University 13 Oct 2021