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Study identifies brain cells that control sugar intake and cravings

New research has identified the specific brain cells that control how much sugar you eat and how much you crave sweet tasting food.

13 Jul 2020

Study shows the negative impacts of cannabis use

Constant exposure to cannabis could have an adverse effect on sociability. According to studies, in certain indviduals, such exposures may result in reduced social interactions and withdrawal symptoms.

13 Jul 2020

Single-nucleus RNA sequencing helps compare transcriptional responses to acute cocaine

The lab of Jeremy Day, Ph.D., at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, has used single-nucleus RNA sequencing approaches to compare transcriptional responses to acute cocaine in 16 unique cell populations from a portion of the brain called the nucleus accumbens, or NAc.

From University of Alabama 10 Jul 2020

TMEM106B gene reveals the causes of neurodegenerative diseases

Across the globe, approximately 50 million people are living with dementia. The two most common forms are Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD), which develop when neurons in specific parts of the brain stop functioning - triggering memory loss and other behavioral or personality changes.

10 Jul 2020

High concentrations of blood sodium can influence the biological clock of mice

A new study from McGill University shows that increases in the concentrations of blood sodium can have an influence on the biological clock of mice, opening new research avenues for potentially treating the negative effects associated with long-distance travel or shift work.

10 Jul 2020

CU scientists identify key role of brain's immune cells during development

Researchers at the University of Colorado School of Medicine have identified how specific brain cells interacting during development could be related to neurological and neuropsychiatric diseases, including some that occur later in life.

10 Jul 2020

Research uncovers how 'reubiquitination' promotes elimination of misfolded membrane proteins

Chinese researchers recently discovered a protein quality control mechanism called "reubiquitination".

9 Jul 2020

Brain's dedicated immune cells clear paths through 'scaffolding' to let neurons talk

To make new memories, our brain cells first must find one another. Small protrusions that bud out from the ends of neurons' long, branching tentacles dock neurons together so they can talk.

7 Jul 2020

Study reveals the role of alpha-synuclein in Parkinson’s disease

In people affected by Parkinson’s, clusters of alpha-synuclein or α-synuclein, also referred to as the “Parkinson’s protein,” are detected in the brain.

6 Jul 2020

Harvard neurobiologists provide new insights into the mystery of scent

The premiere of the movie Scent of Mystery in 1960 marked a singular event in the annals of cinema: the first, and last, motion picture debut "in glorious Smell-O-Vision."

3 Jul 2020

Lab-grown 'mini-brains' can be infected by SARS-CoV-2 virus

A multidisciplinary team from two Johns Hopkins University institutions, including neurotoxicologists and virologists from the Bloomberg School of Public Health and infectious disease specialists from the school of medicine, has found that organoids (tiny tissue cultures made from human cells that simulate whole organs) known as "mini-brains" can be infected by the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19.

1 Jul 2020

Scientists develop novel image processing techniques to reduce processing time

Researchers have created novel image processing techniques for microscopes that can decrease the time for post-processing by up to several thousand-fold.

1 Jul 2020

Study may help design effective treatments for Alzheimer’s disease

Neurons in the brains of such people are being depleted gradually and inevitably, resulting in the characteristic loss of cognitive function and memory.

29 Jun 2020

A focused approach to imaging neural activity in the brain

When neurons fire an electrical impulse, they also experience a surge of calcium ions.

29 Jun 2020

Method can help detect specific glial cells integral to synapses

The brain contains two types of cells. Glial cells receive less attention for their significance in the function and disease of the brain than other neurons.

From Brown University 26 Jun 2020

Researchers discover new druggable pathway linked with tuberous sclerosis

Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is a neurological disorder causing non-cancerous tumors, called cortical tubers, to grow throughout the brain and body, as well as other conditions like epilepsy and autism.

25 Jun 2020

Genetic dysfunction of brain astrocytes promotes head pain in familial migraine

Neuroscientists of the University of Zurich shed a new light on the mechanisms responsible for familial migraine: They show that a genetic dysfunction in specific brain cells of the cingulate cortex area strongly influences head pain occurrence.

25 Jun 2020