Weekly Neuroscience Update

Opioid blockade (Naltrexone condition; right side) relative to placebo (Control condition; left side) selectively eliminated attentional broadening after reward receipt (A), but did not change attentional narrowing after reward anticipation (B) or reward-related performance speed on the lexical decision task (C). Credit: Psychological Medicine (2025).

Feeling good doesn’t just lift our mood—it also helps us stay flexible and resilient. A study by an international team of neuroscientists shows that natural brain opioids released after rewards play a key role in broadening attention, offering fresh insights into stress, cognition, and well-being.

A ground-breaking study has shown that ALS may actually be an autoimmune disease.

Engaging in creative experiences, such as music, dance, visual arts, and even specific video games, can slow brain aging and promote healthier brain function, according to a new international study by the Global Brain Health Institute (GBHI), published in Nature Communications.

Can your brain attune itself to a foreign language before you’re born? A team of neuropsychology researchers has found that it can.

A new study reveals that the brain’s social perception pathway—a network that processes faces, gaze, and speech—is already active at birth or shortly thereafter. Using advanced imaging data, researchers showed that newborns exhibit robust connectivity in regions responsible for visual and social processing.

Scientists have discovered why mental maps tend to fade with age.

A new study has identified five distinct “sleep-biopsychosocial” profiles that connect how we sleep with our brain networks, mental health, cognition, and lifestyle. Using data from over 700 participants, researchers found that different sleep patterns—ranging from poor quality to resilience and short duration—each showed unique neural connectivity patterns.

A large-scale international study has revealed that autism diagnosed in early childhood is genetically and developmentally distinct from autism diagnosed later in life.

Scientists have developed a new mathematical model of memory that explores how information is encoded and stored. Their analysis suggests that memory works best in a seven-dimensional conceptual space — equivalent to having seven senses. The finding implies that both humans and AI might benefit from broader sensory inputs to optimize learning and recall.

Researchers have identified a rare type of brain cell that may drive the chronic inflammation and neurodegeneration seen in progressive multiple sclerosis (MS).

A new study shows that bullying activates distress pathways in the brain within seconds. Tweens and adults who viewed first-person bullying videos displayed heightened activity in social and emotional brain networks, alongside strong autonomic threat responses.

New research sheds light on the mechanisms by which humans can isolate and focus on individual sounds in noisy environments.

Scientists have revealed that intentional memory control—deciding what to remember or forget—is more potent than emotional influence when forming long-term memories. Participants were more likely to recall words they were told to remember than those carrying emotional weight, even though emotion sometimes strengthened recall or caused false memories.

Finally, this week, a new study reveals how the brain organizes and directs its slowest activity.

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*Experimental tasks and behavioral results. Credit: Science Advances (2025)*

Musical people find it easier to focus their attention on the right sounds in noisy environments. This is shown in a new study from Karolinska Institutet published in the journal Science Advances. The results suggest that music training can be used to sharpen attention and cognition.

A major UK study has revealed that the early warning signs of multiple sclerosis (MS) may appear years before diagnosis and affect all communities in similar ways.

Pea-sized brains grown in a lab have, for the first time, revealed the unique way neurons might misfire due to schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, psychiatric ailments that affect millions of people worldwide but are difficult to diagnose because of the lack of understanding of their molecular basis.

Researchers have developed a minimally invasive method for recording brain activity through blood vessels.

A long-term study tracking 475 children found that autistic children are far more likely to experience persistent gastrointestinal issues than their peers. These symptoms often co-occur, persist throughout childhood, and are strongly related to challenges with sleep, communication, behavior, and sensory processing.

Science and artificial intelligence have combined in a study that could lead to personalized repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation, or rTMS, for smokers who want to quit.

New research suggests that when people listen to speech at varying speeds, the auditory cortex does not adjust its timing but instead processes sound within a fixed time window. This discovery challenges the long-standing idea that the brain flexibly adapts its processing pace to match speech rhythms.

Neuroscientists are leveraging music’s ability to synchronize brain waves to enhance the effectiveness of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS).

Fluctuations in brain activity, also known as neural variability, enable us to be flexible in adjusting our behavior to the current situation. A new study shows that neural variability increases throughout development before stabilizing in adolescence. And deviating from this trajectory is associated with worse executive functioning.

Scientists have identified a previously underexplored population of hypothalamic neurons that plays a pivotal role in regulating energy expenditure.

A new study reveals that our brain’s attention system first prepares broadly, then focuses on specific details within fractions of a second. Using EEG and machine learning, researchers tracked how people focused on either the colour or the movement of dots before they appeared.

The first major data release from the HEALthy Brain and Child Development (HBCD) Study has provided researchers with a groundbreaking resource to study early childhood brain development.

A study published in The Cerebellum provides initial experimental evidence that a single session of cerebellar High-Definition Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (HD-tDCS) may help to maintain anticipatory and consummatory pleasure and enhance reward sensitivity in healthy individuals.

New research finds that regional fat distribution exerts distinct effects on brain structure, connectivity and cognition, revealing patterns not explained by body mass index (BMI).

A new study reveals that fluoxetine, more commonly known as Prozac, does more than simply increase serotonin—it alters how brain cells utilize energy and form new connections. After two weeks of treatment, parvalbumin interneurons in the prefrontal cortex became less rigid, with mitochondrial energy genes reduced and plasticity genes upregulated.

Depression’s earliest signs can be hard to spot, but a new study shows AI can detect them in subtle facial movements.

A new five-year study explores how dopamine may drive changes in brain myelin during social isolation. Researchers will track how dopamine interacts with oligodendrocytes, the cells responsible for producing myelin and supporting neuron function.

Scientists have revealed a key mechanism in how our brains change when we learn new information or form memories.

Humans excel at adapting to new situations, while machines often stumble. A new interdisciplinary study reveals that the root of the issue lies in how humans and AI approach “generalization,” the process of transferring knowledge to new problems.

Finally this week, according to new research, habit, rather than conscious choice, drives most of our actions.

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A research collaboration has identified the specific nerve pathways responsible for relaying pain signals from the bowel to the brain, paving the way for new irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) treatments.

Game-based training improves not only the cognitive abilities of people with initial signs of developing dementia, but also leads to positive changes in the brain, according to two new studies.

A next-generation neuroprosthetic hand that restores a sense of touch is moving into a pivotal home-use clinical trial. The “iSens” system uses implanted electrodes to read muscle intent and stimulate nerves, relaying fingertip sensations to the brain so the prosthesis feels embodied.

A new breakthrough demonstrates how robots can now integrate both sight and touch to handle objects with greater accuracy, much like humans.

Researchers have traced a neural mechanism that explains why humans explore more aggressively when avoiding losses than when pursuing gains. Their work reveals how neuronal firing and noise in the amygdala shape exploratory decision-making.

Scientists have found a way to stop brain cancer cells spreading by essentially ‘freezing’ a key molecule in the brain.

Researchers have developed an ultrasound device that can precisely stimulate areas deep in the brain without surgery, opening up new possibilities for neurological research and the treatment of disorders such as Parkinson’s disease.

Artificial intelligence can detect and interpret social features between people from images and videos almost as reliably as humans, according to a new study published in the journal Imaging Neuroscience.

A large study of nearly 13,000 adults found that consuming high levels of certain artificial sweeteners is associated with faster declines in memory and cognitive function over an eight-year period. The effect was particularly strong in people with diabetes and those under 60. While the study does not prove causation, it raises concerns about the long-term brain health risks associated with common sugar substitutes.

Experiments have shown that AI can develop in-context learning abilities after extensive incremental practice, much like humans do.

A new study suggests that autism may be linked to the rapid evolution of brain cell types unique to humans. Researchers have found that outer-layer neurons in the human brain evolved significantly faster than in other apes, with notable changes in autism-associated genes.

A new study shows that brain iron levels, measured using a specialized MRI technique, can predict cognitive decline years before symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease appear.

People with chronic insomnia may experience faster declines in memory and thinking skills as they age—along with brain changes that can be seen on imaging scans—than people who do not have chronic insomnia, according to a study published in Neurology.

Researchers have discovered how the brain develops reliable visual processing once the eyes open.

Scientists discovered how the brain uses objects to anchor our sense of direction, solving part of the mystery of spatial navigation. Experiments in mice showed that cells in the postsubiculum fired strongly when facing an object, while cells in other directions were suppressed, sharpening orientation.

In adults aged 60 years and older, tinnitus, especially severe and prolonged tinnitus, is significantly associated with cognitive impairment, according to a study published in Brain Sciences.

A more precise and personalized form of electric brain stimulation may be a more effective and faster treatment for people with moderate to major depression compared to other similar treatments, according to a UCLA Health study.

Finally this week, researchers may have found a way to limit the debilitating damage strokes can cause.

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*A) Illustration of the experimental design. B) Averaged power spectra and time–frequency representations (TFR) were extracted from two regions of interest. Credit: Imaging Neuroscience (2025)*

Using a custom-built tool to analyze the electrical activity from neurons, researchers have identified a brain-based biomarker that could be used to predict whether mild cognitive impairment will develop into Alzheimer’s disease.

New research reveals neurocognitive correlates of testosterone in young men that shape generosity and self-worth.

By understanding differences in how people’s brains are wired, clinicians may be able to predict who would benefit from a self-guided anxiety care app, according to a new analysis from a clinical trial led by Weill Cornell Medicine and NewYork-Presbyterian investigators.

Novel imaging research indicates that young adults with a higher genetic risk for depression showed less brain activity in several areas when responding to rewards and punishments.

A new study reveals that long-term adaptive cycling can measurably reshape brain signals in people with Parkinson’s Disease, offering clues into how exercise relieves motor symptoms. Researchers used deep brain stimulation (DBS) implants to track neural activity before and after 12 sessions of dynamic cycling.

Scientists bring us closer to understanding how the body detects different sensations such as pain, itch, and touch.

A recent genetic study has identified neurological mechanisms as key drivers of chronic cough. The findings significantly advance our biological understanding of the condition, shedding light on potential avenues for new treatments.

A large-scale analysis of health records reveals that subtle signs of multiple sclerosis (MS) may appear more than a decade before diagnosis.

In a discovery that could guide the development of next-generation antidepressants and antipsychotic medications, researchers have developed new insights into how a critical brain receptor works at the molecular level and why that matters for mental health treatments.

Finally, this week, new research has found stress-controlling brain cells switch on and off in a steady rhythm about once every hour—even when nothing stressful is happening.

Weekly Neuroscience Update

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A new study published in Scientific Reports has introduced a promising diagnostic tool that could dramatically shorten the long wait times many families face when seeking evaluations for autism and attention-related conditions. The research team used artificial intelligence to analyse subtle patterns in how people move their hands during simple tasks, identifying with surprising accuracy whether someone is likely to have autism, attention-deficit traits, or both. The method, which relies on wearable motion sensors and deep learning, could one day serve as a rapid and objective screening tool to help clinicians triage children for further assessment.

New research is investigating how childhood adversity rewires brain circuits that control emotion, memory, and attention, increasing the risk of impulsive and pathological aggression.

A groundbreaking study has revealed that genes linked to mental and neurodegenerative disorders, such as autism, depression, and Parkinson’s, begin influencing brain development during the earliest fetal stages. These genes are already active in neural stem cells—the progenitors that form the brain—long before symptoms arise.

Researchers at the University of Michigan have illuminated a complete sensory pathway showing how the skin communicates the temperature of its surroundings to the brain.

Patients with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) may be closer to personalized care, according to new research that shows how the disease disrupts interactions between the microbiome, immune system, and metabolism.

A new study using direct recordings from human brains reveals how the amygdala and hippocampus coordinate to form and retrieve emotional memories.

A personalised brain stimulation system powered by AI that can safely enhance concentration from home has been developed by researchers from the University of Surrey, the University of Oxford and Cognitive Neurotechnology. Designed to adapt to individual characteristics, the system could help people improve focus during study, work, or other mentally demanding tasks.

In the largest study of its kind, researchers linked irregular sleep patterns to elevated risk for 172 diseases.

Neuroscientists have grown a novel whole-brain organoid, complete with neural tissues and rudimentary blood vessels. This advance could usher in a new era of research into neuropsychiatric disorders such as autism.

Researchers have successfully mapped the entire neural circuit responsible for transmitting cool temperature signals from the skin to the brain.

A new brain imaging study reveals that how people expect pain relief—through visual cues or treatment explanations—can significantly influence how much pain they actually feel. External cues, like symbols signaling less pain, consistently reduced pain perception and altered brain regions tied to pain processing.

Finally this week, a new international study confirmed a significant post-pandemic rise in disorders of gut-brain interaction, including irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and functional dyspepsia.

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*Credit: Biological Psychiatry / Hannon et al.*

A novel study aimed at disentangling the neurological underpinnings of depression shows that multiple brain profiles may manifest as the same clinical symptoms, providing evidence to support the presence of both one-to-one and many-to-one heterogeneity in depression. The findings of the study in Biological Psychiatry, highlight the layered and complex interactions between clinical symptoms and neurobiological sources of variation.

New research shows that babies as young as eight months can flexibly adapt their learning strategies to changing environments.

Brain networks responsible for sensing, understanding, and responding emotionally to pain develop at different rates in infants, with the conscious understanding of pain not fully developed until after birth, finds a new study.

People living with autoimmune diseases face nearly twice the risk of developing persistent mental health disorders like depression, anxiety, and bipolar disorder, according to a massive UK-based study.

New research shows that individuals with higher cognitive ability have stronger, more flexible synchronization of brain rhythms—specifically theta waves—in the midfrontal region during mentally demanding tasks. These neural signals coordinate dynamically, especially during moments of decision-making, allowing people to maintain focus and adapt more quickly to changing rules.

A recent study leveraged machine learning to identify the key lifestyle and health factors influencing cognitive performance throughout life.

New research reveals that autism and congenital heart disease may share a common biological basis—tiny cellular structures called cilia. Scientists found that mutations in genes affecting cilia formation disrupt both brain and heart development, helping explain why the two conditions often co-occur.

Researchers have identified a novel gene associated with neurodevelopmental disorders and epilepsy.

A first-of-its-kind clinical trial shows that ketamine treatment for severe, treatment-resistant depression is significantly more effective when paired with psychotherapy and supportive environments. Patients who underwent this combined treatment reported a 30% drop in depression symptoms, with reduced anxiety and suicidal thoughts lasting at least eight weeks.

A crucial link between the brain’s cleaning system and deterioration of neurons associated with Alzheimer’s disease has been discovered.

In a study published in Science Advances, researchers reveal that our bodies respond to acute (short‑term) and chronic (long‑lasting) pain in surprisingly different ways at the cellular level. Their discovery sheds new light on how pain becomes chronic—and opens the door to better‑targeted treatments.

A paper published in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews has found that virtual reality (VR), when used in addition to standard therapy, can help stroke survivors regain arm movement.

Researchers investigating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) at the single-cell level, aiming to understand how cellular communication may be disrupted in affected brains. They found impaired signaling in inhibitory neurons in PTSD, potentially explaining hyperarousal symptoms, and opposing patterns of microglial activity in PTSD versus depression. Vascular endothelial cells in PTSD brains also showed signs of dysfunction, possibly increasing stress hormone exposure.

A recent study shows that individual neurons in the hippocampus can respond to both slow and fast brain waves at the same time by switching between different firing modes.

For the first time, scientists using cryo-electron microscopy have discovered the structure and shape of key receptors connecting neurons in the brain’s cerebellum, which is located behind the brainstem and plays a critical role in functions such as coordinating movement, balance and cognition.

In a paper published in the journal Nature Communications, biomedical engineers have shown how two brain regions quickly adapt to shift focus from one planned destination to another.

A new neuroimaging study has identified distinct structural brain differences in individuals with psychopathy, particularly those with high antisocial traits. Reduced volumes were found in subcortical and cortical areas involved in emotion, decision-making, and social behavior.

Groundbreaking research has identified a new brain protein involved in the development of Parkinson’s disease and a way to modify it, paving the way for future treatments for the disease.

Living in disadvantaged neighborhoods may increase the risk of Alzheimer’s disease by elevating biomarkers associated with inflammation and neurodegeneration. A long-term study of 334 older adults found higher levels of tau and YKL-40, biomarkers linked to Alzheimer’s and brain inflammation, in people from less advantaged areas.

Psychosis may start not with hallucinations, but with subtle motor changes like reduced grip strength according to a new study.

In experiments with healthy volunteers undergoing functional MRI imaging, scientists have found increased activity in two areas of the brain that work together to react to, and possibly regulate, the brain when it’s “feeling” tired and either quits or continues exerting mental effort.

Finally, this week, newborn babies and patients with Alzheimer’s disease share an unexpected biological trait: elevated levels of a well-known biomarker for Alzheimer’s, as shown in a recent study.

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A new study that is the first to compare inflammation and brain stress responses in long COVID-19 patients with individuals who have fully recovered shows that those with continued brain fog and other cognitive issues have a lower ability to adapt to stress and higher levels of inflammation in their brains.

Researchers have identified a remarkably small but critical piece of genetic code that helps determine how brain cells connect, communicate, and function.

Conditions such as Tourette syndrome (TS), schizophrenia, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have sex differences with unknown mechanisms. These sex-specific mechanisms may inform the development of more effective treatments.

A new study reveals that type 2 diabetes is associated with thinning of the brain’s cortex in older adults, particularly in regions responsible for memory and cognition.

Specific cannabinoids produced by the human body may help to quell excessive fear responses in people with post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety, according to a Northwestern Medicine-led study published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

People taking antidepressants for more than two years are more likely to experience withdrawal symptoms compared to short-term users when they come off the medication, finds a new study.

Researchers have identified nine blood-based microRNAs that are elevated in teens diagnosed with depression, offering a potential biomarker for early detection. These molecules, absent in adult depression, may signal unique biological processes in adolescents.

People who have obstructive sleep apnea may have an increased risk of dementia if left untreated, according to a new study of UK electronic health care records.

New research reveals that acute stress can impair key brain functions involved in emotion regulation, particularly in individuals with distress-related disorders like depression, anxiety, and borderline personality disorder. The study found that executive functions—such as working memory, impulse control, and cognitive flexibility—are more likely to be disrupted in these individuals during high-stress moments.

A large-scale study of over 2,500 toddlers found no significant clinical differences in autistic traits between males and females at the time of early diagnosis.

A research team has uncovered the cause and molecular mechanism of chronic brain inflammation that results in repetitive behavioural disorders. The research team demonstrated that an inflammatory response by immune cells in the brain induces overactivity in certain receptors, which may, in turn, lead to the meaningless repetitive behaviours observed in people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

Measuring the interaction of brain networks could help identify teens at risk for dangerous drinking, according to a novel study that explored how brain signals relate to future drinking behaviour.

In a demographically diverse sample of healthy people, researchers found dramatic changes over the human lifespan in the brain’s “blue spot”—a tiny region involved in cognition and believed to be the first affected by neurodegenerative conditions including Alzheimer’s disease.

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have identified three types of nerve cells connected to the intestinal villi, suggesting that previously unknown neural networks regulate fluid balance in the gut.

A study in rural China found that intensively lowering blood pressure significantly reduces the risk of dementia and cognitive decline in people with hypertension. Over 48 months, patients who received targeted care saw a 15% reduction in dementia and a 16% drop in cognitive impairment risk.

A new adaptive brain modeling framework offers fresh hope for objective diagnosis of neuropsychiatric disorders, which currently lack reliable neuroimaging biomarkers.

People who naturally stay up late, are more likely to experience faster cognitive decline than those who are early risers, according to a long-term study. Researchers found that unhealthy behaviors common in the evening, such as poor sleep, smoking, and drinking, may explain part of this risk.

A comprehensive new analysis reveals that depression significantly increases the risk of developing dementia, whether it begins in midlife or later in life.

Researchers have discovered how an ion channel in the brain’s neurons has a kind of “molecular memory,” which contributes to the formation and preservation of lifelong memories. The researchers have identified a specific part of the ion channel at which new drugs for certain genetic diseases could be targeted. The study, led by Linköping University in Sweden, has been published in Nature Communications.

A decade-long brain health study has released its full dataset, offering rare longitudinal insights into how cognition and brain structure change across adulthood.

Neuroscientists have discovered that the brain uses a dual system for learning through trial and error. This is the first time a second learning system has been identified, which could help explain how habits are formed and provide a scientific basis for new strategies to address conditions related to habitual learning, such as addictions and compulsions.

Finally, this week, parental education may protect offspring’s cognitive health later in life, according to a study published online May 30 in JAMA Network Open.

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