Weekly Neuroscience Update

September 21, 2018September 20, 2018Leave a comment

Mood is represented across multiple sites in the brain rather than localized regions, which makes decoding them a computational challenge, according to a USC expert. NeuroscienceNews.com image is credited to Sani et. al., Nature Biotechnology.

Researchers have built a decoder which is able to translate neural signals into mood variations.

How and why human-unique characteristics such as highly social behavior, languages and complex culture have evolved is a long-standing question. A research team led by Tohoku University in Japan has revealed the evolution of a gene related to such human-unique psychiatric traits.

A new study reports mast cells play a key role in determining sex differences in the developing brain.

An inhaled form of a high blood pressure medication has potential to treat certain types of anxiety as well as pain, according to a new study by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH).

Functional connectivity within a specific neural network helps dampen a newborn’s brain activity in response to pain, researchers report.

A new blood test can help identify your body’s precise internal time clock in relation to external time. Researchers say the test could help examine the impact of misaligned circadian clocks in a wide range of diseases.

Researchers report a neural network called the isthmic system helps us to select visual objects that catch our attention.

According to researchers, drumming for an hour a week helps improve learning at school for children on the autism spectrum. The study reports drumming not only improves dexterity, rhythm and timing for those with ASD, it also helps improve concentration and enhances communication with peers.

A new study reports those with ADHD are at an increased risk of developing Parkinson’s disease.

In one of the biggest breakthroughs in schizophrenia research in recent times, Professor Cynthia Shannon Weickert from Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA) and UNSW Sydney has identified immune cells in greater amounts in the brains of some people with schizophrenia.

Finally this week, esearchers are looking at what happens in the brain when we make snap decisions under stress.

Weekly Neuroscience Update

September 14, 2018September 14, 2018Leave a comment

confirmation-bias-dots-neurosciencneews (1).jpg

This visual abstract depicts findings that people show confirmation bias even about which way dots are moving. Image is credited to Prat-Ortega & de la Rocha, Current Biology.

A new study reports people use confirmation bias, even when a decision they make has little to no consequence.

Analysis of data captured during a long-term study of aging adults shows that those who report being very sleepy during the day were nearly three times more likely than those who didn’t to have brain deposits of beta amyloid, a protein that’s a hallmark for Alzheimer’s disease, years later.

Researchers have created a computational model that helps explain how mental images drawn from memory can be explained by the firing of specific neurons.

According to a new study, probiotics may not be as effective as most believe. Researchers report many people’s digestive tracts prevent standard probiotics from successfully colonizing them.

A team of researchers has analysed what happens in the brain when humans want to voluntarily forget something.

Whether an individual develops a neurodevelopmental disorder like autism or ADHD and the severity of that disorder depends on genetic changes beyond a single supposedly disease-causing mutation. A new study led by researchers at Penn State reveals that the total amount of rare mutations — deletions, duplications, or other changes to the DNA sequence — in a person’s genome can explain why individuals with a disease-associated mutation can have vastly different symptoms. A paper describing the study appeared today in the journal Genetics in Medicine.

New research has shed new light on genetic processes that may one day lead to the development of therapies that can slow, or even reverse, how our cells age.

Researchers have identified a new neural mechanism that contributes to long term stress and PTSD. The study reports the mechanism is mediated by brain fluid in areas associated with stress response.

Finally this week, is the popular claim that the brain feels no pain substantiated? A new paper looks at the accuracy of the belief.

Weekly Neuroscience Update

September 7, 2018Leave a comment

Image Credit: Kolbjørn Skarpnes & Rita Elmkvist Nilsen / NTNU Communication Division & Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience

Researchers at the Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience in Norway in have discovered a network of brain cells that express our sense of time within experiences and memories.

A new study reports a strong hand grip is correlated with better visual memory and reaction times in people with psychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia.

Dr Max Ortiz Catalan of Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, has developed a new theory for the origin of the mysterious condition, ‘phantom limb pain’. Published in the journal Frontiers in Neurology, his hypothesis builds upon his previous work on a revolutionary treatment for the condition, that uses machine learning and augmented reality.

Researchers report ADHD and conduct disorder exhibit similar, overlapping changes in the brain.

A new study in SLEEP, published by Oxford University Press, indicates that delaying school start times results in students getting more sleep, and feeling better, even within societies where trading sleep for academic success is common.

Scientists have identified a group of blood metabolites that could help detect some children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

Researchers report the adverse cognitive effects associated with DBS in Pakinson’s patients are linked to a different neural pathway than the one responsible for the motor effects generated by the treatment.

According to a new study, people who have suffered a stroke are twice as likely to develop dementia.

Researchers have developed a new deep learning neural network that can identify speech patterns indicative of depression from audio data. The algorithm is 77% effective at detecting depression.

Finally this week, a new study reports genetic factors count for about 70% of stable academic achievement throughout schooling.

Weekly Neuroscience Update

August 24, 2018August 24, 2018Leave a comment

Where objects appear in a person’s visual field can affect the ability to determine what the object is, researchers say.

Scientists have identified the brain networks that allow you to think of an object name and then verbalize that thought. The study appeared in the July issue of BRAIN. It represents a significant advance in the understanding of how the brain connects meaning to words and will help with the planning of brain surgeries.

New research suggests that shifts in the bacteria within a child’s mouth could provide objective biomarkers for identifying autism spectrum disorder.

Researchers studying the functional connections among parts of the brain are finding that the “fingerprint” of these patterns can be used to identify individuals over many years and to distinguish their relatives from strangers.

Breaking with the long-held idea that working memory has fixed limits, a new study suggests that these limits adapt themselves to the task that one is performing.

Young children who are regularly engaged in conversation by adults may have stronger connections between two developing brain regions critical for language, according to a study of healthy young children that confirms a hypothesis registered with the Open Science Framework.

A new study reports estrogen and other sex hormones may be responsible for the higher prevalence of migraines in women.

New therapies could be on the horizon for people living with epilepsy or anxiety, thanks to a breakthrough discovery by an international team of researchers studying how proteins interact to control the firing of brain cells.

Researchers report the interaction between two regions of the prefrontal cortex may underlie our motivation to cling to a desirable notion about the future.

A new study sheds light on the role the caudate nucleus plays in pessimism. The study reports stimulating this area of the brain generates a negative outlook that clouds decision making.

Exercise can help prevent relapses into cocaine addiction, according to new research.

A new study reveals a short time meditating can help to boost cognitive performance. Researchers report students exposed to a ten-minute meditation tape were able to complete simple cognitive tasks more quickly and accurately than their peers.

Researchers report transcranial alternating current stimulation applied during sleep can help accelerate learning, memory and skill acquisition.

Heavy alcohol drinkers attempt to acquire alcohol despite the threat of a negative consequence more so than light drinkers, a study in Biological Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging has found, and this behavior is associated with unique activation of brain circuitry in heavy drinkers.

Finally this week, new neuroimaging study reveals the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex plays a vital role in suppressing the act of revenge.

Weekly Neuroscience Update

August 17, 2018Leave a comment

Trained pianists have higher levels of brain wave synchronization when improvising pieces of music, a new study reveals.

Researchers have created a silicon mesh that can be crafted to help stimulate neurons, limbs and tissue.

Using a new advanced imaging technology, scientists have captured new patterns of molecular organization as connections between neurons strengthen during learning tasks.

A new study reports a strong hand grip is correlated with better visual memory and reaction times in people with psychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia.

Children and adults diagnosed with brain conditions such as cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis and dementia may be one step closer to obtaining new treatments that could help to restore normal function. Researchers have identified a molecule in white matter that prevents the brain from repairing itself following injury. By blocking the production of the molecule, researchers say it may allow an effective pathway for neuroregeneration.

A new study reveals both genetics and environment play a role in shaping brain connectivity.

A new mechanism regulating the early development of connections between the two sides of the nervous system has been identified in a paper published in eNeuro. The work demonstrates that neuronal activity is required for this process, a finding that may provide new insight into brain connectivity disorders such as autism.

Finally this week, a new Nature Communications study reveals 80 newly identified genes that may be linked to an increased risk of developing major depressive disorder.

Weekly Neuroscience Update

August 17, 2018Leave a comment

Trained pianists have higher levels of brain wave synchronization when improvising pieces of music, a new study reveals.

Researchers have created a silicon mesh that can be crafted to help stimulate neurons, limbs and tissue.

Using a new advanced imaging technology, scientists have captured new patterns of molecular organization as connections between neurons strengthen during learning tasks.

A new study reports a strong hand grip is correlated with better visual memory and reaction times in people with psychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia.

A new study reveals both genetics and environment play a role in shaping brain connectivity.

Finally this week, a new Nature Communications study reveals 80 newly identified genes that may be linked to an increased risk of developing major depressive disorder.

Weekly Neuroscience Update

August 11, 2018August 11, 2018Leave a comment

University of Chichester psychologists have studied prospective memory to accurately diagnose diseases of cognitive impairment. Image: University of Chichester.

Researchers say acting out scenarios may help to improve prospective memory. Poor prospective memory, researchers report, may be an early indicator of Alzheimer’s disease.

A new study using machine learning has identified brain-based dimensions of mental health disorders, an advance towards much-needed biomarkers to more accurately diagnose and treat patients.

A new report examines the effect stress can have on our bodies and general health.

Structural differences in the cerebellum may be linked to some aspects of autism spectrum disorder, according to a neuroimaging study from Columbia University Irving Medical Center (CUIMC).

A new study reports your body fat could be a predictor of cognitive decline.

Researchers report blind people need additional timing cues to accurately judge relative locations of sounds, but those without visual impairments who were blindfolded could judge the relative location of sounds independently from timing cues.

Finally this week, researchers report transcranial alternating current stimulation applied during sleep can help accelerate learning, memory and skill acquisition.

Weekly Neuroscience Update

May 4, 2018May 4, 2018Leave a comment

Trained pianists have higher levels of brain wave synchronization when improvising pieces of music, a new study reveals.

Researchers have created a silicon mesh that can be crafted to help stimulate neurons, limbs and tissue.

Using a new advanced imaging technology, scientists have captured new patterns of molecular organization as connections between neurons strengthen during learning tasks.

A new study reports a strong hand grip is correlated with better visual memory and reaction times in people with psychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia.

A new study reveals both genetics and environment play a role in shaping brain connectivity.

Finally this week, a new Nature Communications study reveals 80 newly identified genes that may be linked to an increased risk of developing major depressive disorder.

Weekly Neuroscience Update

April 21, 2018April 21, 2018Leave a comment

A new study reports people who sit down too much during middle to older age show signs of thinning in the medial temporal cortex, an area of the brain associated with the formation of new memories.

Researchers explore the neuroscience behind binge eating and the triggers that might make us reach for comfort foods.

According to a new study, children with executive function deficits were more likely to show physical and reactive aggression later in life. Researchers suggest helping children to improve executive function could help to reduce aggression levels.

Olfactory system neurons appear to play a role in the connection between rhythmic breathing and emotional regulation, researchers report.

Researchers report newly identified risk factors differ from currently known genetic causes of autism. The variants identified do not alter the genes directly, but disrupt the neighboring DNA control elements that turn genes on or off. Additionally, the variants do not occur as new mutations in autistic children, but are inherited from parents.

A new study reveals we quickly process opinions we agree with as facts, even if the opinion is non-factual.

New research implicates the hippocampus in conceptual memory formation. The study reveals activity within the hippocampus and ventromedial prefrontal cortex is consistent with the retrieval of new concepts.

Researchers report the later a women enters into natural menopause, the better, on average, her verbal memory is later in life.

A new study adds to growing evidence that early exposure to pollution can increase both suicide risks in younger people and Alzheimer’s disease as people age.

Finally this week, new research reveals specific parts of the hippocampus may play a key role in emotional regulation.

Weekly Neuroscience Update

February 17, 2018February 17, 2018Leave a comment

Neurons store and transmit information in the brain.Credit: CNRI/SPL

Superconducting computing chips modeled after neurons can process information faster and more efficiently than the human brain.

New research published in JAMA Neurology suggests that those people whose memory is intact and who do not show any signs of Alzheimer’s can have disrupted circadian rhythms — which may be a very early sign of Alzheimer’s.

Stimulating specific regions of the brain can help to improve memory and word recall in those with severe epilepsy, a new Nature Communications study reports.

Gene therapies promise to revolutionize the treatment of many diseases, including neurological diseases such as ALS. But the small viruses that deliver therapeutic genes can have adverse side effects at high doses. Researchers have now found a structure on these viruses that makes them better at crossing from the bloodstream into the brain – a key factor for administering gene therapies at lower doses for treating brain and spinal disorders.

Researchers discover the activity of 80 percent of genes follow a day/night rhythm in many tissue types and brain regions.

Aging or impaired brains can once again form lasting memories if an enzyme that applies the brakes too hard on a key gene is lifted, according to University of California, Irvine neurobiologists.

Researchers have implicated mossy cells in both seizures and memory problems in those with temporal lobe epilepsy.

Increasing evidence has linked autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with dysfunction of the brain’s cerebellum, but the details have been unclear. In a new study, researchers at Boston Children’s Hospital used stem cell technology to create cerebellar cells known as Purkinje cells from patients with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC), a genetic syndrome that often includes ASD-like features. In the lab, the cells showed several characteristics that may help explain how ASD develops at the molecular level.

Finally this week, neuroscientists have discovered how the brain can determine an object’s value almost as soon as we see it.