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Neuroscience news

Neuroscience

Open-source software reveals complete 3D architecture of brain cells

The neurons in our brain that underlie thought connect to each other using tiny branch-like structures on their surfaces known as dendritic spines. Now scientists at Columbia's Zuckerman Institute and their colleagues have ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes

The hidden life of pericytes: Understanding how cerebral malaria breaks the blood-brain barrier

Researchers have built a 3D human blood-brain barrier in the lab and discovered a key role of brain pericytes in cerebral malaria disease

Neuroscience

Scientists find ways to boost memory in aging brains

Memory loss may not simply be a symptom of getting older. New research from Virginia Tech shows that it's tied to specific molecular changes in the brain and that adjusting those processes can improve memory.

Neuroscience

When we dream, does our brain wake up?

An international consortium of researchers has created the largest-ever database compiling records of brain activity during sleep and dream reports. One of the first analyses of the database confirmed that dreams do not occur ...

Neuroscience

Apitegromab improves motor function in spinal muscular atrophy

For patients with nonambulatory type 2 or type 3 spinal muscular atrophy, apitegromab, a monoclonal antibody that inhibits myostatin activation, improves motor function versus placebo, according to a study published online ...

Psychology & Psychiatry

How—and when—emotional responses to music influence memory

Listening to music while doing something can make that activity more enjoyable. But listening to music after an experience or activity can make it more memorable if you have the optimal emotional response while listening ...

Genetics

A new genetic link to pain provides a promising drug target

Chronic pain is life-changing and considered one of the leading causes of disability worldwide, making daily life difficult for millions of people around the world, and exacerbating personal and economic burdens. Despite ...

Psychology & Psychiatry

First mechanism for cognitive disorders in schizophrenia found

Schizophrenia is a debilitating mental disorder affecting around 1% of the population worldwide, and is notoriously difficult to treat. Current medications for schizophrenia can ameliorate positive symptoms, such as hallucinations ...

Medical research

CaMKIIα redox mechanism revealed as key to learning and memory

A research team led by Prof. Chen Chang from the Institute of Biophysics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, in collaboration with Prof. Huang Zhangjian of China Pharmaceutical University, has uncovered a previously unknown ...

Neuroscience

What happens in the brain when it learns something new

Memories of significant learning experiences—like the first time a driver gets a speeding ticket—are sharp, compared to the recollection of everyday events—like what someone ate for dinner two weeks ago. That's because ...

Neuroscience

Researchers reverse autism symptoms in mice with epilepsy drugs

Stanford Medicine scientists investigating the neurological underpinnings of autism spectrum disorder have found that hyperactivity in a specific brain region could drive behaviors commonly associated with the disorder.

Psychology & Psychiatry

Changing how we understand, and potentially treat, misophonia

Throughout her career, Laurie Heller has listened closely—not just to words, but to sound itself. In the Auditory Lab at Carnegie Mellon University, the psychology professor explores how the brain interprets everything ...

Oncology & Cancer

Blocking brain damage may slow glioblastoma growth

Blocking brain damage triggered by a glioblastoma, an aggressive brain cancer, may slow the growth of the cancer and allow the brain to keep working better for longer, according to a new study led by UCL (University College ...

Psychology & Psychiatry

Study explores impacts of acute and chronic stress on mental health

It is well established that stress can increase susceptibility to various neuropsychiatric disorders, such as depression and anxiety, which are highly prevalent worldwide and represent a significant economic burden and public ...