Study by Tufts biologist provides window into progression of some degenerative diseases
...he CAG repeat also expands further in the affected brain cells of patients, which could explain why those brain cells die first. So identification of factors that limit expansion, such as these checkpoint protei...It's a no-brainer: Prepare for West Nile virus
...uromuscular complications; it's very rare for this brain infection to involve other parts of the nervous system. "It is important to keep West Nile virus in mind in the summer and early fall when faced with unexplained neurological presentations such as encephalitis and paralysis, not only to guide invest...Drug prevents chemotherapy-induced hearing loss, study finds
...h cancer in the United States, not just those with brain tumors," said study co-author Edward Neuwelt, M.D., professor of neurology and neurological surgery, OHSU School of Medicine, and the Portland Veterans Affairs Medical Center. He also directs OHSU's Blood-Brain Barrier Program. "It's a big problem." ...Long-term heart damage may result from constant confrontation and defeat
...susceptibility to psychosomatic disorders when the brain impacts on bodily functions such as cardiovascular disturbances. Social stressors have been shown to induce robust short-term activations of the sympathetic-adrenomedullary system and the pituitary-adrenocortical axis. As far as cardiovascular res...Anxiety during pregnancy affects child behavior
...may program some set point in the early developing brain of the fetus, thus enhancing the child's susceptibility for childhood disorders such as attention deficit, hyperactivity, acting-out and anxiety problems.Clearly, many questions on exactly how fetal programming works in humans, and how the timing, ki...Maternal DHA levels plays important role in infant development
...ir mothers, with DHA primarily accumulating in the brain during the third trimester. DHA is also found naturally in breast milk and has recently been added to some U.S. commercial infant formulas. Some research indicates this postnatal DHA improves vision and some cognitive functions in infants and toddle...When male fish hum, females swim in, thanks to hormones, adaptable hearing
...ir cells in the ear, in the auditory nerve, in the brain or in all three at the same time." The jump is a big one, but Sisneros said the research eventually might have human applications. For instance, he said, "previous experiments in other laboratories suggest that steroid hormones may also play a role...Hormone helps fish to mate, may affect human hearing
...s system of hormone-based prioritization helps the brain focus on the most important stimuli, at any given time, in an ever-changing environment. Perhaps something similar is at work in humans."...Carnegie Mellon neuroscientist develops tool to image brain function at the cellular level
...at strides in identifying the general areas of the brain that perform certain tasks, these methods have wor...ovel tool that can be used to visualize, in living brain tissue, a single neuron that has been activated in response to an animal's experience," Barth said. ...Acamprosate: potential medication for treating alcoholism
...sts and clinicians learn more about the changes in brain chemistry that chronic alcohol use can cause, the ... of abstinence, it takes considerable time for the brain chemistry of this system to become 'normal' again. It is thought that acamprosate helps speed this ...Mouse brain stem cells capable of converting into blood vessel cells
...15, 2004, issue of Nature. Adult stem cells in the brain were proposed to be restricted to the generation o...ve raised the possibility that stem cells from the brain may be able to give rise to additional cell types, a phenomenon known as plasticity. But recent find...Vollum scientists find new form of dopamine transmission
... novel form of transmission between neurons in the brain that is mediated by dopamine. The neurons are found in parts of the brain associated with movement, substance abuse and mental disorders. Scientists at the Vollum Institute, ...Sleepless over Seattle: Migrating songbirds forgo sleep but keep their wits
... humans. At night, when the birds were active, the brain recordings showed they were fully awake. The researchers also put the birds through tests of their learning ability. During the migration periods, the birds performed normally on little sleep, but during the times of year when they were not migrating...Comparing primate genomes offers insight into human evolution
... of these duplicated human genes are implicated in brain structure and function. Because some of these gene changes were unique to each of the species examined, they will likely account for some of the physiological and morphological characteristics that are unique to each species. One cluster of genes tha...UW study: Migrating birds offer insight into sleep
...vements. At night, when the birds were active, the brain recordings showed they were fully awake, and they did not appear to make up their lost nocturnal sleep with increased napping during the day. Cognitive tests showed that, during the migration periods, the birds performed normally -- or even improved ...Growth study of wild chimpanzees challenges assumptions about early humans
...eth mark other life events, such as completion of brain growth (90 to 95 percent of brain growth is complete when the first permanent molar erupts) and life-history stages like infancy, juve...Scientists discover key step in the development of nerve cells controlling autonomic functions
...ary for the correct development of the part of the brain that controls autonomic functions such as heart ra...ypes of nerve cells in particular locations of the brain and at particular times. "We found that specific types of hindbrain visceral motor nerve cells do n...New study in moths shows insects not entirely ruled by instinct
COLUMBUS, Ohio By examining the brain activity of moths, researchers have found that the...hat convert scent into a code that the rest of the brain can understand," Daly said. "The changes in this coding suggest that the moths learned to differenti...XsalF comes to the fore in brain regionalization
...brain at precisely those developmental stages when brain regions are specified. When members of the Sasai l... expanded expression of genes specific to anterior brain regions while suppressing the expression of more posterior markers. Onai et al. next went on to ...Brain serotonin enzyme finding might explain psychiatric disorders
...ns of that serotonin enzyme have a major effect on brain levels of the chemical messenger, which has been l...bors. Thus, serotonin levels can profoundly affect brain function, and therefore behavior. "For the first time, we've identified a naturally occurring geneti...