Gene regulation, not just genes, is what sets humans apart
...rt from chimps and other primates those involving brains and diet gene regulation, the complex cross-talk that governs when genes are turned on and off, appears to be significantly different. Positive selection, the process by which genetic changes that aid survival and reproduction spread throughout ...Genetic variation helps to understand predisposition to schizophrenia
...e six known types of Neuregulin 1 proteins in the brains of patients with schizophrenia. The role of this protein in the brain is not completely understood but the other types of Neuregulin 1 proteins are involved in controlling how the brain develops and works in adults. In this study, Law and colleague...Role of thyroid hormones in slumber under investigation at Rutgers
...cisely how and when thyroid hormones influence the brains sleep-related structures. Findings could yield new knowledge on a previously unknown sleep-regulatory substance and potentially answer why existing sleep medications arent the cure-all for everyone. Joseph V. Martin, a professor of biology, is the...Link identified between Alzheimer's disease and glaucoma
...which causes the so-called "plaque" lesions in the brains of Alzheimer's patients, also leads to nerve cell ... build up of the beta-amyloid protein in Alzheimer brains can be used to treat glaucoma in animal models. One such drug, Bapineuzumab, is already being used i...UCF research links proteins, stem cells and potential Alzheimer's treatment
...ts. When Sugaya transplanted stem cells into the brains of Alzheimers-model mice, he found that the stem cells did not form any neurons. Sugaya found that excess amounts of the amyloid-precursor protein (APP), which produces a component of the plaques, a hallmark of Alzheimers, prevent stem cells from ...Gene predicts better outcome as cortex normalizes in teens with ADHD
...IMH). However, the areas, on the right side of the brains outer mantle, or cortex, normalized in thickness during the teen years in these children, coinciding with clinical improvement. Although this particular gene version increased risk for ADHD, it also predicted better clinical outcomes and higher IQ th...Disabling a sensory organ prompts female mice to act like male mice
...t male and female courtship behaviors exist in the brains of both sexes and are switched on or off by the chemical cues mice use to initiate sex. "The female behaves exactly like the male," said Dulac. "In the big picture, it suggests that the female brain has a perfectly functional male behavioral circuit...New study demonstrates important role of glia in circadian timing
... in close proximity to dopaminergic neurons in the brains of Drosophila. We propose that glia participate in the clock control of dopaminergic function and the orchestration of circadian activity rhythms. Glia may communicate with neurons of the circadian system and help to coordinate their outputs, which a...Reading a face is tricky business
...d on the scalps of the volunteers to monitor their brains analyses of sensory input. Volunteers evaluated 70...ituations that they perceive as threatening, their brains may still be highly attuned to subtle environmental signals of threat, Paller said. A heightened sen...Reading ability protects brain from lead exposure
... is also an indicator of cognitive reserve, or the brains ability to maintain function in spite of damage. G...eased concentration of cortical synapses in larger brains that provide more brain capacity, a greater ease of using alternative brain circuits, and the abilit...Learning to evolve: With a little help from my ancestors
.... The theory has been tested on simple models of brains called artificial neural networks, which can be made to evolve using genetic algorithms.Whilst these networks do not fly, they do learn associations, and these associations could take the form of a skill such as flying. Using computer simulations, St...Strength of connections between brain regions may affect an adolescent's response to peer influence
...measured their brain activity. They found that the brains of all children showed activity in regions important for planning and extracting information about social cues from movement, but the connectivity between these regions was stronger in children who were marked as less vulnerable to peer influence. Th...$9M grant awarded to University of Cincinnati for bipolar disorder research
...t early phases of illness. They will then view the brains physiological response to two mechanistically different, but widely used FDA-approved medications prescribed to treat bipolar disorder. More than 400 people will be recruited for this study. We think that by viewing whats happening in people very e...Learning a second language -- Is it all in your head?
...y participants right and left Heschls Gyrus on MRI brains scans, including calculations of the volume of gra...ticipants entered a sound booth after having their brains scanned. There they were trained to learn six one-syllable sounds (pesh, dree, ner, vece, nuck and f...Females more prone to brain damage from alcohol abuse
... What's more, Wiren and Hashimoto discovered, male brains respond to alcohol withdrawal much differently, in a potentially reparative manner. "What we found in males is that almost 50 percent of the (alcohol-regulated) genes are involved in the pathway for cleaning things up," Wiren said. The genes respon...Discoverer of Sly Syndrome finds way of delivering medicine to fight rare genetic disorder
...new that injections of the missing enzyme into the brains of baby mice reached their target, but similar injections into mature mice did not. As the mice grew older, the transporter that brought the enzyme past the protective blood-brain barrier was lost. We found that the right amount of epinephrine allo...Prenatal alcohol exposure alters brain activity in the frontal-striatal areas
...r - between frontal-striatal regions is altered in brains with prenatal alcohol exposure." Fryer thinks that these findings may have implications for the brains of chronic adult alcohol users. "There is research showing that individuals who have been exposed t...Eat fish -- especially if you drink high levels of alcohol
...epends on a supply of omega-3 PUFA," he said. The brains of men consuming high levels of alcohol, particularly those who regularly binge drink, are further compromised by a low intake of EFA." "In summary," said Salem, "for those who drink, especially binge drinkers or those who drink more than one drink...Steroids, not songs, spur growth of brain regions in sparrows
... that if we shape the environment we can guide the brains structure, said Brenowitz, a UW professor of psych...e forebrain and grow quickly and in sequence. The brains of the birds were examined after 7 and 30 days, and the volume of the song production areas did not ...Brain's 'hearing center' may reorganize after implant of cochlear device
...to the ear allowed the team to locate where in the brains auditory cortex various frequencies were processed and come up with a map for these tones. Their results demonstrated that in people who had cochlear implants for at least three months, normal frequency organization was somewhat restored. "Our resu...