“A new study of researchers at IMT School for Advanced Study Lucca demonstrates for the first time that the slow waves of NREM-sleep travel and propagate in the brain through ‘anatomical highways.’ The scientists have investigated in particular the role of the corpus callosum, the bundle of nervous fibers that connects the two brain emispheres, […]
Mum's panic attacks were actually symptoms of brain tumour growing for 20 years
Back in December 2018, Catherine Wilcockson, 37, suffered a blackout, felt tired and panicked at her daughter’s nativity play. Initially, she was diagnosed with panic attacks and derealisation and prescribed antidepressants. But six months later, she discovered it was actually due to a brain tumour, which had been growing in her head for 20 years. […]
Unravelling complex brain networks with automated 3-D neural mapping
KAIST researchers developed a new algorithm for brain imaging data analysis that enables the precise and quantitative mapping of complex neural circuits onto a standardized 3-D reference atlas. Brain imaging data analysis is indispensable in the studies of neuroscience. However, analysis of obtained brain imaging data has been heavily dependent on manual processing, which cannot […]
Two-person-together MRI scans of couples reveal how the brain perceives touch
Researchers at Aalto University and Turku PET Centre have developed a new method for simultaneous imaging brain activity from two people, allowing them to study social interaction. In a recent study, the researchers scanned brain activity from 10 couples. Each couple spent 45 minutes inside the MRI scanner in physical contact with each other. The […]
Rory Cellan-Jones: Why I have decided to leave my brain to science
Why I have decided to leave my brain to science: BBC star Rory Cellan-Jones hopes his donation will help scientists beat the Parkinson’s he suffers from Parkinson’s disease is a neurological condition affecting 145,000 Britons A year after his diagnosis, Rory’s symptoms are confined to a mild shake Medication provides some relief for sufferers but […]
Could high blood pressure at night have an effect on your brain?
Most people’s blood pressure goes down during the night, which doctors call “dipping.” But for some people, especially those with high blood pressure, their nighttime pressure stays the same or even goes up, called “reverse dipping.” A new study shows that people with high blood pressure and reverse dipping may be more likely to have […]
Study establishes how cognitive intelligence is a whole brain phenomenon
An international collaborative study led by researchers from the NUI Galway provides findings on the neural basis of intelligence, otherwise known as general cognitive ability (IQ). This new research uses an imaging technique called diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) to provide an insight into how small variations in this wiring system are associated with differences in […]
How brain cells lay down infrastructure to grow and create memories
Research published today in Science Advances sheds new light on the molecular machinery that enables the shape, growth and movement of neurons. It is the first time scientists have revealed how the brain shuttles genetic code within its cells, a process believed to be crucial for the formation and storage of long-term memories. Brain cells, […]
Protein interactions and brain function
Forty years since its discovery, much remains to be discovered about an enzyme called CaMKII that plays a key role in shaping learning and memory in the brain. Now Roger Colbran, Ph.D., graduate student Tyler Perfitt and colleagues report in the Journal of Neuroscience the discovery of a novel interaction between CaMKII and a protein […]
Sensory perception is not superficial brain work
If we cross a road with our smartphone in view, a car horn or engine noise will startle us. In everyday life we can easily combine information from different senses and shift our attention from one sensory input to another—for example, from seeing to hearing. But how does the brain decide which of the two […]