brain

An intriguing new study has zeroed in on a brain region that is central to the development of both alcohol abuse and anxiety in adults, and demonstrated how gene editing could be used to wipe clean a person's predisposition to both disorders. Likened to a "factory reset" for the brain, the technique is put forward as a potential way to treat conditions that can be traced back to adolescence, and offers new insights into the effects on brain health of binge drinking at a young age.The study was carried out by scientists at…

Flung into freefall for months on end, our bodies adjust in ways that makes for a long list of health concerns for space travelers.The latest evaluation of microgravity's warping effect on our biology focuses on the spaces surrounding the blood vessels that weave through our brain, revealing concerning changes that remain with astronauts between missions.  Researchers from across the US compared a series of magnetic resonance image (MRI) scans of 15 astronaut brains taken prior to a six-month stay on the International…

Scientists have identified the specific brain cells that die in Parkinson's disease and discovered what makes them so vulnerable.Led by neurobiologists Tushar Kamath and Abdulraouf Abdulraouf of the Broad Institute, the team studied brain cells from individuals who had died from either Parkinson's disease or dementia, compared with people unaffected by either disorder.  What they found was a group of cells that were "highly susceptible" to degeneration, which could be prime candidates for therapeutic intervention. The…

The human brain is said to be the most complex biological structure ever to have existed. And while science doesn't fully understand the brain yet, researchers in the expanding field of neuroscience have been making progress.Neuroscientists have made substantial inroads towards mapping the complex functions of the brain's 85 billion or so neurons and the 100 trillion connections between them. (To put this astronomical number into perspective, there are upwards of 400 billion stars in the Milky Way galaxy.)Enter Neuralink,…

Sleep – a lot like eating food – is one of those things we need to live, but seemingly there are plenty of ways to do it wrong.  A new study has weighed into the debate. Looking at UK Biobank data from almost 500,000 adults, researchers conclude that seven hours of sleep per night is the optimal amount for good mental health, wellbeing and cognitive performance, for people in their late 30s to early 70s.  "We identified a nonlinear association between sleep, with approximately seven hours as the optimal sleep duration,…

The connection between gut bacteria and human health continues to be illuminated in all kinds of ways, and among the more fascinating is the way these microbes might influence different aspects of the aging process. A study has not only highlighted new facets of this relationship, but demonstrated how hallmarks of aging in the brain, gut and eyes might even be reversed through fecal transplants. The makeup of the microbial communities in our gut is being shown to shape many different aspects of our wellbeing, and we're…

We all know that COVID-19 can lead to lingering fatigue and brain fog. But one of the most rigorous examinations to date of the long-term cognitive impacts of severe infection has just yielded some pretty unsettling results.  In a study comparing 46 severe COVID-19 patients with 460 matched controls, researchers found the mental impacts of severe COVID-19 six months later can be the equivalent to aging 20 years – going from 50 to 70 years old – or losing 10 IQ points.The specific mental changes were also distinct to…

Scientists have uncovered changes in neurological structure that could underlie the autism spectrum disorder known as Pitt Hopkins syndrome, thanks to the help of lab-grown brains developed from human cells.  Furthermore, the researchers were able to recover lost genetic functions through the use of two different gene therapy strategies – hinting at the possibility of treatments that could one day give those with the condition new options in improving their quality of life.Pitt Hopkins syndrome is a neurodevelopmental…

A region of the mouse brain, called the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, is larger in males than females. Many neurons (green) produce the estrogen receptor. A specific population of these neurons (labeled for a protein called Nfix in red) is more abundant in males than in females. CSHL Assistant Professor Jessica Tollkuhn and her team identified genes targeted by estrogen in neurons that coordinate sex differences in neural circuits. Credit: Bruno Gegenhuber/Tollkuhn lab/CSHL, 2022Sex hormones play a significant role…

Autism, a development disorder, can end up impairing a person's ability to communicate and interact. It affects the nervous system and affects cognitive, social, emotional and physical well-being of an individual. To understand the symptoms disorder in detail, a team of researchers studied lab-grown brains developed from human cells and uncovered changes in neurological structure that could be behind an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) known as Pitt-Hopkins syndrome. The team was also able to recover lost genetic functions…