by Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Credit: CC0 Public Domain Scientists have long known that cocaine works by latching on to molecular connectors on the surface of brain cells, allowing dopamine, a chemical that promotes feelings of pleasure and reward, to accumulate in the space between brain cells. Now, Johns Hopkins Medicine scientists say...
By turning off a single gene, University of Virginia researchers and their collaborators caused stem cells already becoming heart cells to change course and become future brain cells. And that could help scientists understand how specific genes affect the development of your body and the role they play in developmental diseases, potentially leading to new...
by Bob Yirka, Medical Xpress Quantification of DA subtype vulnerability to PD-associated degeneration. a, Volcano plot showing OR and FDR computed by MASC (Methods) for each of the 68 clusters identified in SNpc snRNA-seq analysis. Labeled clusters are those significantly (FDR-adjusted P < 0.05) increased or depleted in association with PD/LBD. Points and text are colored by major...
TUFTS UNIVERSITY IMAGE: RESEARCHERS AT TUFTS UNIVERSITY HAVE DISCOVERED ELECTRICAL ACTIVITY OF ASTROCYTES IN THE BRAIN. CREDIT: ILLUSTRATOR: SIENA FRIED FOR TUFTS UNIVERSITY Researchers at Tufts University School of Medicine have discovered a previously unknown function performed by a type of cell that comprises nearly half of all cells in the brain. The scientists say this discovery...
by Columbia University A mouse hippocampus showing the nuclei of neurons (blue) and RNA (red) derived from the Pdz8 gene that researchers used to investigate the role of intracellular calcium in learning. Credit: Stephanie Herrlinger/Columbia’s Zuckerman Institute Scientists have long known that learning requires the flow of calcium into and out of brain cells. But...
by UT Southwestern Medical Center Stem-like cells (red) are generated from adult brain astrocytes. Credit: UT Southwestern Medical Center A single protein can reverse the developmental clock on adult brain cells called astrocytes, morphing them into stem-like cells that produce neurons and other cell types, UT Southwestern researchers report in a PNAS study. The findings might someday lead...
By Tino Delamerced March 7, 2022 ADOBE Ascientist opens a laptop in front of a patient. On screen, a boy, tied to a fleet of balloons, fades in. As he rises into the air, the scene cuts abruptly to an office, where a man sits in front of his boss. A question then appears: “Was anyone...
MEDICAL COLLEGE OF GEORGIA AT AUGUSTA UNIVERSITY IMAGE: DRS. KATHRYN BOLLINGER (LEFT) AND SYLVIA SMITH CREDIT: MICHAEL HOLAHAN, AUGUSTA UNIVERSITY AUGUSTA, Ga. (March 1, 2022) — A ubiquitous protein called sigma 1 receptor, which is known to protect cells from stress, appears key to the function and survival of the neurons most impacted by glaucoma, scientists...
by University College London Graphic illustration of magnetomechanical stimulation. Credit: Yichao Yu and Mark Lythgoe at UCL Scientists at UCL have developed a new technique that uses microscopic magnetic particles to remotely activate brain cells; researchers say the discovery in rats could potentially lead to the development of a new class of non-invasive therapies for...
by Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Astrocytes (meaning ‘star-cells’) have a unique morphology. While the internal structure is star-like, tiny protrusions of the cell form a cloud-like region that surround all nearby synapses – the junctions where different neurons meet and communicate. In mice, astrocytes are estimated to be in contact with, and take...
