By Catharine Paddock, Ph.D. Fact checked by Isabel Godfrey Over the last decade, scientists have been discovering that microglia, a type of immune cell that resides in the brain, do more than respond to illness and infection. Now, new research in mice has linked the dysfunction of microglia of a particular genetic lineage to anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)....
Tag: <span>Brain Health</span>
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Phoenix-based company believes it has discovered major breakthrough in Alzheimer’s treatment
By Linda Williams | Published 8 hours ago | Special Reports | FOX 10 Phoenix PHOENIX – Alzheimer’s disease robs millions of people of their memory and their lives, and even after years of research, there’s still no cure. A Phoenix-based company thinks it may have discovered a treatment that stops, even reverses the process....
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In Alzheimer’s research, scientists reveal brain rhythm role
by Massachusetts Institute of Technology In the years since her lab discovered that exposing Alzheimer’s disease model mice to light flickering at the frequency of a key brain rhythm could stem the disorder’s pathology, MIT neuroscientist Li-Huei Tsai and her team at The Picower Institute for Learning and Memory have been working to understand what...
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More aggressive blood pressure control benefits brains of older adults
by Lauren Woods, University of Connecticut A major UConn School of Medicine study published in the American Heart Association’s flagship journal Circulation shows that more aggressively controlling daily blood pressure in older adults can improve brain health. It’s been estimated that approximately two-thirds of people over the age of 75 may have damaged small blood vessels in the brain which...
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Study Reveals Sex-Based Differences in the Development of Brain Hubs Involved in Memory and Emotion
Findings may help researchers understand why mental disorders present differently in males and females during adolescence October 2, 2019 • Press Release Researchers at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), part of the National Institutes of Health, have uncovered sex-based differences in the development of the hippocampus and amygdala. These brain areas have been implicated in the biology of several mental...
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Psychotic experiences are quite common even among people who don’t have a mental health condition
by Sophie Legge, James Walters and Stanley Zammit, The Conversation Have you ever seen or heard something that turned out not to exist? Or have you ever thought something was happening that no one else noticed—perhaps thinking you were being followed, or that something was trying to communicate with you? If so, you may have...
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Synchronized or independent neurons: This is how the brain encodes information
by International School of Advanced Studies (SISSA) “Like a book in which the single pages are not all different but carry small portions of common text, or like a group of people who whistle a very similar tune”: this is how our brain cells work, say scientists. It is the phenomenon of “co-relation,” in which...
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Eye scan sheds new light on Alzheimer’s disease
by Centre for Eye Research Australia (CERA) New research by Australian scientists has demonstrated that a quick, non-invasive eye scan can identify changes in the retina that could be used to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease. In a world-first, the team led by Associate Professor Peter van Wijngaarden and Dr. Xavier Hadoux from the Centre for Eye...
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Brain implant restores visual perception to the blind
by Elaine Schmidt, University of California, Los Angeles Seven years ago, Jason Esterhuizen was in a horrific car crash that destroyed his eyes, plunging him into total darkness. Today, he’s regained visual perception and more independence, thanks to an experimental device implanted in his brain by researchers at UCLA Health. “Now I can do things that I couldn’t do before,”...
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New uses for CBD in genetic brain disorder
By Dr. Liji Thomas, MD Cannabidiol (CBD) has been much in the news for the right reasons, as it is being found to have a host of medical applications. Now a new study shows that this marijuana extract can help people with a rare brain condition called Angelman syndrome to improve behavioral traits and to...