Neuroscience

Physical and imagined movement through real-world environments may use the same neural mechanism in the brain, suggests a Nature Human Behaviour paper. The findings might help us to better understand human memory in real-world settings.

Poor sleep among older adults is linked to disruptions in the brain’s “waste removal system,” according to researchers at The University of Hong Kong (HKU). A recent study led by Professor Tatia M.C. Lee, Chair Professor of Psychological Science and Clinical Psychology and May Professor in Neuropsychology at HKU, offers valuable insight into how sleep quality impacts brain functioning.

A study led by University of Warwick Professor Jianfeng Feng has found that regularly sleeping too little is associated with depression and brain loss in emotion areas, while sleeping too long is associated with cognitive decline and degenerative diseases.

An abnormal form of the tau protein found to accumulate in the brains of Alzheimer’s disease patients also accumulates in the eyes of patients with the condition, according to new findings from Cedars-Sinai investigators.

Alcohol use leads to earlier brain aging and impaired behavioral flexibility, with those effects detectable even among adults in their 20s and 30s, according to an innovative study.

Several studies in the past decade have revealed that up to a quarter of unresponsive patients with recent brain injuries may possess a degree of consciousness that’s normally hidden from their families and physicians.

You’ve probably heard the phrase, “It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it,” and now, science backs it up. A first-of-its-kind study from Northwestern University’s School of Communication, the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Wisconsin-Madison reveals a region of the brain, long known for early auditory processing, plays a far greater role in interpreting speech than previously understood.

A team of researchers at the University Medical Center Schleswig-Holstein (UKSH), Kiel Campus, the Kiel University, and the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, Berlin, have developed an innovative method for real-time molecular genetic classification of brain tumors during surgery. This approach combines DNA methylation analysis with advanced machine learning technologies to provide detailed information about the tumor type during surgery.

Marijuana-like endocannabinoids produced by your own body—how do they travel through the brain? It turns out that these fatty messenger molecules are transported in fatty vesicles. This surprising discovery contrasts with how traditional messenger molecules move. Dopamine and serotonin, for instance, travel as free-floating molecules between nerve cells.

A new artificial intelligence model measures how fast a patient’s brain is aging and could be a powerful new tool for understanding, preventing and treating cognitive decline and dementia, according to USC researchers.