Neuroscience News

Neuroscientists Restore Leg Movement in Nonhuman Primates

The brain-spine interface developed for this study uses a brain implant like this one to detect spiking activity in the brain’s motor cortex. Seen here, a microelectrode array and a silicon model of a primate’s brain, as well as a pulse generator used to stimulate electrodes implanted on the spinal cord. Image credit: Alain Herzog / EPFL.
Nov 10, 2016 by News Staff

A collaboration of neuroscientists from the United States, China and Europe has used a wireless ‘brain-spine interface’ to bypass spinal cord injuries in rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta), restoring intentional walking movement to a temporarily paralyzed leg. Conceptual and technological design of the brain-spine interface: rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) were implanted with a microelectrode array into the leg area of the left motor cortex; during...

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In the study, whole-brain degree count maps, collected before the start of treatment, were used to identify potential brain regional markers for placebo propensity. Group differences in whole-brain maps for degree count (number of connections of any location to the rest of the brain) between placebo responders and non-responders identified four brain regions that differentiated placebo responders from non-responders. The highest significant difference was seen for the right midfrontal gyrus. Abbreviations: r-MFG - right midfrontal gyrus; ACC - anterior cingulate cortex; PCC - posterior cingulate cortex; r-S2/M1 - right secondary somatosensory and primary motor cortex. Image credit: Tétreault P. et al.

New Study Spotlights Brain Region Responsible for Placebo Response in Pain

Oct 31, 2016 by News Staff

A Northwestern University-led team of researchers has identified a region in the brain responsible for the ‘placebo effect’ in pain relief, when a...

Astrocyte cell. Image credit: Gerry Shaw / CC BY-SA 3.0.

Glial Cells Play Critical Role in Control of Appetite, Study Shows

Oct 28, 2016 by News Staff

Glial cells – non-neuronal brain cells that provide structural, nutritional and other supports to the brain — play a critical role in controlling...

Reduction in sensitivity to dishonesty over time. Image credit: Neil Garrett et al.

Study Examines How Human Brain Adapts to Self-Serving Dishonesty

Oct 25, 2016 by News Staff

A study led by University College London researchers Neil Garrett and Tali Sharot provides the first empirical evidence that self-serving lies gradually...

Altered microRNAs in anxiety and metabolic disorders. Image credit: Chanan Meydan et al, doi: 10.1016/j.molmed.2016.07.001.

Scientists Find Molecular Link between Anxiety and Metabolic Disorders

Oct 12, 2016 by News Staff

Scientists in Israel have identified molecular elements that bridge anxiety and metabolism — a type of microRNA that influences shared biological...

Drink water according to thirst rather than a schedule, researchers recommend. Image credit: Photoshot.

New Study Challenges Popular Idea of Mandatory Water Intake

Oct 11, 2016 by News Staff

A study published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences challenges the popular idea that we should drink 8 glasses of water...

This image shows thirst neurons (blue) in mouse SCN. Image credit: C. Gizowski et al / McGill University.

Study Says Biological Clock Stimulates Thirst before Sleep

Sep 29, 2016 by News Staff

According to a study in rodents led by Prof. Charles Bourque of McGill University, the brain’s biological clock stimulates thirst in the hours before...

Oxytocin supports spirituality. Image credit: Duke University.

Research: Oxytocin Enhances Spirituality

Sep 27, 2016 by News Staff

Oxytocin – a polypeptide hormone produced mainly by the hypothalamus and stored in the pituitary gland – gives greater sense of spirituality...

Transmission electron micrographs of brain thin sections, identifying two distinct types of magnetite morphologies: rounded particles (left) and angular particles (right). Image credit: Barbara A. Maher et al, doi: 10.1073/pnas.1605941113.

Pollution-Derived Magnetic Particles Detected in Human Brain

Sep 6, 2016 by News Staff

Anthropogenic (combustion-derived) nanoparticles of magnetite, a strongly magnetic mineral, have been discovered to be lodged in human brains — and...

Normal anatomy of the human eye and orbit, anterior view. Image credit: Patrick J. Lynch / CC BY 2.5.

Researchers Discover New Type of Eye Movement

Aug 23, 2016 by News Staff

A team of scientists at the University of Tübingen in Germany has discovered a new type of eye movement that is synchronized with blinking. Normal anatomy...

An ‘out of body experience’ could help people suffering from chronic pain.

‘Out of Body Experience’ Can Tackle Chronic Pain, Research Shows

Aug 11, 2016 by News Staff

A new study published in the European Journal of Pain shows that inducing a virtual ‘out of body experience’ can significantly reduce the intensity...

Matthew Glasser et al. discovered that our brain’s cortex is composed of 180 distinct areas per hemisphere. For example, the image above shows areas connected to the three main senses -- hearing (red), touch (green), vision (blue) and opposing cognitive systems (light and dark). Image credit: Matthew Glasser / David Van Essen.

Neuroscientists Release New Map of Human Cortex

Jul 21, 2016 by News Staff

An international team of neuroscientists from the United States and Europe has mapped 180 distinct areas, including 97 that were previously unknown, in...

New study suggests an intriguing strategy to boost memory for what you’ve just learned: hit the gym 4 hrs later. Image credit: Skeeze.

Physical Exercise Four Hours after Learning Improves Long-Term Memory, Study Shows

Jun 17, 2016 by News Staff

A new study in the journal Current Biology shows that physical exercise after learning improves memory and memory traces, but only if the exercise is done...

Scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, build a semantic atlas to chart how the brain responds to language. Image credit: University of California, Berkeley.

Researchers Create Detailed ‘Semantic Atlas’ of the Mind

Apr 29, 2016 by News Staff

A team of neuroscientists and psychologists at the University of California, Berkeley, has created a detailed ‘semantic atlas’ showing which human...

An anatomical illustration from Sobotta's Human Anatomy, 1908, shows the structure of a human brain. Image credit: Dr Johannes Sobotta.

Scientists Identify Brain Circuit that Controls Binge Drinking

Apr 28, 2016 by News Staff

A team of scientists led by Dr. Todd Thiele from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has identified a circuit between two brain regions that...

A woman wearing an EEG headset. Image credit: Jonathan Cohen / Binghamton University.

Neuroscientists Can Identify You by Your ‘Brainprint’ with 100% Accuracy

Apr 20, 2016 by News Staff

A novel technology being developed by a team of researchers at Binghamton University has delivered outstanding results over the ability to identify persons...

Top image: filtered signals recorded in the two brain regions identify the almost perfect synchronization between the two regions during the expression of fear memories. Bottom image: spectral decomposition of the brain signals allows researchers to identify the frequency and power of neuronal rhythmic oscillations during fear behavior. Image credit: Nikolaos Karalis et al.

Neuroscientists: Specific Brain Waves Synchronize Brain Regions During Fear Behavior

Feb 23, 2016 by News Staff

A new study led by Nikolaos Karalis of the Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München and Dr. Cyril Herry of the Neurocentre Magendie has shed light on what...

Lonchura striata. Image credit: Thimindu Goonatillake / CC BY-SA 2.0.

Songbirds Sing Like Humans, Researchers Say

Jan 12, 2016 by News Staff

Vocal muscles of songbirds work like those of human speakers and singers, according to Emory University scientist Dr Samuel Sober and his colleagues from...

Heatmap of gradient of expression of M1 and M3 spanning fetal development to late adulthood and in topographically distinct cortical regions: A1C - auditory cortex; AMY - amygdala; CBC - cerebellar cortex; DFC - dorsolateral prefrontal cortex; HIP - hippocampus; IPC - posterior inferior parietal cortex; ITC - inferior temporal cortex; M1C - primary motor cortex; MD - mediodorsal nucleus of thalamus; MFC - medial prefrontal cortex; OFC - orbital prefrontal cortex; S1C - primary somatosensory cortex; STC - superior temporal cortex; STR - striatum; V1C - primary visual cortex; VFC - ventrolateral prefrontal cortex. Image credit: Michael R. Johnson et al, doi: 10.1038/nn.4205.

Researchers Identify Intelligence Gene Networks

Dec 22, 2015 by News Staff

A group of scientists led by Imperial College London researcher Michael Johnson has identified two ‘gene networks’ associated with human cognitive...

Simulation of electrical activity in a virtual brain slice formed from seven unitary digital reconstructions of neocortical microcircuits. Image credit: BBP / EPFL.

Scientists Digitally Reconstruct Section of Rat Brain

Oct 12, 2015 by News Staff

A large international team of researchers from the Blue Brain Project has digitally reconstructed and simulated a slice of a juvenile rat’s neocortex,...

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