Neuroscience News

Brain’s Functional Geometry Encodes Dimensions of Consciousness, Neuroscientists Say

Huang et al. showed that the brain’s functional geometry (e.g., network distance in the gradient space) and temporal dynamics (e.g., occurrence rates of co-activation patterns) covary with the state of consciousness. Image credit: Gerd Altmann.
Jan 12, 2023 by News Staff

Consciousness is a multidimensional phenomenon, but key dimensions such as awareness and wakefulness have been described conceptually rather than neurobiologically. Scientists at the University of Michigan Medical School hypothesized that dimensions of consciousness are encoded in multiple neurofunctional dimensions of the brain. Huang et al. showed that the brain’s functional geometry (e.g., network distance in the gradient space) and temporal...

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Naqvi et al. recently developed a data-driven approach to phenotyping complex, multidimensional traits; this multivariate approach, when applied to facial surface images, revealed numerous genomic loci with no previously known role in human face shape variation; in the new study, the team implemented this approach to discover associations between common genetic variants and brain shape, using MRI data from middle-aged participants in the UK Biobank. Image credit: Gerd Altmann.

Study: Voice and Face Recognition are Linked More Intimately than Previously Thought

Jan 3, 2023 by News Staff

In the study, five epilepsy surgery patients were presented with images of famous speakers (U.S. presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush, and Bill Clinton)...

Network modeling of fluid intelligence. Image credit: Cipolotti et al., doi: 10.1093/brain/awac304.

Neuroscientists Identify Brain Regions Necessary for Fluid Intelligence

Jan 3, 2023 by News Staff

Fluid intelligence is arguably the defining feature of human cognition. It predicts educational and professional success, social mobility, health, and...

Allen et al. developed a new predictive coding model of respiratory brain coupling, in which breathing rhythmically modulates both local and global neural gain. Image credit: Gerd Altmann / Clker Vector Images / Sci.News.

Breathing Impacts Our Emotions, Attention and Cognition, Scientists Say

Nov 9, 2022 by News Staff

A new review of more than a dozen previous studies with rodent, monkey, and human brain imaging demonstrates that the act of breathing exerts a substantive,...

Christian Matthias Kerskens & David López Pérez believe our brains could use quantum computation. Image credit: Gerd Altmann.

Neuroscientists May Have Found Signs of Quantum Processes in Human Brain

Oct 20, 2022 by News Staff

Scientists at the Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience say they may have witnessed entanglement mediated by consciousness-related brain functions. Christian...

Abidemi Otaiku suggests nightmares may become prevalent several years or even decades before the characteristic memory and thinking problems of dementia set in. Image credit: Bingo Naranjo.

Study: Distressing Dreams Predict Cognitive Decline and Dementia in Middle-Aged and Older Adults

Sep 22, 2022 by News Staff

Adults who report having nightmares during middle and older age may experience accelerated cognitive decline and are at increased risk of developing dementia,...

Vocal learning is thought to have evolved in three orders of birds (songbirds, parrots, and hummingbirds), with each showing similar brain regions that have comparable gene expression specializations relative to the surrounding forebrain motor circuitry; Schuppe et al. searched for signatures of these same gene expression specializations in previously uncharacterized brains of seven assumed vocal non-learning bird lineages across the early branches of the avian family tree. Image credit: Premek Hajek.

Study: Woodpecker Drumming is Neurologically Similar to Songbird Vocalization

Sep 20, 2022 by News Staff

A team of scientists from the United States and Denmark has found specialized pecking-related regions in the woodpecker forebrain that show characteristics...

van der Meulen et al. show that both systemic and inhaled glucocorticoid use are associated with an apparently widespread reduction in white matter integrity, which may in part underly the neuropsychiatric side effects observed in patients using glucocorticoids. Image credit: Steve Buissinne.

Glucocorticoid Use Associated with Structural and Volume Changes in White and Gray Matter

Sep 1, 2022 by News Staff

New research from the Leiden University Medical Center shows that both systemic and inhaled glucocorticoids — a class of synthetic steroids —...

Characterization of human accumbens electrophysiological signal provoked by exposure to preferred food stimuli: (a) schematic of the multi-stage, staggered enrollment, early feasibility study design; the current stage of each participant within the trial is highlighted (blue - subject 1; green - subject 2); (b) two quadripolar depth electrodes placed bilaterally in the nucleus accumbens; (c) the multi-item buffet of preferred foods allowing us to examine nucleus accumbens electrophysiology during LOC eating as well as the preceding in-lab standardized meals. Image credit: Shivacharan et al., doi: 10.1038/s41591-022-01941-w.

Deep Brain Stimulation May Help Treat Binge-Eating Disorder

Aug 30, 2022 by News Staff

In a pilot study led by Pennsylvania Hospital and the Stanford University School of Medicine, deep brain stimulation — guided by patterns of neural...

Dhoundiyal et al. discovered that neurons have an emergency back-up system to enable them to remain functional even when their energy supply is disrupted. Image credit: Colin Behrens.

Neurons Have Emergency Back-Up System, Neuroscientists Say

Aug 29, 2022 by News Staff

The newly-discovered neuronal back-up system safeguards metabolic flexibility of neurons to cope with energy demands of electrical signaling, according...

Yuta Senzai & Massimo Scanziani discovered that the direction and amplitude of rapid eye movements during REM sleep reveal the direction and amplitude of the ongoing changes in virtual head direction. Image credit: Yuta Senzai & Massimo Scanziani, doi: 10.1126/science.abp8852.

Study: Rapid Eye Movements during REM Sleep Mimic Gazes in Dream World

Aug 26, 2022 by News Staff

Sleep includes phases characterized by rapid eye movement (REM) that were known to be associated with dreaming. But are these eye movements related to...

Inadequate sleep represents a significant influential force determining whether humans choose to help one another, observable across micro- and macroscopic levels of civilized interaction. Image credit: Sasin Tipchai.

Inadequate Sleep Makes Us Less Generous, New Study Shows

Aug 25, 2022 by News Staff

New research by University of California, Berkeley scientists shows that a lack of sleep impairs our basic social conscience, making us withdraw our desire...

Ultrasound exposure improved depressive-like behavior in olfactory bulbectomized rats and reduced their plasma corticosterone levels. Image credit: Mary Theresa McLean.

Ultrasound Exposure Improves Depressive-Like Behavior in Rats, New Study Shows

Aug 16, 2022 by Enrico de Lazaro

Scientists from the Tokyo University of Science and FUJIMIC, Inc. have investigated the effects of ultrasound exposure in olfactory bulbectomized rats...

Moncrieff et al. suggest that depression is not likely caused by a chemical imbalance, and call into question what antidepressants do. Image credit: Chenspec.

Serotonin Theory of Depression Debunked

Jul 21, 2022 by News Staff

In a systematic umbrella review of previous relevant studies, a team of scientists from the United Kingdom, Switzerland and Italy synthesized and evaluated...

The language network in native speakers of diverse languages. Image credit: Malik-Moraleda et al., doi: 10.1038/s41593-022-01114-5.

New Study Across 45 Languages Reveals Universal Language Network

Jul 19, 2022 by News Staff

In a large-scale functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study, neuroscientists from MIT and Harvard University evaluated the claim of language universality...

Zhou et al. discovered sound reduces pain in mice by lowering the activity of neurons in the brain’s auditory cortex (green and magenta) that project to the thalamus. Image credit: Wenjie Zhou.

Scientists Identify Neural Mechanisms Through Which Sound Induces Analgesia in Mice

Jul 8, 2022 by News Staff

Sound, including music and noise, can relieve pain in humans, but the underlying neural mechanisms are unknown. In new research, scientists from the United...

Petrosino et al. corroborate the hypothesis that LINE elements might be active and functionally important in the central nervous system of highly intelligent organisms such as octopuses. Image credit: Albert Kok / CC BY-SA 3.0.

Study: Same ‘Jumping Genes’ are Active in Octopus and Human Brains

Jun 28, 2022 by News Staff

‘Jumping genes,’ also known as transposons or transposable elements, widely contribute to the evolution of genomes allowing genomic innovations. These...

Healthy brain temperature varies by time of day. Image credit: Rzechorzek et al., doi: 10.1093/brain/awab466.

Study: Human Brain Temperature is Higher and Varies More Than Previously Assumed

Jun 14, 2022 by News Staff

Scientists have established a 4D map of human brain temperature and shown how this parameter varies with time of day, brain region, age, and sex in adults....

Example of illusorily expanding central region or ‘hole;’ viewing the image full screen is best for eliciting the effect. Image credit: Laeng et al., doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2022.877249.

New Visual Illusion Trick Your Brain into Thinking Static Black Hole is Expanding

Jun 3, 2022 by News Staff

A new study published in the journal Frontiers in Human Neuroscience shows that the ‘expanding hole’ optical illusion, which is new to science, is...

CCR5 expression and activation in the dorsal hippocampus after contextual fear conditioning. Image credit: Shen et al., doi: 10.1038/s41586-022-04783-1.

Study: FDA-Approved HIV Drug Restores Memory Linking in Middle-Aged Mice

May 26, 2022 by News Staff

Our real-world memories are formed in a particular context and are often not acquired or recalled in isolation. Time is a key variable in the organization...

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