Health

Key mystery about how the brain produces cognition is finally understood

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We explain human behavior in terms of unseen entities such as motivation, curiosity, anxiety, and confidence. What has been unclear, until now, is whether these mental entities are coded by specific neurons in specific areas of the brain. Professor Adam Kepecs at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory answers some of these questions in new research published … Read more

Molecular bodyguards against Parkinson’s disease

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Chaperone proteins in human cells dynamically interact with the protein α-Synuclein, which is strongly associated with Parkinson’s disease. A disturbed relationship to these “bodyguards” leads to cell damage and the formation of Lewy bodies typical for Parkinson’s disease. The findings by researchers from the University of Basel’s Biozentrum have been published in Nature. Parkinson’s disease … Read more

Respiration key to increase oxygen in the brain

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Contrary to accepted knowledge, blood can bring more oxygen to mice brains when they exercise because the increased respiration packs more oxygen into the hemoglobin, according to an international team of researchers who believe that this holds true for all mammals. “Standard thought was that mammalian blood is always completely saturated with oxygen,” said Patrick … Read more

Healing power of honey

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Layering minute amounts of Manuka honey between layers of surgical mesh acts as a natural antibiotic that could prevent infection following an operation, new research has shown. Meshes are used to help promote soft tissue healing inside the body following surgery and are common in operations such as hernia repair. However, they carry with them … Read more

Meet DNA’s chaperone

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It’s long been known that the proteins that package DNA—like students at a high school dance—require a chaperone. But what exactly that guardian looks and acts like has been a mystery—until now. A team of researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder has cracked the puzzle of the ‘Facilitates Chromatin Transcription’ (or FACT) protein structure. … Read more

Focused ultrasound may open door to Alzheimer’s treatment

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Focused ultrasound is a safe and effective way to target and open areas of the blood-brain barrier, potentially allowing for new treatment approaches to Alzheimer’s disease, according to initial study results presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). There currently is no effective treatment for Alzheimer’s disease, the most … Read more

Building a better breast with eye-tracking technology

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What makes the female breast attractive? The answer is subjective, of course. But studies using eye-tracking technology are providing a more objective basis for determining which breast areas are most attractive – which may help to improve the outcomes of surgery, reports the December issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the … Read more

Why stress doesn’t always cause depression

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Rats susceptible to anhedonia, a core symptom of depression, possess more serotonin neurons after being exposed to chronic stress, but the effect can be reversed through amygdala activation, according to new research in JNeurosci. Some people are resistant to depression and anhedonia, or lack of pleasure, even when exposed to chronic stress. To measure susceptibility to … Read more

LJI researchers reveal unexpected versatility of an ancient DNA repair factor

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If a bone breaks or a tendon snaps, you know to seek treatment immediately. But your most fragile and precious cellular commodity, chromosomal DNA, breaks with astounding frequency–some estimate as many as 10,000 times a day per cell–usually without consequence. That’s because legions of DNA repair proteins prevent genomic catastrophe by repairing DNA damaged by … Read more