Month: August 2015
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Association between low vitamin D and MS
Having low levels of vitamin D doubles the risk of developing multiple sclerosis, an association that researchers conclude supports a causal relationship. Low levels of vitamin D significantly increase the risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a study led by Dr. Brent Richards of the Lady Davis Institute at the Jewish General Hospital,…
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Why we’re smarter than chickens
Researchers at U of T’s Donnelly Centre uncover protein part that controls neuron development.U of T researchers have discovered that a single molecular event in our cells could hold the key to how we evolved to become the smartest creatures on the planet. Professor Benjamin Blencowe and his team at the Donnelly Centre for Cellular…
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Scientists identify key gene associated with addiction
A new study published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry by a team led by Salah El Mestikawy, Ph.D., researcher at the Douglas Mental Health University Institute (CIUSSS de l’Ouest-de-l’île-de-Montréal), professor at McGill University and head of research at CNRS INSERM UPMC in Paris, opens the field to new understanding of the molecular mechanism underlying addiction…
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Researchers discover mechanism involved in chronic pain
Chronic pain is one of the most common reasons people visit their doctor, and basic scientists have long been trying to understand it. In Canada, chronic pain costs more than heart disease, HIV and cancer combined. New animal research, published online in Cell Reports on July 23, out of the Cumming School of Medicine has…
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Practice doesn’t always make perfect (depending on your brain)
Study fuels nature versus nurture debate How do you get to Carnegie Hall? New research on the brain’s capacity to learn suggests there’s more to it than the adage that “practise makes perfect.” A music-training study by scientists at the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital -The Neuro, at McGill University and colleagues in Germany found…
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This is your brain on fried eggs
High-fat feeding can cause impairments in the functioning of the mesolimbic dopamine system, says Stephanie Fulton of the University of Montreal and the CHUM Research Centre (CRCHUM.) This system is a critical brain pathway controlling motivation. Fulton’s findings, published in Neuropsychopharmacology, may have great health implications.