To determine the role of BDNF in humans, Carl Ernst, PhD, from McGill’s Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, screened over 35,000 people referred for genetic screening at clinics and over 30,000 control subjects in Canada, the U.S., and Europe. Continue reading
Researchers demonstrate the key role played by a protein in learning and memory
Learning and remembering are based on molecular mechanisms that are still poorly understood. According to some experts, information is stored in the brain and reactivated as required by strengthening synapses that link neurons together. The strength of these links depends on the abundance of neurotransmitters, receptors, and of all other molecules involved in chemical transmission of information. Continue reading
A new test that measures eye movement while watching television helps detect neurological disorders earlier including Parkinson’s disease, fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
The low-cost test, developed at Queen’s University and the University of Southern California, provides new insight into how specific disorders affect attention.
Eight years ago, Brian MacVicar discovered that astrocytes—cells that surround nerve cells and all blood vessels in the brain—have a primary role in regulating blood flow within the brain, which provided a new target for potential therapies for stroke, migraine, and vascular dementia. Now he and Hyun Beom Choi, a research associate in his lab, have uncovered a new role for this heroic brain cell: detecting problems in the brain and delivering nutrients to keep brain cells healthy in times of critical need. Continue reading
The Brain Awareness Video Contest is organized by SfN to provide videos to the public on various topics related to the brain and nervous system. This year, the honorable mention place winner is Kenneth Dyson who made his video with help from his two sons (6 and 12 year-old Taj and Deszmo). Kenneth is a postdoctoral fellow at Université de Montréal. His video, Using Your Brain, can be viewed here. Vote for his video for the Brain Awareness Week People’s choice award!
Two powerful brain chemical systems work together to paralyze skeletal muscles during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, according to new research in the July 18 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience. The finding may help scientists better understand and treat sleep disorders, including narcolepsy, tooth grinding, and REM sleep behavior disorder.
Researchers with the UBC Hospital MS Clinic and Brain Research Centre at Vancouver Coastal Health and the University of British Columbia have published important data in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) about the impact of a common drug therapy on the progression of multiple sclerosis for people with the relapsing-remitting form of the disease.
A new study shows significant differences in brain development in high-risk infants who develop autism starting as early as age 6 months. The findings published in the American Journal of Psychiatry reveal that this abnormal brain development may be detected before the appearance of autism symptoms in an infant’s first year of life. Autism is typically diagnosed around the age of 2 or 3. Continue reading