November 14, 2011. – A research team from Université Laval, led by Jean-Pierre Julien, has taken a new step in understanding the cellular mechanisms involved in Lou Gehrig’s disease, also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). This disease is characterized by degeneration of neurons that control muscle activity. Continue reading
October 21st – New research reveals how we make decisions. Birds choosing between berry bushes and investors trading stocks are faced with the same fundamental challenge – making optimal choices in an environment featuring varying costs and benefits. Continue reading
Researchers in the Hotchkiss Brain Institute (HBI) at the University of Calgary’s Faculty of Medicine have uncovered a mechanism by which stress increases food drive in rats. This exciting discovery, published in the journal Neuron, could provide important insight into why stress is thought to be one of the underlying contributors to obesity. Continue reading
September 19, 2011 – The Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care recommends routine screening for depression during primary care visits when systems are available for coordination of assessment and treatment. An article by an international panel of experts, published in the October issue of the Canadian Medical Association Journal, argues that there is no evidence that screening benefits patients and that, moreover, implementation of the practice would further burden an already financially-strapped health care system. Continue reading
![Par Hendrike 11:08, 3 May 2006 (UTC) (Travail personnel) [GFDL (www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) ou CC-BY-SA-3.0 (www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/)], via Wikimedia Commons](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dc/Depression.jpg/100px-Depression.jpg?uselang=fr "Par Hendrike 11:08, 3 May 2006 (UTC) (Travail personnel) [GFDL (www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) ou CC-BY-SA-3.0 (www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/)], via Wikimedia Commons")
August 16, 2011 – A new analysis, published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), reports that flawed research studies have exaggerated the degree to which depression screening questionnaires are able to accurately detect people with untreated depression. The number of untreated patients who would actually be detected using these questionnaires may be less than half the number predicted by existing studies. Continue reading
August 15, 2011 – Researchers think that brains are sensitive to the quality of child care, according to a study that was directed by Dr. Sonia Lupien and her colleagues from the University of Montreal published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Continue reading
July 20, 2011 – The 22nd annual Neuronal Plasticity Prize of the Fondation Ipsen has been awarded to Robert J. Zatorre (Montreal Neurological Institute, BRAMS Laboratory), Isabelle Peretz (University of Montreal, BRAMS Laboratory) and Helen J. Neville (University of Oregon, Eugene, USA), for their pioneering research in the domain of “Music and Brain Plasticity”. Continue reading
July 14, 2011 – Researchers at the Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal (IRCM) are among the many scientists around the world trying to unearth our nervous system’s countless mysteries. A new piece of the puzzle was recently uncovered by Dr. Artur Kania, Director of the IRCM’s Neural Circuit Development research unit and Associate Professor at Université de Montréal’s Department of Medicine, and a postdoctoral fellow in his laboratory, Dr. Tzu-Jen Kao.
July 11, 2011 – De novo mutations – genetic errors that are present in patients but not in their parents – are more frequent in schizophrenic patients than in normal individuals, according to an international group of scientists led by Dr. Guy A. Rouleau of the University of Montreal and CHU Sainte-Justine Hospital. Continue reading