Guidance proteins regulate brain plasticity
Our ability to learn and form new memories is fully dependent on the brain’s ability to be plastic – that is to change and adapt according to new experiences and environments. Continue reading
Category: News
Cocaine use during adolescence changes shape and size of brain regions that govern drug-seeking
Adolescents who use cocaine risk changing the part of the brain involved in reward and learning, according to research published in the January 30 edition of The Journal of Neuroscience. Continue reading
Addiction: abnormal communication in the brain
Addiction to cigarettes, drugs and other stimulants has been linked in the past to the brain’s frontal lobes, but now there is scientific evidence that indicates where in the frontal cortex addiction takes hold and how. Addiction could be a result of abnormal communication between two areas of the frontal lobes linked to decision-making. The discovery will undoubtedly stimulate clinical work on new therapies for millions of people who suffer from addiction. Continue reading
New research finds slower growth of preterm infants linked to altered brain development
Preterm infants who grow more slowly as they approached what would have been their due dates also have slower development in an area of the brain called the cerebral cortex, report Canadian researchers in a new study published today in Science Translational Medicine. Continue reading
Major step toward an Alzheimer’s vaccine
A team of researchers from Université Laval, CHU de Québec, and pharmaceutical firm GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has discovered a way to stimulate the brain’s natural defense mechanisms in people with Alzheimer’s disease.A team of researchers from Université Laval, CHU de Québec, and pharmaceutical firm GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has discovered a way to stimulate the brain’s natural defense mechanisms in people with Alzheimer’s disease. Continue reading
Western neuroscience study reveals new link between basic math skills and PSAT math success
Dr. Daniel Ansari
New research from Western University provides brain imaging evidence that students well-versed in very basic single digit arithmetic (5+2=7 or 7-3=4) are better equipped to score higher on the Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test (PSAT), an examination sat by millions of students in the United States each year in preparation for college admission tests. Continue reading
The pain puzzle: Uncovering how morphine increases pain in some people
Researchers discover new pathway to reduce paradoxical pain
Quebec City & Toronto, January 6, 2013—For individuals with agonizing pain, it is a cruel blow when the gold-standard medication actually causes more pain. Adults and children whose pain gets worse when treated with morphine may be closer to a solution, based on research published in the January 6 on-line edition of Nature Neuroscience.
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An IRCM breakthrough in stem cell research
Dr. Michel Cayouette, Director of the Cellular Neurobiology research unit at the IRCM, and his team published a scientific breakthrough in stem cell research in The Journal of Neuroscience. Amel Kechad, former student in the laboratory, and Christine Jolicoeur, research assistant, are co-first authors of the article, which was also signed by Adele Tufford and Pierre Mattar, both members of the same research unit.
IRCM researchers discover a nerve cell’s internal clock
A step forward in regenerating and repairing damaged nerve cells
A team of IRCM researchers, led by Dr. Frédéric Charron, recently uncovered a nerve cell’s internal clock, used during embryonic development. Continue reading
Drug offers new pain management therapy for diabetics
A study from the Hotchkiss Brain Institute shows there is evidence to support a new drug therapy called nabilone to treat diabetic neuropathy, or nerve pain. Researchers enrolled 60 patients with diabetic neuropathy in a 12-week placebo controlled clinical study. Continue reading
