Tag: Brain
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IRCM researchers discover a protein’s critical role in the brain
A team of Montréal researchers at the IRCM led by Dr. Nabil G. Seidah, in collaboration with Dr. William C. Wetsel’s team at Duke University in the United States, discovered that the protein PC7 plays a critical role in the brain by affecting certain types of cognitive performance such as anxiety, learning and emotional memory.…
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Discovery of the gene defective in a rare developmental disorder of the brain
In April 2009, a Quebec family experienced the worst tragedy for parents: before the age of one, one of their sons died of a rare genetic disease causing congenital microcephaly, intellectual disability, cerebral atrophy, and refractory seizures. The event was even more tragic because it was the third infant to die in this family from…
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Scientists find brain region that helps you make up your mind
One of the smallest parts of the brain is getting a second look after new research suggests it plays a crucial role in decision making. A University of British Columbia study published today in Nature Neuroscience says the lateral habenula, a region of the brain linked to depression and avoidance behaviours, has been largely misunderstood…
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Everything in moderation: excessive nerve cell pruning leads to disease
Mechanism meant to maintain efficiency of brain network involved in neurodegenerative disease Scientists at the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital-The Neuro, McGill University, have made important discoveries about a cellular process that occurs during normal brain development and may play an important role in neurodegenerative diseases.
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To live and learn: making memories has to be a speedy business
The brain is plastic – adapting to the hundreds of experiences in our daily lives by reorganizing pathways and making new connections between nerve cells. This plasticity requires that memories of new information and experiences are formed fast. So fast that the body has a special mechanism, unique to nerve cells, that enables memories to…
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Scientists shed light on the brain mechanisms behind a debilitating sleep disorder
Researchers at the University of Toronto discover how the body’s muscles accidentally fall asleep while awake Normally muscles contract in order to support the body, but in a rare condition known as cataplexy the body’s muscles “fall asleep” and become involuntarily paralyzed. Cataplexy is incapacitating because it leaves the affected individual awake, but either fully…
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Delayed brain development may lead to brain injury in newborns with heart birth defects
Newborns with congenital heart disease are found to be highly vulnerable to brain injuries. While the link between heart defects and slower brain development has long been demonstrated, a new study published on July 16 in Neurology has further uncovered a direct connection between altered brain development and brain injuries in newborns with congenital heart…
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A new role for sodium in the brain
Findings identify a novel pharmaco-logical target for drug development Researchers at McGill University have found that sodium – the main chemical component in table salt – is a unique “on/off” switch for a major neurotransmitter receptor in the brain. This receptor, known as the kainate receptor, is fundamental for normal brain function and is implicated…
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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…
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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.