Brain

Researchers from the Kennedy Krieger Institute and Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine have collaborated to uncover important new insights into the neurological basis of autism. Their new study, published in the journal Nature Neuroscience, examined patterns of movement as children with autism and typically developing children learned to control a novel tool. The findings suggest that children with autism appear to learn new actions differently than do typically developing children.

Few people changed their behaviour in the early stages of the swine flu outbreak, finds a study published on bmj.com today. But the results do support efforts to inform the public about specific actions that can reduce the risks from swine flu and to communicate about the government's plans and resources.

Encouraging the public to undertake specific behaviours related to hygiene has proved useful in containing previous outbreaks of infectious disease, but motivating the public to adopt such behaviours can be difficult.

Tampa, FL (July 5, 2009) – Need an excuse to drink more coffee? You're in luck. University of South Florida researchers at the Florida Alzheimer's Disease Research Center say that when aged mice bred to develop symptoms of Alzheimer's disease were given caffeine equivalent to five cups of coffee per day their memory impairment was reversed.

HOUSTON - Common genetic variations spread across five genes raise a person's risk of developing the most frequent type of brain tumor, an international research team reports online in Nature Genetics.

Genetic risk factors identified by the research team, led by scientists at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center and the Institute of Cancer Research in the United Kingdom, also are the first glioma risk factors of any type identified in a large study.

ROCHESTER, Minn. -- Mayo Clinic researchers and colleagues at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) have found a connection between DNA alterations on human chromosome 9 and aggressive brain cancer known as glioblastoma. The findings are reported in the current online issue of Nature Genetics.

Mental stress causes carotid artery dilation and increases brain blood flow. A series of ultrasound experiments, described in BioMed Central's open access journal Cardiovascular Ultrasound, also found that this dilatory reflex was absent in people with high blood pressure.

A similarity in brain disturbance between insects and people suffering from migraines, stroke and epilepsy points the way toward new drug therapies to address these conditions.

Queen's University biologists studying the locust have found that these human disorders are linked by a brain disturbance during which nerve cells shut down. This also occurs in locusts when they go into a coma after exposure to extreme conditions such as high temperatures or lack of oxygen.

"These results underscore the importance of determining whether, as in the C. elegans nervous system, a diversity of biogenic amine-gated chloride channels function in the human brain," said H. Robert Horvitz of the McGovern Institute for Brain Research at MIT and senior author of the study. "If so, such channels might define novel therapeutic targets for neuropsychiatric disorders, such as depression and schizophrenia."

In 2000, Horvitz's group discovered that serotonin activates a chloride channel they called MOD-1, which inhibits neuronal activity in C. elegans.

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – New research out of Wake Forest University School of Medicine provides for the first time a solid scientific answer for the long-standing question of whether there is an association between preterm birth and brain malformations.

WASHINGTON -- To ensure that all children enter elementary school with the foundation they need for success, a major national initiative is needed to improve early childhood mathematics education, says a new report from the National Research Council. Opportunities for preschoolers to learn mathematics are currently inadequate, particularly for those in low-income groups, says the report, which is intended to inform the efforts of Head Start, state-funded preschool programs, curriculum developers, and teachers.

NEW YORK, July 1, 2009 – Since the 1970s, there has been much debate surrounding the fact that individuals with autism have difficulty in understanding speech in situations where there is background speech or noise.

Today, at the annual meeting of the International Multisensory Research Forum (June 29th – July 2nd) being held at The City College of New York (CCNY), neuroscientists announced conclusive evidence to verify this fact.

Selected highlights from a new study on immigration, health and gender roles:

(Santa Barbara, Calif.) –– Scientists at UC Santa Barbara and several other institutions have found laboratory evidence that a cluster of peptides may be the toxic agent in Alzheimer's disease. Scientists say the discovery may lead to new drugs for the disease.

Tampa, FL (July 1, 2009) -- A human growth factor that stimulates blood stem cells to proliferate in the bone marrow reverses memory impairment in mice genetically altered to develop Alzheimer's disease, researchers at the University of South Florida and James A. Haley Hospital found. The granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (GCSF) significantly reduced levels of the brain-clogging protein beta amyloid deposited in excess in the brains of the Alzheimer's mice, increased the production of new neurons and promoted nerve cell connections.

Schizophrenia is a devastating mental disease, thought to be caused by the interaction of both genetic and environmental factors. Because there is no biochemical test that can identify the disorder, physicians rely upon the recognition of its symptoms — which can include auditory hallucinations and paranoia — in order to make their diagnosis.