Brain

A follow up to a previous study finding an association between adolescent bipolar disorder and the incidence of cigarette smoking and substance use disorder finds that risk was even greater five years later, particularly among those with persistent bipolar symptoms. The report from a team of Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigators, published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, also finds evidence that the presence of conduct disorder, in combination with bipolar disorder, may be the strongest influence on the risk of smoking and substance use disorder.

Scientists today announced the discovery of a new species of pterosaur from the Patagonia region of South America. The cranial remains were in an excellent state of preservation and belonged to a new species of pterosaur from the Early Jurassic. The researchers have named this new species 'Allkauren koi' from the native Tehuelche word 'all' for 'brain', and 'karuen' for 'ancient'.

PULLMAN, Wash.--A Washington State University researcher has found a mechanism that strongly influences whether or not an animal is likely to drink a lot of alcohol.

"It takes them from drinking the equivalent of three to four units of alcohol in one to two hours, down to one to two," said David Rossi, a WSU assistant professor of neuroscience.

Scientists from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, the University of California, San Francisco, and Harvard Medical School used a rigorous study design to assess the biological impact of meditation compared to vacation. They examined the effect of meditation on gene expression patterns in both novice and regular meditators. The researchers found that a resort vacation provides a strong and immediate impact on molecular networks associated with stress and immune pathways, in addition to short- term improvements in well-being, as measured by feelings of vitality and distress.

Nagoya, Japan - When a fingertip explores the surface of a material, mechanoreceptors called Meissner's corpuscles (MCs) near the surface of the skin mainly respond to low-frequency vibration stimuli such as fluttering or slipping on the skin. Thus they are responsible for sensitivity to light touch.

Our brains have a detailed picture of our hands and fingers, and that persists even decades after an amputation, Oxford University researchers have found. The finding could have implications for the control of next generation prosthetics.

Researchers from Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and Radboud University Nijmegen found proof that psychopathic individuals can feel fear, but have trouble in the automatic detection and responsivity to threat. For many decades fear has been put forth as a hallmark feature of psychopathy, the impairments in which would lead to bold risk-taking behavior.

A University of Adelaide-led project has overturned the theory that the evolution of human intelligence was simply related to the size of the brain -- but rather linked more closely to the supply of blood to the brain.

The international collaboration between Australia and South Africa showed that the human brain evolved to become not only larger, but more energetically costly and blood thirsty than previously believed.

Putnam Valley, NY. (August 30, 2016) - In an effort to determine if stem cell therapy can prevent or improve a condition called "diabetic foot" caused by poor blood flow in patients with diabetes, a team of researchers in China has found that transplanting human placenta-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) into rats modeled with diabetes can affect blood vessel growth, potentially improving blood flow and preventing critical limb ischemia (CLI), a condition that results in diabetic foot and frequently leads to amputation.

During fertilization, a sperm must first fuse with the plasma membrane and then penetrate the female egg in order to penetrate it. To this end, sperm cells go through a process known as the acrosome reaction which is the reaction that occurs in the acrosome of the sperm as it approaches the egg. In the lab, this so-called acrosome reaction is considered a test for analysing the ability of semen to accomplish fertilisation. A receptor for an endogenous cannabinoid plays a crucial role in this process.

Putnam Valley, NY. (August 30, 2016) - In a study focusing on the role of self-donated (autologous) bone marrow-derived endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) in placental vascular development, researchers in Japan have discovered that when transplanted into pregnant mice, EPCs can contribute to better blood vessel growth that helps in forming "normalized" placental vascularization, leading, in turn, to reduced recurrent miscarriages by providing a healthier fetal environment during gestation.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- A study by psychological researchers at Indiana University shows that people are more likely to undermine their performance at stressful tasks when they're operating at "peak capacity" based on their preferred time of the day.

INDIANAPOLIS - If you really want a drink right now, the source of your craving may be a pea-sized structure deep inside the right side of your brain, according to scientists at the Indiana University School of Medicine.

The first study to investigate how dog brains process speech shows that our best friends in the animal kingdom care about both what we say and how we say it. Dogs, like people, use the left hemisphere to process words, a right hemisphere brain region to process intonation, and praising activates dog's reward center only when both words and intonation match, according to a study in Science.

Researchers at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine have identified 34 neural factors that predict adolescent alcohol consumption. The list, based upon complex algorithms analyzing data from neuropsychological testing and neuroimaging studies, was significantly more accurate --approximately 74 percent -- than demographic information alone.

The findings are published in the current issue of American Journal of Psychiatry.