Brain

A new study from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center evaluating the use of neurofeedback found a decrease in the experience of chronic pain and increase quality of life in patients with neuropathic pain.

The study will be presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychosomatic Society, held March 9-12 in Denver, Colorado.

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) March 11, 2016 -- A biological process in the brains of zebra finches shows that the songbirds respond quickly to trauma and are capable of controlling the natural inflammation that occurs to protect the brain from injury.

How is the brain able to use past experiences to guide decision-making? A few years ago, researchers supported by the National Institutes of Health discovered in rats that awake mental replay of past experiences is critical for learning and making informed choices. Now, the team has discovered key secrets of the underlying brain circuitry -- including a unique system that encodes location during inactive periods.

In a large-scale study involving more than 6,000 fifth graders, an innovative science curriculum was found to have a positive impact on science learning for students with different levels of English proficiency.

The study, led by NYU Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development and published in the American Educational Research Journal, evaluated the effects of Promoting Science Among English Language Learners (P-SELL), a fifth-grade science curricular and professional development intervention designed with English language learners (ELLs) in mind.

Conventional wisdom has held that boosting team performance in the workplace should focus on rewarding entire teams that perform well - and that rewarding individuals increases competition rather than helping team performance. But new research published in the Journal of Applied Psychology finds that rewarding individual workers can boost performance both for other workers and for the team.

Drexel University College of Medicine researchers are conducting an emergency medicine study to find out the most effective drug for treating established status epilepticus -- a life-threatening condition in which the brain is in a state of persistent seizure.

DURHAM, N.C. -- No matter the trigger -- bug bites, a medication side-effect or an itchy wound -- the urge to scratch can be a real pain. Researchers at the Duke University Medical Center have identified a potential drug target in the skin for that itchy feeling.

LOS ANGELES, CA/PITTSBURGH, PA, March 11, 2016: A new study shows that a variety of physical activities from walking to gardening and dancing can improve brain volume and cut the risk of Alzheimer's disease by 50%.

This research, conducted by investigators at UCLA Medical Center and the University of Pittsburgh, is the first to show that virtually any type of aerobic physical activity can improve brain structure and reduce Alzheimer's risk. The study, funded by the National Institute of Aging, was published on March 11 in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease.

PITTSBURGH, March 11, 2016 - Whether they jog, swim, garden or dance, physically active older persons have larger gray matter volume in key brain areas responsible for memory and cognition, according to a new study by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and UCLA.

The findings, published today in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, showed also that people who had Alzheimer's disease or mild cognitive impairment experienced less gray matter volume reduction over time if their exercise-associated calorie burn was high.

Brain swelling is a strong predictor of death in children with cerebral malaria (a severe form of the disease where parasites have accumulated in brain vessels), and also in mice with experimental cerebral malaria (ECM). A high-resolution whole brain imaging analysis of swelling in ECM published on March 10th in PLOS Pathogens suggests that cerebral malaria depends on the permissive environment in a specific brain area.

A new study jointly led by King's College London and the University of Southampton has found a link between gum disease and greater rates of cognitive decline in people with early stages of Alzheimer's Disease.

March 10, 2016 - Emerging evidence on the development, "prodromal" characteristics, and long-term course of schizophrenia provide reasons for optimism for developing new treatments and preventive approaches for this devastating disorder, according to the special March/April issue of Harvard Review of Psychiatry. The journal is published by Wolters Kluwer.

NEW YORK--Columbia neuroscientists have described the activity of newly generated brain cells in awake mice--a process known as adult neurogenesis--and revealed the critical role these cells play in forming memories. The new research also offers clues as to what happens when the memory-encoding process goes awry.

This study, led by researchers at Columbia's Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute and Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC), was published today in Neuron.

DURHAM, N.C. -- Even our most practiced movements are imperfect. When pro basketball players shoot free throws, they need to release the ball the same way every time. But they still miss game-winning shots.

NEW YORK, NY (March 10, 2016) Researchers reported results from the first repeated-dose study of a dopamine-1 receptor (D1R) agonist for treating the cognitive and negative symptoms of schizophrenia today in the Journal of Psychopharmacology.