Brain

Brain scans and behavioral tests of California sea lions that stranded on shore show how an algal toxin disrupts brain networks, leading to deficits in spatial memory, according to a study to be published Dec. 18 in Science. The new findings by scientists at the University of California Santa Cruz, UC Davis and the Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito, Calif. suggest that chronic exposure to the toxin domoic acid, produced by naturally occurring marine algae, affects sea lions' ability to navigate in their ocean habitat and survive in the wild.

A new study shows that a neurotoxin produced by algae disrupts the memory of California sea lions, animals that rely heavily on recall of food-rich locations to forage. The results may explain the impaired navigation observed in sea lions in recent years, which many believe has led to an increase in strandings. Off the coast of California, poisoning from the neurotoxin domoic acid (DA) is a major issue for marine animals.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Tinnitus, otherwise known as ringing in the ears, affects nearly one-third of adults over age 65. The condition can develop as part of age-related hearing loss or from a traumatic injury. In either case, the resulting persistent noise causes varying amounts of disruption to everyday life.

Diagnosing fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is important to help children and adults, and their families, who have the disorder. A new Canadian guideline published in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal), provides recommendations for diagnosing FASD, specifically for multidisciplinary diagnostic teams.

Experimental drugs that alter cell metabolism also halted tumor growth and extended survival in mice with cancers linked to changes in the same gene, according to a new study led by researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center, its Laura and Isaac Perlmutter Cancer Center and Massachusetts General Hospital.

EVANSTON, Ill. --- When students from low socioeconomic status (SES) backgrounds perceive their universities to be "chilly" towards students from their backgrounds, their academic confidence and sense of themselves as high-achievers suffers, according to a new series of Northwestern University studies.

MONTREAL---If you're pondering whether to buy a Galaxy smartphone or an iPhone this holiday season, a part of the brain called the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (PFC) might ultimately determine your choice. Results of a new study by Avinash Vaidya and Dr. Lesley Fellows, researchers at the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital (The Neuro), suggest that this region of the brain plays a critical role in making choices.

Using antidepressants during pregnancy greatly increases the risk of autism, Professor Anick Bérard of the University of Montreal and its affiliated CHU Sainte-Justine children's hospital revealed today. Prof. Bérard, an internationally renowned expert in the fields of pharmaceutical safety during pregnancy, came to her conclusions after reviewing data covering 145,456 pregnancies. "The variety of causes of autism remain unclear, but studies have shown that both genetics and environment can play a role," she explained.

Insomniacs take heart: Humans get by on significantly less sleep than our closest animal relatives. The secret, according to a new study, is that our sleep is more efficient.

Researchers from Duke University scoured the scientific literature and compiled a database of slumber patterns across hundreds of mammals including 21 species of primates -- from baboons and lemurs to orangutans, chimpanzees and people. They then used statistical techniques to account for each species' position in the primate family tree.

SAN DIEGO, CA--Commonly, we think of cancer as anarchy, a leaderless mob of deranged cells, storming through the body. Pedro Lowenstein, Sebastien Motsch, and colleagues at the University of Michigan and University of Arizona think that cancer is highly organized--self-organized. In brain cancer, the Michigan and Arizona researchers report that glioma cells build tumors by self-organizing into streams,10-20 cells wide, that obey a mathematically predicted pattern for autonomous agents flowing together.

The word 'avalanche' is generally associated with violent and unexpected events -- such as rockslides, or the sudden collapse of unstable drifts of snow. But in brain research, avalanches -- intermittent cascades of electrical activity -- are everyday occurrences that are not only peaceful, but actually reflect stability.

Further underscoring the prenatal origins of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), researchers at University of California, San Diego School of Medicine describe for the first time how abnormal gene activity in cell cycle networks that are known to control brain cell production may underlie abnormal early brain growth in the disorder.

The findings are published online December 14 in Molecular Systems Biology.

While most Down syndrome research has focused on the brain, a new report by Johns Hopkins University biologists uncovers how the disorder hampers a separate part of the nervous system that plays a key role in health and longevity.

The paper, to be published Dec. 14 in the journal Nature Communications, traces complex biochemical signals leading to peripheral nervous system dysfunction found in people with Down syndrome.

It has often been said that nature is history's greatest innovator and if that is true then scientists with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)'s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) are learning from the best. Berkeley Lab researchers have developed a freeze-casting technique that enables them to design and create strong, tough and lightweight materials comparable to bones, teeth, shells and wood.

BINGHAMTON, NY - According to newly published research, a specialized psychotherapy has been linked to changes in activation patterns in certain areas of the brain in patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD), suggesting its impact may go deeper than symptom change.