Brain

Deer antlers inspire a new theory on osteoporosis

The loss of manganese could mean that calcium does not stick to bones and could cause osteoporosis. This is the new theory put forward by researchers at the University of Castilla-La Mancha (UCLM) in Spain after studying deer antlers. The hypothesis published this month in the Frontiers of Bioscience journal still needs to be confirmed by the scientific community.

'BINGO!' game helps researchers study perception deficits

Bingo, a popular activity in nursing homes, senior centers and assisted-living facilities, has benefits that extend well beyond socializing. Researchers found high-contrast, large bingo cards boost thinking and playing skills for people with cognitive difficulties and visual perception problems produced by Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD).

Kessler Foundation reports advance in early diagnosis of spatial neglect after stroke

West Orange, NJ -- Researchers at Kessler Foundation and Seton Hall University report findings in the early diagnosis of acute spatial neglect, a hidden disability that is a common complication of stroke. In the weeks after stroke, 30-50% of stroke survivors cannot reliably report or respond to external events that take place in the space opposite the side of their brain injury. Called spatial neglect, this disorder is a problem with attention and action rather than vision.

Alzheimer's damage occurs early

Physician Oskar Hansson and his research group are studying biomarkers – substances present in spinal fluid and linked to Alzheimer's disease. The group has studied close to 140 people with mild memory impairment, showing that a certain combination of markers (low levels of the substance beta-amyloid and high levels of the substance tau) indicate a high risk of developing Alzheimer's disease in the future.

Deep brain stimulation shows promising results for unipolar and bipolar depression

ATLANTA–A new study shows that deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a safe and effective intervention for treatment-resistant depression in patients with either unipolar major depressive disorder (MDD) or bipolar ll disorder (BP). The study was published Online First by Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

Gestational diabetes and low socioeconomic status raise risk of ADHD in children

In the first study of its kind, researchers at Queens College and Mount Sinai School of Medicine have found that low socioeconomic status (SES) and maternal gestational diabetes together may cause a 14-fold increased risk of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in six year olds. The data are published in the January issue of the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

Schizophrenia diagnosis associated with progressive brain changes among adolescents

CHICAGO – Adolescents diagnosed with schizophrenia and other psychoses appear to show greater decreases in gray matter volume and increases in cerebrospinal fluid in the frontal lobe compared to healthy adolescents without a diagnosis of psychosis, according to a report in the January issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

Physical activity, school performance may be linked

CHICAGO – A systematic review of previous studies suggests that there may be a positive relationship between physical activity and the academic performance of children, according to a report in the January issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

Study evaluates effects of marijuana ingredients on brain functioning during visual stimuli

CHICAGO – Different ingredients in marijuana appear to affect regions of the brain differently during brain processing functions involving responses to certain visual stimuli and tasks, according to a report in the January issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

Humble people are more likely to lend a helping hand, Baylor University study finds

Humble people are more likely to offer time to someone in need than arrogant people are, according to findings by Baylor University researchers published online in the Journal of Positive Psychology.

Listen up: Abnormality in auditory processing underlies dyslexia

People with dyslexia often struggle with the ability to accurately decode and identify what they read. Although disrupted processing of speech sounds has been implicated in the underlying pathology of dyslexia, the basis of this disruption and how it interferes with reading comprehension has not been fully explained. Now, new research published by Cell Press in the December 22 issue of the journal Neuron finds that a specific abnormality in the processing of auditory signals accounts for the main symptoms of dyslexia.

How do we split our attention?

Imagine you're a hockey goalie, and two opposing players are breaking in alone on you, passing the puck back and forth. You're aware of the linesman skating in on your left, but pay him no mind. Your focus is on the puck and the two approaching players. As the action unfolds, how is your brain processing this intense moment of "multi-tasking"? Are you splitting your focus of attention into multiple "spotlights?" Are you using one "spotlight" and switching between objects very quickly? Or are you "zooming out" the spotlight and taking it all in at once?

Brain's connective cells are much more than glue

Glia cells, named for the Greek word for "glue," hold the brain's neurons together and protect the cells that determine our thoughts and behaviors, but scientists have long puzzled over their prominence in the activities of the brain dedicated to learning and memory. Now Tel Aviv University researchers say that glia cells are central to the brain's plasticity — how the brain adapts, learns, and stores information.

People don't just think with their guts; logic plays a role too

For decades, science has suggested that when people make decisions, they tend to ignore logic and go with the gut. But Wim De Neys, a psychological scientist at the University of Toulouse in France, has a new suggestion: Maybe thinking about logic is also intuitive. He writes about this idea in the January issue of Perspectives on Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.

Psychologists have partly based their conclusions about reasoning and decision-making on questions like this one:

Diet patterns may keep brain from shrinking

ST. PAUL, Minn. – People with diets high in several vitamins or in omega 3 fatty acids are less likely to have the brain shrinkage associated with Alzheimer's disease than people whose diets are not high in those nutrients, according to a new study published in the December 28, 2011, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.