Brain

A gene that is arguably the most studied "schizophrenia gene" plays an unanticipated role in the brain: It controls the birth of new neurons in addition to their integration into existing brain circuitry, according to a report in the March 20th issue of the journal Cell, a Cell Press publication. The finding suggests that loss of the gene, as occurs in some cases of schizophrenia as well as bipolar disorder and major depression, may "tip the balance" in the brain, leading to an increased risk of compromised cognition and behavioral abnormalities, the researchers said.

Scientists used to think most of the exchange of information between cells was conducted at the surface, where cell receptors receive signals from other cells.

Now Yale researchers report in the March 20 issue of the journal Cell how a switching station beneath the cell surface is crucial to processing signals from outside the cell. They also describe a key molecular switch that terminates signaling from this station.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — Researchers at MIT's Picower Institute for Learning and Memory have found that inhibiting a key brain enzyme in mice reversed schizophrenia-like symptoms.

The finding, reported in the March 20 issue of Cell, identified how a particular gene controls this brain enzyme. Better understanding of the relationship could lead to new drug treatments for schizophrenia, the severe brain disorder that affects about 1 percent of the population and is characterized by hallucinations, delusions, poor social and emotional functioning and disorganized thoughts.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Scientists at the University of Illinois have successfully demonstrated a microwave signal mixer made from a tunnel-junction transistor laser. Development of the device brings researchers a big step closer to higher speed electronics and higher performance electrical and optical integrated circuits.

The mixing device accepts two electrical inputs and produces an optical signal that was measured at frequencies of up to 22.7 gigahertz. The frequency range was limited by the bandwidth of the detector employed in the measurements, not by the transistor device.

New Rochelle, NY, March 19, 2009—Recognition of the benefits of cooling strategies to protect the brain and spinal cord after traumatic injury has led to a wealth of cutting edge research, prime examples of which are featured in a special hypothermia issue of Journal of Neurotrauma, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. (www.liebertpub.com). The issue will be available free online at www.liebertpub.com/neu

Milan, Italy, 19 March 2009 - In a study by Miall, Gowen and Tchalenko published by Elsevier, in the March issue of Cortex (http://www.elsevier.com/locate/cortex), a brain scanner was used to record the brain's activity in each stage of the process of drawing faces. The researchers found that the captured visual information is stored as a series of locations or action plans to reach those locations.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--Humans excel at recognizing faces, but how we do this has been an abiding mystery in neuroscience and psychology. In an effort to explain our success in this area, researchers are taking a closer look at how and why we fail.

An international team of astrophysicists using telescopes on the ground and in space have uncovered surprising changes in radiation emitted by an active galaxy. The picture that emerges from these first-ever simultaneous observations with optical, X-ray and new-generation gamma-ray telescopes is much more complex than scientists expected and challenges current theories of how the radiation is generated.

Athens, Ga. – A new study by psychologists at the University of Georgia shows for the first time that whites' beliefs about diversity can hurt or help their minority peers.

The large-scale survey results, just published in the online version of the journal Psychological Science, reveal that minority employees feel less committed to their work when white employees promote "colorblindness." Yet when white workers champion multiculturalism, the research finds, their minority peers feel more connected to their jobs.

Providing another tool to help to understand gene regulation on a global scale, a nationwide research team has identified and mapped 55,000 enhancers, short regions of DNA that act to enhance or boost the expression of genes. The map, which will be published March 18 in the advance on-line edition of the journal Nature, will help scientists understand how cells control expression of genes specific to their particular cell type.

Philadelphia (March 18, 2009) – As any parent knows, children love sweet-tasting foods. Now, new research from the University of Washington and the Monell Center indicates that this heightened liking for sweetness has a biological basis and is related to children's high growth rate.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Trainers have used it for decades to help athletes build muscle. Late-night TV commercials hawk it as an effortless flab buster.

But a University of Florida engineering researcher says electrical stimulation — a simple, decades-old technique to prompt muscles to contract — can be combined with sophisticated computer learning technology to help people regain more precise, more life-like control of paralyzed limbs.

Being satisfied with one's appearance is one of the most important prerequisites for a positive self image. However, in today's appearance culture it is the rule rather than the exception that children and young people are dissatisfied with their appearance.

Those children who are teased or subject to bullying are particularly critical of their appearance - and they tend to be this way over a long period. This is revealed in a new thesis in psychology from the University of Gothenburg, Sweden.

Epilepsy is a common medical condition characterized by convulsions and short periods of confusion. It affects more than 50 million people worldwide. But intractable epilepsy, which affects more than 1 million Americans and is often resistant to drug treatment and surgery, is arguably worse.

Irvine, Calif., March 18, 2009 – Single events account for many of our most vivid memories – a marriage proposal, a wedding toast, a baby's birth. Until a recent UC Irvine discovery, however, scientists knew little about what happens inside the brain that allows you to remember such events.

In a study with rats, neuroscientist John Guzowski and colleagues found that a single brief experience was as effective at activating neurons and genes associated with memory as more repetitive activities.