Brain

Positive emotions – even those viewed through a distorted lens – may play an exacerbating role in fueling eating disorders like anorexia nervosa, which has a death rate 12 times higher for females between the ages of 15 and 24 than all other causes of death combined, according to a Rutgers study.

Researchers have uncovered one of the basic processes that may help to explain why some people's thinking skills decline in old age. Age-related declines in intelligence are strongly related to declines on a very simple task of visual perception speed, the researchers report in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on August 4.

In the first study of its kind, Prapti Gautam, PhD, and colleagues from The Saban Research Institute of Children's Hospital Los Angeles found that children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) showed weaker brain activation during specific cognitive tasks than their unaffected counterparts. These novel findings suggest a possible neural mechanism for the persistent attention problems seen in individuals with FASD. The results of this study will be published in Cerebral Cortex on August 4.

It's easy to guess why it doesn't take long to learn to avoid certain behaviors and embrace others. But how do we know what drives these predilections? A study led by Aimee Dunlap at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, and co-authored by University of Minnesota researcher David Stephens, offers insight into the evolutionary underpinning of animals' innate ability to quickly absorb critical life lessons.

A European Journal of Neuroscience study suggests that it is critical to treat lysosomal storage disorders early, before symptoms arise. These genetic disorders, which are caused by the malfunction of enzymes that normally degrade various substances within cells, lead to numerous ailments including neurological problems.

PITTSBURGH, Aug. 4, 2014 – Eating baked or broiled fish once a week is good for the brain, regardless of how much omega-3 fatty acid it contains, according to researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. The findings, published online recently in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, add to growing evidence that lifestyle factors contribute to brain health later in life.

The optic radiation is a dense fiber tract that emerges from the lateral geniculate nucleus and continues to the occipital visual cortex. Especially, the optic radiation is an important fiber structure that conveys visual information from the lateral geniculate nucleus to the primary visual cortex in the occipital lobe. Current studies have focused on the anatomical characteristics of optic radiation fiber tracts in individual brains and on comparisons of the anatomical characteristics of the optic radiation fiber tracts between patient and control groups.

Research led by the University of Adelaide has resulted in new insights into clinical depression that demonstrate there cannot be a "one-size-fits-all" approach to treating the disease.

As part of their findings, the researchers have developed a new model for clinical depression that takes into account the dynamic role of the immune system. This neuroimmune interaction results in different phases of depression, and has implications for current treatment practices.

SAN ANTONIO (Aug. 2, 2014) ― Scientists studying depression in teens have discovered that subtle changes in a gene can predict how the brain reacts to stress, which can cause such health issues as depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and obesity.

A new e-memo for the boss: Online breaks at work can refresh workers and boost productivity. Early findings from a University of Cincinnati study will be presented on Aug. 5, at the 74th annual meeting of the Academy of Management in Philadelphia.

The study led by Sung Doo Kim, a doctoral candidate in the Carl H. Lindner College of Business, opens a rare avenue of research into coping with technology-induced distractions in our contemporary society.

Many studies have shown that exposure to environmental enrichment can induce neurogenesis of the hippocampal region, thus improving learning and memory. Previous studies have demonstrated that doublecortin-positive immature neurons exist predominantly in the superficial layer of the cerebral cortex of adult mammals such as guinea pigs, and these neurons exhibit very weak properties of self-proliferation during adulthood under physiological conditions.

Both acupuncture at Waiguan (SJ5) and sham acupuncture can activate/deactivate several brain regions in patients with ischemic stroke, but there are some difference in Brodmann areas 4, 6, 8, Brodmann areas 7, 39, 40, Brodmann areas 18, 19, 22 and Brodmann areas 13, 24, 32, 28. Most studies addressing the specificity of meridians and acupuncture points have focused mainly on the different neural effects of acupuncture at different points in healthy individuals. Dr.

In addition to its lipid-lowering effect, statins exert anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects as well. Statins also provide protection against renal, pulmonary and myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury. However, little evidence is available on similar changes in cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury. Therefore, Dr. Qiuyun Tu and colleagues from Third Xiangya Hospital of Central South University in China verified that atorvastatin, a commonly used lipid-lowering drug, protects against cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury through anti-infammatory and antioxidant effects.

Previous studies have shown that proliferation of endogenous neural precursor cells cannot alone compensate for the damage to neurons and axons. From the perspective of neural plasticity, Dr. Yun Xiang and co-workers from Sun Yat-sen University in China observed the effects of functional electrical stimulation treatment on endogenous neural precursor cell proliferation and expression of basic fibroblast growth factor and epidermal growth factor in the rat brain on the infarct side.

A recent study completed at the University of Eastern Finland provides new information on the limitations and potential new directions for the future development of transcranial ultrasound therapy. Active research is taking place in the field of transcranial ultrasound therapy, which in the future can potentially be applied to the treatment of brain tumours and targeted drug delivery. The therapy modality has already been successfully applied to the treatment of neuropathic pain disorder and essential tremors.