Brain

The way the stomach detects and tells our brains how full we are becomes damaged in obese people but does not return to normal once they lose weight, according to new research from the University of Adelaide.

Researchers believe this could be a key reason why most people who lose weight on a diet eventually put that weight back on.

The difference between Noggin and basic fibroblast growth factor for the neural precursor differentiation from human embryonic stem cells has not been studied. Prof. Xuejin Chen and colleagues from Shanghai Jiao Tong University were the first to utilize 100 µg/L Noggin or 20 µg/L basic fibroblast growth factor in serum-free neural induction medium to differentiate human embryonic stem cells H14 into neural precursors using monolayer differentiation.

Cytoglobin is a temporary oxygen reservoir, which might provide a minimal, but continuous supply of intracellular oxygen during ischemic and anoxic conditions. A research team from China Medical University was the first to use a plasmid carrying green fluorescent protein as the carrier to construct recombinant plasmids expressing cytoglobin by genetic engineering methods. Then, the recombinant plasmid was transfected into SH-SY5Y cells. Xiuling Yu and colleagues found that overexpression of cytoglobin could protect SH-SY5Y cells against cobalt chloride-induced hypoxia.

In recent years, neurotoxicity from exposure to low levels of lead in the environment has become increasingly prevalent. Therefore, the discovery of herbs that have lead-eliminating properties without harmful side effects is essential for the management of lead poisoning. Preliminary studies by Yu Wang and colleagues from Longnan Teachers College have verified that olive leaf extract can protect the blood, spleen and hippocampus in lead-poisoned mice. However, little is known about the effects of olive leaf extract on lead-induced brain injury.

Rutaecarpine, an active component of the traditional Chinese medicine Tetradium ruticarpum, has been shown to improve myocardial ischemia reperfusion injury, mainly focusing on calcitonin gene-based targets. Because both cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases are forms of ischemic vascular disease, they are closely related.

Carotid endarterectomy can benefit the majority of patients with severe carotid artery stenosis. However, the therapeutic ef-fects of this technique in patients with symptomatic internal carotid artery occlusion remain controversial. Prof.

Engineers at the University of California, San Diego, have developed an iPad app that helps students learn spatial visualization, an essential skill for doing well in science, math and engineering. They have been testing the app during a high school summer program at the Jacobs School of Engineering at UC San Diego, as well as on undergraduate students at the school.

HAMILTON, ON -- The overwhelming urge that drives many pregnant women to clean, organize and get life in order -- otherwise known as nesting -- is not irrational, but an adaptive behaviour stemming from humans' evolutionary past.

Researchers from McMaster University suggest that these behaviours -- characterized by unusual bursts of energy and a compulsion to organize the household -- are a result of a mechanism to protect and prepare for the unborn baby.

For some entomologists, an apparent paradox exists: Despite choosing a career working with insects, they exhibit negative feelings toward spiders which range from mild disgust to extreme arachnophobia.

The plate tectonic theory has been primarily developed in three stages. (1) From continental drift and seafloor spreading to oceanic subduction, laying a physical foundation of the plate tectonic theory. This was achieved by the recognitions that continents would be assembled to build a supercontinent Pangea with subsequent breakup to yield the present configuration, lithospheric plates buoyantly move on the asthenospheric mantle, and oceanic crust is subducted along trenches into the mantle.

Phobias — whether it's fear of spiders, clowns, or small spaces — are common and can be difficult to treat. New research suggests that watching someone else safely interact with the supposedly harmful object can help to extinguish these conditioned fear responses, and prevent them from resurfacing later on.

The research, published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, indicates that this type of vicarious social learning may be more effective than direct personal experience in extinguishing fear responses.

Computers will someday soon automatically provide short video digests of a day in your life, your family vacation or an eight-hour police patrol, say computer scientists at The University of Texas at Austin.

The researchers are working to develop tools to help make sense of the vast quantities of video that are going to be produced by wearable camera technology such as Google Glass and Looxcie.

In the first study to closely examine the polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) intake among U.S. children under the age of 5, Sarah Keim, PhD, principal investigator in the Center for Biobehavioral Health at The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, has found what might be a troubling deficit in the diet of many youngsters. The study, published online today by Maternal and Child Nutrition, used data on nearly 2500 children age 12 to 60 months from the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

Clinical literature and animal experiments have shown that prenatal alcohol exposure in utero, especially during the early stages of pregnancy, can cause fetal alcohol syndrome. The pharmacological and toxicological mechanisms of ethanol are considered to be related to the effects of ceramide. As an important signal transduction molecule, ceramide participates in a variety of cellular transduction pathways and can modulate cell cycle, cellular differentiation, proliferation, and apoptosis. A recent study, published in the Neural Regeneration Research (Vol. 8, No.

Autophagy is a highly conserved process through the evolution of species, from eukaryotic microorganisms to humans. Bulky cytoplasmic contents, organisms (bacteria, viruses) and soluble proteins are degraded by autophagy and reused for the synthesis of new molecules. This process is generally induced by a change of environmental conditions, such as nutrient deprivation, oxidative stress and ultraviolet radiation. However, it has also been associated with normal procedures like development, differentiation and defence against pathogens.