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Fructose Made in the Brain Could be a Mechanism Driving Alzheimer’s Disease
New research released from the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus proposes that Alzheimer’s disease may be driven by the over activation of fructose made in the brain. The study was published in the Frontiers of Aging Neuroscience and outlined the hypothesis that Alzheimer’s disease is driven largely by Western culture that has resulted in […]
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Meditation for Mind-Control
A brain-computer interface, or BCI, is an apparatus that allows an individual to control a machine or computer directly from their brain. Non-invasive means of control like electroencephalogram (EEG) readings taken through the skull are safe and convenient compared to more risky, invasive methods using a brain implant, but they take longer to learn and […]
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Metformin treatment linked to slowed cognitive decline
A six-year study of older Australians with type 2 diabetes has uncovered a link between metformin use, slower cognitive decline and lower dementia rates.
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恐惧感是如何在大脑中持续的
大多数人都曾有过这种体验，即使让人觉得害怕的事物已经不在了，却还是有种恐惧感残留在体内。通过对小鼠的大脑进行研究，实验人员找到了这种内在情感状态得以持续存在的脑神经学机制。在感到恐惧时，压力荷尔蒙就会开始释放，但恐惧感的持续并非单纯的由荷尔蒙的不断释放所造成，腹内侧下丘脑（VMH）内的持续性放电才是致使恐惧感长期存在的根本原因。如果VMH内的神经元活动被抑制，实验小鼠就不会再表现出恐惧行为。大脑中的持续性活动多与认知功能有关，而现在，该研究则证实，下丘脑这一较为原始的脑区不但能管控条件反射类活动，还能同其他认知区域一样进行持续性的放电。这一颠覆性的发现加深了我们对大脑情感处理方面的理解。
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研究发现解离状态的脑神经学基础
有过创伤性经历的人有很大的可能会体验到一种意识和感觉仿佛分离般的奇妙状态，这种状态被称作为解离，在一定程度上会影响到病患的日常生活。除了遭遇创伤性经历，服用K粉（氯胺酮）以及患有癫痫都可使人体验到解离状态。通过对服食了K粉的小鼠和会在发作前经历解离状态的癫痫病人进行研究，实验人员发现，大脑后侧中部皮质中神经元的特定放电模式与解离的发生具有直接联系。如果人为的对这一区域进行刺激，就能使未服食K粉的小鼠和尚未处于发作前夕的癫痫病人进入解离状态。除此之外，该团队还发现了引发这种特定放电模式所必须的离子通道和相关蛋白。这一研究揭露了解离状态的脑神经学和生物化学层面的具体机制，为解离类精神和神经疾病提供了新的治疗靶点。
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能重新编码的脑细胞赋予决策行为以灵活性
人类，包括其他各种动物，都具有适应新环境的能力。苏黎世大学的研究团队最近解码了这种适应能力的神经元基础。当实验小鼠试图从旧有的行为模式切换到新模式时，基于分子生物学和影像学的单一神经元分析结果显示，眶额皮层内的一部分神经元出现了极其活跃的反应。这些神经元具有可延伸到视觉区域的长轴突，在任务初期还会显现出旧有的活动模式，但不久就会开始进行重新编码，以适应新的生存需求。如果人为的对这些神经元的活动进行抑制，重新学习的过程就会被打断，实验小鼠也将无法学会新的行为模式。这一研究结果表明，眶额皮层内的神经元对决策行为的灵活性起着至关重要的作用。
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Scientists advance understanding of blood-brain barrier health with implications for brain disease
Hard skulls help protect our brains from physical injuries. In addition to a tough outer shell, brains have internal defenses, including a powerful shield called the blood-brain barrier that defends brain cells from substances in the bloodstream that are toxic and dangerous to nerve cells. If the blood-brain barrier is breached, then health problems arise. […]
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Middle-Aged Americans report more pain than the elderly
As people age, they tend to report more acute or chronic pain — a common sign of getting older. Yet, in the United States, middle-aged adults are now reporting more pain than the elderly, according to a paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
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PARKINSON’S DISEASE IS NOT ONE, BUT TWO DIFFERENT DISEASES
Disparate symptoms and varying disease rates in many Parkinson’s patients have puzzled researchers around the world. Now a comprehensive study from Aarhus University maps that there are actually two types of the disease, which should also be treated differently.
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Researchers Discover Neural Circuit for Detecting Male Pheromone Cues Relevant to Inter-male Aggression
In a study published in Neuron, the researchers from Dr. XU Xiaohong’s Lab at the Institute of Neuroscience, Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, described a novel neural circuit for detecting male pheromone cues pertaining to inter-male aggression. Innate social behaviors are crucial for the propagation […]