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腰果素对神经有修复作用
包裹在神经元轴突外层的髓鞘对大脑的正常运作至关重要，像是多发性硬化症等神经系统疾病的主要特征就是脑白质髓鞘的损伤。而现在，实验人员在腰果壳内发现了一种化学物质可以通过促使白细胞介素-33的生成对髓鞘进行修复。使用这种名叫腰果素的物质对脑炎小鼠进行治疗后，髓鞘的生成量成直线上升，瘫痪率则出现了明显的下降。该团队成员认为，腰果素这一物质的发现将对各种脱髓鞘类疾病的治疗产生深远的影响。
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线粒体动力学在神经发生中的重要地位
在大脑皮层进行神经发生，即神经干细胞进行增殖分化的过程中，神经干细胞内的细胞器会经历一次重塑。线粒体发生分裂的放射状胶质细胞（一种神经干细胞，简称RGC）最终会分化成神经元，而线粒体发生融合的RGC则会进行自我更新，维持其干细胞的身份。影响RGC分化情况的这一阶段发生在有丝分裂后，且其持续时间视物种类别不同而有长有短。使用化学手段和基因调控，就可以操控人类体外神经干细胞和小鼠体内神经干细胞内线粒体在此阶段内的分裂和融合情况，从而改变RGC的分化命运。对神经发生细节的进一步了解让我们离彻底理清大脑发育原理又近了一步。
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比起即刻的奖励儿童更喜欢进行探索
儿童能像成年人一样通过学习了解到哪个选择才是最优解，但不同于成年人，儿童并不会在得出结论后就直接选择那个答案。在不确定性较高的环境中，他们倾向于继续系统的对其它选项进行探索，以防其中哪项的价值发生了变化。而当不确定性只集中在小部分的选项中时，孩子们的行为就会出现两极分化，有的会继续搜集信息而有的则会像成年人一样有针对性的选择最优解。儿童和成年人的这种行为差异可能源自于其大脑所处的生长阶段不同，早期丰富的探索性行为能帮助孩子获取更多的知识，以加深对世界的理解。
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维生素B1能保护大脑远离酒精性痴呆
过度饮酒会对认知功能产生负面影响，造成所谓的酒精性痴呆。研究人员推测，维生素B1的缺乏可能在其中起着重要的作用。已知铁在大脑中的积聚会导致脑组织出现氧化性损伤，而大量饮酒则会过度消耗体内的维生素B1。维生素B1对维持正常的血脑屏障至关重要，一旦长期缺乏，铁就更容易在大脑中沉积，从而对认知功能产生影响。使用药物降低脑铁含量或补充维生素B1将对大脑有一定的保护作用。
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Professor Brad Duchaine Quoted
PBS Professor and Department Chair Brad Duchaine’s recent publication in Current Biology, “Face-Specific Perceptual Distortions Reveal A View- and Orientation-Independent Face Template,” has been summarized and featured on several news sites including Science Daily, Neuroscience News, The Siasat Daily and NewsGram. Results of the study, achieved through two experiments involving a man with hemi-prosopometamorphopsia, indicate […]
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Primary Visual Cortex Encodes Information 3D Orienting Movements of the Head
For the past half century, neuroscientists have seen the visual cortex as the part of the brain that processes imagery. Visual information enters the brain via the retina and is processed one stage at a time by dedicated neural circuits, much like a car is assembled out of discrete components on an assembly line. Such […]
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Famous Economics Experiment Reproduced Thousands of Times
In an open marketplace, such as a farmers’ market where produce and other goods like candles and flowers are exchanged for money, the ideal prices for both consumers and sellers will quickly emerge. For example, if a seller tries to offer a bag of peaches for $10 but another vendor is willing to sell similar […]
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Pinpointing the cells that keep the body’s master circadian clock ticking
UT Southwestern scientists have developed a genetically engineered mouse and imaging system that lets them visualize fluctuations in the circadian clocks of cell types in mice. The method, described online in the journal Neuron, gives new insight into which brain cells are important in maintaining the body’s master circadian clock. But they say the approach […]
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Pregnant mother’s immunity tied to behavioral, emotional challenges for kids with autism
Children with autism born to mothers who had immune conditions during their pregnancy are more likely to have behavioral and emotional problems, a UC Davis Health study has found. The study examined maternal immune history as a predictor of symptoms in children with autism. “We tested the ability of maternal immune history to predict ASD […]
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Study uncovers the molecular events by which popular antidepressants work
Some highly effective medications also happen to be highly mysterious. Such is the case with the antidepressant drugs known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, or SSRIs: They are the most common treatment for major depression and have been around for more than 40 years, yet scientists still do not know exactly how they work. Nor […]