Damage in Brain Communication Networks Linked to Insomnia

Using a sophisticated MRI technique, researchers have found abnormalities in the brain’s white matter tracts in patients with insomnia. Said researcher Shumei Li, M.S., from the Department of Medical Imaging, Guangdong No. 2 Provincial People’s Hospital, Guangzhou, China: “Insomnia is a remarkably prevalent disorder. However, its causes and consequences remain elusive.” Primary insomnia, in which…

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Biomarker Of Poor Memory In Schizophrenia Patients Found

A pattern of brain activity that may be a sign of memory problems in people with schizophrenia has been identified by a new study. The biomarker, which the researchers believe may be the first of its kind, is an important step toward understanding and treating one of the most devastating symptoms of schizophrenia. Although schizophrenia…

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Executive Function Areas Of Bilingual Baby Brains Show Higher Activity

Many brain studies show that bilingual adults have more activity in areas associated with executive function, a set of mental abilities that includes problem-solving, shifting attention and other desirable cognitive traits. Now new findings reveal that this bilingualism-related difference in brain activity is evident as early as 11 months of age, just as babies are…

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Viruses Prompt Bacteria To Produce Pink Pigments

Plants use certain color pigments in order to convert light into energy by way of photosynthesis. They allow plants to gather light energy. This also works in a similar way for microbes, for instance cyanobacteria. The fact that a very large number of viruses are able to contribute towards pigment production has now been demonstrated…

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Do Cancer Cells Synthesize The Parts For New Cells?

Cancer cells are defined by their ability for uncontrolled growth, one cell quickly becoming two, and two becoming many. Gary Patti, associate professor of chemistry at Washington University in St. Louis, says: “It’s a fascinating process. Imagine creating two copies of yourself every few days, instead of just maintaining the one you have. In the…

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What Are Mirror Neurons?

A mirror neuron is a neuron that fires both when an animal acts and when the animal observes the same action performed by another. Thus, the neuron “mirrors” the behavior of the other, as though the observer were itself acting. Such neurons have been directly observed in primate species. Birds have been shown to have…

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Veterans With PTSD Show Brain Changes After Mindfulness Training

Bad memories and thoughts can keep playing over and over in the minds of people with post-traumatic stress disorder, like an endlessly repeating video loop. They barge in at the quietest of moments. And they don’t seem to have any off switch. But a new study in veterans with PTSD shows the promise of mindfulness…

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Aging Curtails Post Spinal Cord Injury Axon Regeneration

Older Americans are increasingly active, and this lifestyle shift has contributed to the rise in average age of a person experiencing a spinal cord injury. The changing demographic calls for a clearer picture of how aging impacts recovery and repair after a spinal cord injury. Researchers at University of California, San Diego School of Medicine…

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Divergent Amygdala Circuits In Positive And Negative Memory Recall

Some mental illnesses may stem, in part, from the brain’s inability to correctly assign emotional associations to events. For example, people who are depressed often do not feel happy even when experiencing something that they normally enjoy. A new study from MIT reveals how two populations of neurons in the brain contribute to this process.…

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