Natural therapy: Brain

Showing posts with label Brain. Show all posts

Sunday, July 28, 2013

Scientists Map Ultra-high 3-D Resolution of Human Brain

It shows the human brain at a spatial resolution of 20 microns, smaller than the size of one fine strand of hair-exceeding that of existing reference brains presently in the public domain.

The new tool is made freely available to the broader scientific community to advance the field of neuroscience.

Researchers from Germany and Canada collaborated on the ultra-high resolution brain model.

The sophisticated modern image processing methods reveal an unprecedented look at the very fine details of the human brain's microstructure, or cellular level.

The anatomical tool will allow for three-dimensional cytoarchitectonic mapping of the human brain and serve as an atlas for small cellular circuit data, or single layers or sublayers of the cerebral cortex, explained the researchers.

Until recently, reference brains did not probe further than the macroscopic, or visible, components of the brain.

Now, the BigBrain provides a resolution much finer than the typical 1 mm resolution from MRI studies.

The findings are published in the journal Science, which is published by AAAS, the international non-profit science society.

Source-ANI

View the original article here

Saturday, July 20, 2013

New Research Shows How Ideas are Spread in the Brain

The research has a broad range of implications, and could lead to more effective public health campaigns, more persuasive advertisements and better ways for teachers to communicate with students, the study authors said.

"Our study suggests that people are regularly attuned to how the things they're seeing will be useful and interesting, not just to themselves but to other people," the study's senior author, Matthew Lieberman, a UCLA professor of psychology and of psychiatry and biobehavioral sciences, said.

"Before this study, we didn't know what brain regions were associated with ideas that become contagious, and we didn't know what regions were associated with being an effective communicator of ideas," lead author Emily Falk, who conducted the research as a UCLA doctoral student in Lieberman's lab and is currently a faculty member at the University of Pennsylvania's Annenberg School for Communication, said.

"Now we have mapped the brain regions associated with ideas that are likely to be contagious and are associated with being a good 'idea salesperson.' In the future, we would like to be able to use these brain maps to forecast what ideas are likely to be successful and who is likely to be effective at spreading them," she said.

The study is published online in the journal Psychological Science.

Source-ANI

View the original article here

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Low Levels of Toxic Proteins Linked to Brain Diseases: Research

Scientists studying thread-like chains of protein - called amyloid fibres - have found that low levels of these proteins may cause more harm to health than high levels.

These rarely formed protein chains, which have been linked with dozens of diseases, are produced as a result of a genetic flaw or changes in body chemistry brought about by ageing.

When this happens, short fibres are formed which become sticky and attract copies of themselves, forming an endless chain. These chains spontaneously break, creating more filament ends to which more proteins attach.

In the context of neurodegenerative diseases, it is these short, broken pieces that seem to be most harmful, scientists say.

Researchers have found that when protein levels are low, lots of short protein threads are formed. But when protein levels are high, this spontaneous breakage stops and most protein filaments remain long.

Compared with harmful short protein fibres, long fibres do not appear to be damaging in the case of neurodegenerative diseases. Researchers therefore believe that high levels of the protein - which lead to these longer chains - may actually be protective.

In addition to shedding light on disease, this insight into the protein chains may help scientists develop useful biomaterials, such as cell scaffolds, which are used for tissue engineering or to make artificial silk.

Cait MacPhee, Professor of Biological Physics at the University of Edinburgh's School of Physics and Astronomy, said; "We would expect that the higher the level of toxins, the worse the disease. However, in this study we found that the lower the level of the protein, the more of these damaging short fibres we see. Understanding how these protein chains form offers us insight not only into how diseases progress, but how we can produce controlled biomaterials for tissue engineering."

Source-Eurekalert

View the original article here

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Researchers Explain How Brain Stops Us from Being Impulsive

by Rukmani Krishna on? July 06, 2013 at 12:00 AM Research News Researchers have found that your feelings about something and the value you put on it are calculated similarly in a specific area of the brain. The researchers who are from Duke University study how the brain values things-a field called neuroeconomics. Researchers Explain How Brain Stops Us from Being Impulsive
The region is small area right between the eyes at the front of the brain. It's called the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, or vmPFC for short.

Scott Huettel, director of Duke's Center for Interdisciplinary Decision Science, said scientists studying emotion and neuroeconomics had independently singled out this area of the brain in their research but neither group recognized that the other's research was focused on it too.

Now, after a series of experiments in which subjects were asked to modify how they felt about something either positively or negatively, the Duke group is arguing that emotional and economic calculations are more closely related than brain scientists had realized.

"The neuroscience fits with your intuitive understanding," Amy Winecoff, a graduate student in psychology and neuroscience who led the research, said.

"Emotions appear to be relying on the same value system," she said.

The study is published in the Journal of Neuroscience.

Source-ANI

var xmlHttpvar imgpath,imagefunction RefreshImage(ImageId){image=document.getElementById(ImageId);//alert(ImageId);xmlHttp=GetXmlHttpObject();if (xmlHttp==null) { alert ("Your browser does not support AJAX!"); return; } var url="http://www.medindia.net/captcha/captcha.asp";url=url+"?x="+Math.random();imgpath=url;xmlHttp.onreadystatechange=stateChangedReg;xmlHttp.open("GET",url,true);xmlHttp.send(null);} function stateChangedReg(){if (xmlHttp.readyState==4){image.src = imgpath;}}function RequestCode(){xmlHttp=GetXmlHttpObject();if (xmlHttp==null) { alert ("Your browser does not support AJAX!"); return; } var url="http://www.medindia.net/captcha/reqimgvalue.asp";url=url+"?x="+Math.random();xmlHttp.onreadystatechange=stateChangedReq;xmlHttp.open("GET",url,true);xmlHttp.send(null);} function stateChangedReq(){if (xmlHttp.readyState==4){var seccode=xmlHttp.responseText;if(seccode==document.getElementById("scode").value){//alert(seccode + "same value");}else{document.getElementById("scode").value=xmlHttp.responseText;}}}function GetXmlHttpObject(){var xmlHttpNew=null;try { // Firefox, Opera 8.0+, Safari xmlHttpNew=new XMLHttpRequest(); }catch (e) { // Internet Explorer try { xmlHttpNew=new ActiveXObject("Msxml2.XMLHTTP"); } catch (e) { xmlHttpNew=new ActiveXObject("Microsoft.XMLHTTP"); } }return xmlHttpNew;}function GetXmlHttpObject(){var xmlHttp=null;try { // Firefox, Opera 8.0+, Safari xmlHttp=new XMLHttpRequest(); }catch (e) { // Internet Explorer try { xmlHttp=new ActiveXObject("Msxml2.XMLHTTP"); } catch (e) { xmlHttp=new ActiveXObject("Microsoft.XMLHTTP"); } }return xmlHttp;}

function fnsearch(){day1 = document.search.SelDay.value;month1 = document.search.SelMonth.value;year1 = document.search.SelYear.value;tmpdate=month1+"/"+day1+"/"+year1 fromdate=new Date(year1,month1-1,day1)if (!((fromdate.getDate()==day1)&&(fromdate.getMonth()+1==month1)&&(fromdate.getFullYear()==year1))){alert("Please Select a valid Date")document.search.SelDay.focus();return false;}tmpcatid=document.search.ncategoryid.value;tmpkeyword=document.search.keyword.value;document.search.action="http://www.medindia.net/news/newsday_list.asp?ddate="+tmpdate+"&ncategoryid=" +tmpcatid +"&keyword=" +tmpkeywordreturn true;}News Categories:?? Latest Health News Popular News AIDS/HIV News Alcohol & Drug Abuse News Alternative Medicine News Anti-Aging News Bird Flu News Cancer News Celebrity Health News Chikungunya News Child Health News Cholesterol News Clinical Trials News Corporate News Dengue News Dental News Diabetes News Diet & Nutrition News Drug News Education News Environmental Health General News Genetics & Stem Cells News Health Insurance News Heart Disease News Hospital News Hypertension News Indian Health News Lifestyle News Medical Gadgets Medical PDA News Medico Legal News Men?s Health News Mental Health News News on IT in Healthcare Nursing Profession News Obesity News Organ Donation News Research News Respiratory Disease News Senior Health News Sexual Health News Tropical Disease News Weight Loss Women Health News

View the original article here

Friday, July 12, 2013

Research Says Brain Epigenome Changes from Birth to Adolescence

Today, an article published in Science in collaboration with the group of Manel Esteller, Director of Epigenetics and Cancer Biology Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), ICREA researcher and Professor of Genetics at the University of Barcelona, gives us an important clue to understanding this process.

Researchers have discovered that people's frontal cortex (the part of the brain responsible for the conduct and the acquisition of new information) experiences a significant change from birth to the end of adolescence. The epigenome is transformed.

The study analyzes the epigenome of newborns, teenagers aged 16, and adults aged 25 and 50 in the United States and in Catalonia (Spain).

Epigenome

Epigenome is the set of chemical signals responsible for turning on or off genes in our DNA. The discovery published in Science shows that one of these epigenetic signals, methylation of genetic material, is progressively increased until the end of adolescence and entry into adulthood.

"The results of the study show that DNA methylation has a key role in shaping the communication spaces between neurons (synapses)", explains Esteller. "The brain is divided into white matter (glial) and gray matter (neurons) with several cell types with different functions. DNA methylation patterns distinguish genes with cell-type specific activity. Even in the gray matter, there are cell subtypes such as pyramidal neurons and GABA neurotransmitter producers that have specific subpatterns of DNA methylation."

Source-Eurekalert

View the original article here

Friday, June 21, 2013

Dietary supplement of bovine meat, oysters from brain disorders of fighting

by Sheela Philomena on May 25, 2013 at 12:23 News Diet & Nutrition phosphatidylserine - food supplement produced from beef, soya and oyster has been found to improve cognition and slow memory. Help of phosphatidylserine degenerative brain disorders combat, including Parkinson's disease and the Familial Dysautonomia (FD). Food Supplement from Beef, Oysters Fights Brain Disorders
It's the determination made by a team led by Professor Gil Ast and Dr. Ron Bochner of the Tel Aviv University Department of Human Molecular Genetics.

FD, a rare genetic disease that impact on the nervous system and seems almost exclusively among the Ashkenazi Jewish population, a genetic mutation prevents the brain from the manufacture of IKAP protein in good health - probably with a hand in cell migration and help connections between nerves - leading to early degeneration of neurons.

When the supplement was applied to cells taken from patients of the FD, the improved gene function and elevation of the IKAP protein level was observed, reports Prof. Ast.

These results have been replicated in a second experiment, to administer the supplement orally to populations of mice with FD.

The results are very encouraging, said Prof. Ast.

"We see such an effect on the brain - the most important body in relation to this disease - shows that the supplement can cross the blood - brain barrier even when administered by the oral route and accumulate in sufficient quantities in the brain," he said.

Already approved for use in addition to the FDA, phosphatidylserine contains an essential molecule for the transmission of signals between nerve cells in the brain. Prof. Ast and fellow researchers decided to check if the same chemical that is naturally synthesized in the body and known to increase the memory capacity, that could affect the genetic mutation that leads to FD.

Researchers have applied a supplement derived from oysters, supplied by the Israeli firm Enzymotec, FD patients cells. Noticing a strong effect on the gene, including a jump in the production of IKAP protein in good health, they then tested the same supplement on murine models of FD, designed with the same genetic mutation that causes the disease in humans.

The mice received the supplement orally, every two days for a period of three months. Then, researchers conducted genetic tests comprehensive to evaluate the results of the treatment.

"We found a significant increase of protein in all tissues of the body," revealed Prof. Ast, including an increase in liver and increased in the brain.

"While the dietary supplement manufactures not new nerve cells, it delays probably the death of those that already exist," he added.

The supplement is able to improve the conditions in the brain, even when administered orally, is an important finding, distinguished professor of Ast.

In addition, according to the researchers, that the positive effects of the supplement to extend beyond the production of IKAP. Not only impacted phosphatidylserine gene associated with FD, but it has also changed the level of a total of 2400 other genes - hundreds of which have been connected to Parkinson's disease in previous studies.

Researchers believe that the supplement can have a beneficial effect on a number of degenerative diseases of the brain, concluded Professor Ast, including significant potential for the development of new drugs that would help the tens of millions of people around the world suffering from these devastating diseases.

The results were published in the journal Human Molecular Genetics.

Source-ANI

var xmlHttpvar imgpath, imagefunction RefreshImage (ImageId) {image = document.getElementById (ImageId) //alert (ImageId); xmlHttp = GetXmlHttpObject (); if (xmlHttp == null) {alert ("your browser does not support AJAX!"); return;} var url="http://www.medindia.net/captcha/captcha.asp";url=url+"?x="+Math.random();imgpath=url;xmlHttp.onreadystatechange=stateChangedReg;xmlHttp.open("GET",url,true);xmlHttp.send(null);} function stateChangedReg() {if (xmlHttp.readyState == 4) {image.src = imgpath;}}function RequestCode() {xmlHttp = GetXmlHttpObject (); if (xmlHttp == null) {alert ("your browser does not support AJAX!"); return;} var url="http://www.medindia.net/captcha/reqimgvalue.asp";url=url+"?x="+Math.random();xmlHttp.onreadystatechange=stateChangedReq;xmlHttp.open("GET",url,true);xmlHttp.send(null);} function stateChangedReq() {if (xmlHttp.readyState == 4) {var seccode = xmlHttp.responseText; if (seccode == document.getElementById ('scode') .value) {//alert (seccode + "same value");}}}else {document.getElementById("SCODE").{{{Value = xmlHttp.responseText;}}}function GetXmlHttpObject() {var xmlHttpNew = null; try {/ / Firefox, Opera 8.0 +, Safari xmlHttpNew = new XMLHttpRequest();}}catch (e) {/ / Internet Explorer try {xmlHttpNew = new ActiveXObject ("Msxml2.XMLHTTP");} catch (e) {xmlHttpNew = new ActiveXObject ("Microsoft.XMLHTTP");}}{Return xmlHttpNew;}function GetXmlHttpObject() {var xmlHttp = null; try {/ / Firefox, Opera 8.0 +, Safari xmlHttp = new XMLHttpRequest();}}catch (e) {/ / Internet Explorer try {xmlHttp = new ActiveXObject ("Msxml2.XMLHTTP");} catch (e) {xmlHttp = new ActiveXObject ("Microsoft.XMLHTTP");}}{return xmlHttp;}

View the original article here

Friday, June 7, 2013

Fear Circuitry in the Brain Never Rests in Combat Veterans With PTSD

by Kathy Jones on? May 19, 2013 at 3:22 PM Mental Health News It is well-known among clinicians that chronic trauma can inflict lasting damage to brain regions associated with fear and anxiety. Fear Circuitry in the Brain Never Rests in Combat Veterans With PTSD
Previous imaging studies of people with post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, have shown that these brain regions can over-or under-react in response to stressful tasks, such as recalling a traumatic event or reacting to a photo of a threatening face. Now, researchers at NYU School of Medicine have explored for the first time what happens in the brains of combat veterans with PTSD in the absence of external triggers.

Their results, published in Neuroscience Letters, and presented today at the annual meeting of the American Psychiatry Association in San Francisco, show that the effects of trauma persist in certain brain regions even when combat veterans are not engaged in cognitive or emotional tasks, and face no immediate external threats. The findings shed light on which areas of the brain provoke traumatic symptoms and represent a critical step toward better diagnostics and treatments for PTSD.

A chronic condition that develops after trauma, PTSD can plague victims with disturbing memories, flashbacks, nightmares and emotional instability. Among the 1.7 million men and women who have served in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, an estimated 20% have PTSD. Research shows that suicide risk is higher in veterans with PTSD. Tragically, more soldiers committed suicide in 2012 than the number of soldiers who were killed in combat in Afghanistan that year.

"It is critical to have an objective test to confirm PTSD diagnosis as self reports can be unreliable," says co-author Charles Marmar, MD, the Lucius N. Littauer Professor of Psychiatry and chair of NYU Langone's Department of Psychiatry. Dr. Marmar, a nationally recognized expert on trauma and stress among veterans, heads The Steven and Alexandra Cohen Veterans Center for the Study of Post-Traumatic Stress and Traumatic Brain Injury at NYU Langone Medical Center.

The study, led by Xiaodan Yan, a research fellow at NYU School of Medicine, examined "spontaneous" or "resting" brain activity in 104 veterans of combat from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars using functional MRI, which measures blood-oxygen levels in the brain. The researchers found that spontaneous brain activity in the amygdala, a key structure in the brain's "fear circuitry" that processes fearful and anxious emotions, was significantly higher in the 52 combat veterans with PTSD than in the 52 combat veterans without PTSD. The PTSD group also showed elevated brain activity in the anterior insula, a brain region that regulates sensitivity to pain and negative emotions.

Moreover, the PTSD group had lower activity in the precuneus, a structure tucked between the brain's two hemispheres that helps integrate information from the past and future, especially when the mind is wandering or disengaged from active thought. Decreased activity in the precuneus correlates with more severe "re-experiencing" symptoms?that is, when victims re-experience trauma over and over again through flashbacks, nightmares and frightening thoughts.

Key scientific contributors include researchers at NYU School of Medicine, the University of California at San Francisco, Mt. Sinai School of Medicine, and the Center for Imaging of Neurodegenerative Diseases at the VA Medical Center in San Francisco.

Source-Eurekalert

View the original article here

DM

Sunday, July 28, 2013

Saturday, July 20, 2013

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Friday, July 12, 2013

Friday, June 21, 2013

Friday, June 7, 2013