Brain

Do you have a brain for math? New research indicates levels of two key neurotransmitters can predict mathematics ability, suggesting brain chemistry may be playing a role in those who find math easy.

A new molecule may help reduce side effects in a drug that could treat alcohol use disorder. Essentially, the molecule disarms the drug in most of the body, but can’t cross the blood-brain barrier, letting the drug get to work in the brain only.

Researchers have discovered one of the oldest and best-preserved brains in the fossil record. A 310-million-year-old horseshoe crab was found with its complete brain intact, thanks to a previously unknown preservation method.

For over a century scientists have known taking breaks while learning can improve long-term memory retention. A new study offers some of the first evidence to show how this actually works in the brain.

Australian scientists have found chronic pain is associated with lower levels of key neurotransmitters in the brain. It is believed this chemical disruption plays a role in the difficulties people with chronic pain have in regulating negative emotions.

Microglia are immune cells that clean out unwanted debris in the brain and central nervous system, but it turns out they might help heal injured neurons too – a discovery that could pave the way for new treatments for epilepsy and other conditions.

A new study has detected cognitive deficits in recovered COVID-19 patients, finding the more severe the case, the greater the persistent cognitive problems, with hospitalized patients put on ventilators showing a decline equivalent to seven IQ points.

An intriguing study is proposing an innovative method to treat age-related memory loss. The preclinical research shows memory decline in aging mice can be reversed by manipulating the composition of structures in the brain known as perineuronal nets.

Researchers have demonstrated, for the first time, a brain implant turning neural activity into full words. The first participant in the trial, a paralyzed man, can now speak with a vocabulary of 50 words by simply thinking about vocalizing words.

Among other things, brain implants are capable of stimulating specific neurons, and of delivering medication to specific regions. An experimental new implant could overcome a common limitation of others, by transforming from rigid to soft states.

A landmark study is describing the successful results of a trial testing a targeted gene therapy for children with a rare genetic disease. The research demonstrates a novel method for delivering gene therapies to specific locations deep in the brain.

A great deal of research centers on restoring youthful plasticity to older brains as a way of tackling some effects of aging, and a team in Austria has now identified a pair of promising new approaches – ketamine and flickering light.