THEPSYCHOLOGYTURKEY

Children who begin reading for pleasure early in life tend to perform better at cognitive tests and have better mental health when they enter adolescence, a study of more than 10,000 young adolescents in the US has found. http://dlvr.it/SrSzVg

Loneliness is detrimental to well-being and often accompanied by feelings of not being understood by others. A new study found that the brain responses of lonely people differ from those of other lonely people and from those of people who are not lonely. The brain responses of people who are not lonely are very similar. Each lonely person studied showed brain responses that were idiosyncratic -- they deviated from the typical way an individual processes input or information. http://dlvr.it/SrRP77

Measuring human brain activity down to the cellular level: until now, this has been possible only to a limited extent. With a new approach it will now be much easier. The method relies on microelectrodes along with the support of brain tumor patients, who participate in studies while undergoing 'awake' brain surgery. This enabled the team to identify how our brain processes numbers. http://dlvr.it/SrPQ6K

In a study that followed more than 2,000 community-dwelling older adults over eight years, researchers say they have significant new evidence of a link between decreased sense of smell and risk of developing late-life depression. http://dlvr.it/SrMXzW

Using surveys, cognitive tests and brain imaging, researchers have identified a type of depression that affects about a quarter of patients. The goal is to diagnose and treat the condition more precisely. http://dlvr.it/Sr9ts1

Researchers have identified a group of nerve cells in the mouse brain that are involved in creating negative emotional states and chronic stress. The neurons, which have been mapped with a combination of advanced techniques, also have receptors for estrogen, which could explain why women as a group are more sensitive to stress than men. http://dlvr.it/Sr8W4T

Engineers designed a technology to probe connections between the brain and the digestive tract. Using fibers embedded with a variety of sensors, as well as optogenetic stimulation, the researchers could control neural circuits connecting the gut and the brain, in mice. http://dlvr.it/Sr844S

New research has revealed everyone's brain has a 'pain fingerprint' that varies from person to person. http://dlvr.it/Sr5cSZ

Anything with three hearts, blue blood and skin that can change colors like a display in Times Square is likely to turn heads. Meet Sepia bandensis, known more descriptively as the camouflaging dwarf cuttlefish. Over the past three years, neuroscientists have put together a brain atlas of this captivating cephalopod: a neuroanatomical roadmap depicting for the first time the brain's overall 32-lobed structure as well its cellular organization. http://dlvr.it/Sr3FG2

Receptor patterns define key organizational principles in the brain, scientists have discovered. http://dlvr.it/Sr0LTb

A new, biodegradable ultrasound far more powerful than previous devices could make brain cancers more treatable, researchers report. http://dlvr.it/SqxNYF

For the first time, cells involved with the communication between stress responses in the brain and inflammation in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract have been identified in animal models. Glial cells, which support neurons, communicate stress signals from the central nervous system (CNS) to the semi-autonomous nervous system within the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, called the enteric nervous system (ENS). These psychological stress signals can cause inflammation and exacerbate symptoms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). http://dlvr.it/SqvPcD

Researchers have uncovered novel aspects of astrocyte function in olfactory, or smell, perception revealing changes in their gene expression patterns that turn these brain cells into a hub of olfactory sensation processing. http://dlvr.it/Sqt574

A new study has identified a treatment that could repair myelin in the cortex, undoing some of the damage caused by MS. http://dlvr.it/SqrWSF

A study looking at how the human brain reacts to traveling outside Earth's gravity suggests frequent flyers should wait three years after longer missions to allow the physiological changes in their brains to reset. http://dlvr.it/Sqq8N4

Neuroscientists have long searched for ways to reopen 'critical periods' in the brain, when mammals are more sensitive to signals from their surroundings that can influence periods of brain development. Now, researchers say a new study in mice shows that psychedelic drugs are linked by their common ability to reopen such critical periods, but differ in the length of time the critical period is open -- from two days to four weeks with a single dose. http://dlvr.it/SqpYqV

Cognitive deficits accompany mood disorders and other psychiatric conditions, often with debilitating effects. Limited treatments currently exist, but studies in animals and humans have pointed to drugs such as the laxative prucalopride that activate serotonin receptors as a potential therapeutic for the symptoms. It has remained unclear, however, how the medication affects resting brain activity. Now, a new study examines the drug's effects in healthy human adults. http://dlvr.it/SqmlT6

Scientists have created one of the most detailed 3D images of the synapse, the important juncture where neurons communicate with each other through an exchange of chemical signals. These nanometer scale models will help scientists better understand and study neurodegenerative diseases such as Huntington's disease and schizophrenia. http://dlvr.it/Sql7XP

Researchers found where plaques are found in the brain may impact hearing in Alzheimer's disease. http://dlvr.it/Sqhmc2

In a pioneering study involving serial entrepreneurs and managers, a multidisciplinary research team, combining entrepreneurship researchers and brain specialists, found evidence of increased neuronal connectivity in the brains of entrepreneurs, which may contribute to distinct cognitive attributes. http://dlvr.it/SqdQxc

A new study offers an explanation for why light-to-moderate alcohol consumption may be associated with lower risk of heart disease. For the first time, researchers found that alcohol, in light to moderate quantities, was associated with long-term reductions in stress signaling in the brain. http://dlvr.it/SqcmkN

Heavy alcohol consumption may cause permanent dysregulation of neurons, or brain cells, in adolescents, according to a new study in mice. The findings suggest that exposure to binge-levels of alcohol during adolescence, when the brain is still developing, lead to long-lasting changes in the brain's ability to signal and communicate -- potentially setting the stage for long-term behavioral changes and hinting towards the mechanisms of alcohol-induced cognitive changes in humans. http://dlvr.it/SqZqnn

Researchers have shown that defective myelin actively promotes disease-related changes in Alzheimer's disease. http://dlvr.it/SqRvmq

Stress can override natural satiety cues to drive more food intake and boost cravings for sweets. http://dlvr.it/SqR6gJ

The pandemic and its aftermath have raised anxiety to new levels. But the roots of anxiety-related conditions, including obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorder (OCSD), are still unclear. In a new study, scientists discovered insights into the importance of a minor cell type in the brain -- microglia -- in controlling anxiety-related behaviors in laboratory mice. The findings could lead to new approaches for targeted therapies. http://dlvr.it/SqK9P9

New research shines light on how parents who talk more to their infants improve their children's brain development. Scientists used imaging and audio recordings to link early language skills to caregiver speech, delivering an affirming message that parents can greatly influence their child's linguistic growth in ways that are trackable in brain scans. http://dlvr.it/SqFcQ3

For over a century, researchers have thought that the patterns of brain activity that define our experiences, hopes and dreams are determined by how different brain regions communicate with each other through a complex web of trillions of cellular connections. Now, a study has examined more than 10,000 different maps of human brain activity and found that the overall shape of a person's brain exerts a far greater influence on how we think, feel and behave than its intricate neuronal connectivity. http://dlvr.it/SqCHxJ

Scientists have identified the neurons that are activated when perceiving others, as well as the neurons that represent value information associated with others in the CA1 region of the hippocampus using a novel social recognition experiment. http://dlvr.it/Sq3lZ3

New research provides the first physiological evidence from inside the human brain supporting the dominant scientific theory on how the brain consolidates memory during sleep. Further, deep-brain stimulation during a critical time in the sleep cycle appeared to improve memory consolidation. http://dlvr.it/Sq12sX

Links have been reported between schizophrenia and proteins produced by the immune system that can act against one's own body, known as autoantibodies. Researchers have now identified autoantibodies that target a 'synaptic adhesion protein' in a subset of patients with schizophrenia. When injected into mice, the autoantibodies caused many schizophrenia-related changes. http://dlvr.it/SpyZVf