THEPSYCHOLOGYTURKEY

It is well known that people who have lived through traumatic events like sexual assault, domestic abuse, or violent combat can experience symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), including terrifying flashbacks, severe anxiety, and uncontrollable thoughts about the incident. But what exactly happens in the brains of PTSD patients as they recall these traumatic events? Are they remembered the same way as, say, the loss of a beloved pet -- or, for that matter, a relaxing walk on the beach? http://dlvr.it/SzXt6v

Researchers have succeeded in restoring lost brain function in mouse models of stroke using small molecules that in the future could potentially be developed into a stroke recovery therapy. http://dlvr.it/SzXMCX

Using artificial intelligence (AI) to analyze specialized brain MRI scans of adolescents with and without attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), researchers found significant differences in nine brain white matter tracts in individuals with ADHD. http://dlvr.it/SzXLz2

With little insight into the impact of a lack of sleep on risky decision-making at the neuroimaging level, researchers found a 24-hour period of sleep deprivation significantly impacted individuals' decision-making processes by dampening neural responses to the outcomes of their choices. http://dlvr.it/SzWZJk

Scientists describe how they identified a molecule that may trigger over-consumption of comfort foods after a threatening event. http://dlvr.it/SzWYy0

New research links soccer heading -- where players hit the ball with their head -- to a measurable decline in the microstructure and function of the brain over a two-year period. http://dlvr.it/SzV6Nj

The evolution of higher cognitive functions in humans has so far mostly been linked to the expansion of the neocortex. Researchers are increasingly realizing, however, that the 'little brain' or cerebellum also expanded during evolution and probably contributes to the capacities unique to humans. A research team has now generated comprehensive genetic maps of the development of cells in the cerebella of human, mouse and opossum. Comparisons of these maps reveal both ancestral and species-specific cellular and molecular characteristics of cerebellum development. http://dlvr.it/SzTqL4

Investigators revealed how genetic changes in certain types of brain cells may contribute to the inflammatory response seen in Alzheimer's disease. http://dlvr.it/SzTR17

Damage to the body's peripheral nerves can cause pain and movement disorders. Researchers have recently investigated how damaged nerves can regenerate better. They found that fat tissue strongly supports the Schwann cells needed for repair during the healing process. http://dlvr.it/SzS13j

Researchers discovered a mechanism for repairing damaged nerves during peripheral neuropathy in mice, wherein the protein Mitf orchestrates nerve repair after both trauma-induced and chronic nerve damage conditions, like Charcot Marie Tooth disease. Their findings may inspire novel therapeutics that bolster repair function and heal peripheral neuropathy -- even in hereditary and developmental cases. http://dlvr.it/SzS0tp

Experiences of discrimination and acculturation are known to have a detrimental effect on a person's health. For pregnant women, these painful experiences can also affect the brain circuitry of their children, a new study finds. These effects, the researchers say, are separate from those caused by general stress and depression. The study was published in the journal Neuropsychopharmacology. http://dlvr.it/SzQTjB

Researchers have discovered that a part of the brain associated with working memory and multisensory integration may also play an important role in how the brain processes social cues. Previous research has shown that neurons in the ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (VLPFC) integrate faces and voices -- but new research shows that neurons in the VLPFC play a role in processing both the identity of the 'speaker' and the expression conveyed by facial gestures and vocalizations. http://dlvr.it/SzQTTQ

A researcher contends that the understanding of AI is muddled by linguistics: That while indeed intelligent, AI cannot be intelligent in the way that humans are, even though 'it can lie and BS like its maker.' http://dlvr.it/SzPS4D

Hospital MRI scanners, using 3 Tesla magnets, provide poor spatial resolution in brain imaging. More recent 7T MRIs are better but used mainly in the rare research lab. Scientists have now supercharged the standard 7T scanner to improve the resolution by nearly a factor of 10 -- a 50-times improvement over standard 3T MRIs. The NexGen 7T can track signals through the brain and perhaps tie functional changes to brain maladies. http://dlvr.it/SzPFXq

Facemap uses a mouse's facial movements to predict brain activity, bringing researchers one step closer to understanding brain-wide signals driven by spontaneous behaviors. http://dlvr.it/SzLffK

Researchers have found that a form of cholesterol known as cholesteryl esters builds up in the brains of mice with Alzheimer's-like disease, and that clearing out the cholesteryl esters helps prevent brain damage and behavioral changes. http://dlvr.it/SzLTQm

Using a specialized device that translates images into sound, neuroscientists showed that people who are blind recognized basic faces using the part of the brain known as the fusiform face area, a region that is crucial for the processing of faces in sighted people. http://dlvr.it/SzLTFt

What is the mechanism that allows our brains to incorporate new information about the world, and form memories? New work by a team of neuroscientists shows that learning occurs through the continuous formation of new connectivity patterns between specific engram cells in different regions of the brain. http://dlvr.it/SzH384

Faced with images that break the expected pattern, like a do not enter sign where a stop sign is expected, how does the brain react and learn compared to being shown images which match what was predicted? That was the question a team set out to answer. A long-standing theory suggests the brain learns a predictive model of the world and its internal predictions are updated when incoming sensory data proves them wrong. http://dlvr.it/SzF7Zq

Psychologists are using EEG to research what games reveal about our ability to cooperate. http://dlvr.it/SzBtYt

A new study has revealed a new culprit in the formation of brain hemorrhages that does not involve injury to the blood vessels, as previously believed. Researchers discovered that interactions between aged red blood cells and brain capillaries can lead to cerebral microbleeds, offering deeper insights into how they occur and identifying potential new therapeutic targets for treatment and prevention. http://dlvr.it/Sz9pLx

Contrary to the commonly-held view, the brain does not have the ability to rewire itself to compensate for the loss of sight, an amputation or stroke, for example, say scientists. The researchers argue that the notion that the brain, in response to injury or deficit, can reorganize itself and repurpose particular regions for new functions, is fundamentally flawed -- despite being commonly cited in scientific textbooks. Instead, they argue that what is occurring is merely the brain being trained to utilize already existing, but latent, abilities. http://dlvr.it/Sz8QSD

A team of researchers employed hearing tests and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to determine whether hearing impairment is associated with differences in specific brain regions and affects dementia risk. http://dlvr.it/Sz8QL0

Children whose mothers are highly stressed, anxious or depressed during pregnancy may be at higher risk for mental health and behavior issues during their childhood and teen years, according to new research. http://dlvr.it/Syzb7t

New research shows that a cocktail of drugs already approved to treat high blood pressure quickly reduces brain swelling and improves outcomes in animal models of brain injury.  http://dlvr.it/Syzb02

New research shows promise in treating addiction cravings by combining eye movements and guided instructions to process memories. Researchers transformed dysfunctional memories stored in the brain through processing and integration. EMDR was as effective as cognitive behavioral therapy for cravings with the combination of both resulting in more reduction in craving than cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) alone. Both groups (experimental group and control group using only CBT) had clinically significant reductions in cravings, repetitive negative thoughts, and irrational cognitions, with the experimental group showing greater decreases overall.   http://dlvr.it/SyzZrK

Researchers have shed new light on why electroconvulsive therapy has such a high success rate, a mystery that has puzzled doctors and scientists for almost a century. Findings could help improve this controversial treatment. http://dlvr.it/SyxJ5x

A new research study shows that cerebrospinal fluid reduces current treatment efficacy in brain cancer and identifies new therapeutic opportunities. Cerebrospinal fluid, the clear colourless liquid that protects the brain, also may be a factor that makes brain cancers resistant to treatment, researchers reveal. http://dlvr.it/SyxHx2

A hunger hormone produced in the gut can directly impact a decision-making part of the brain in order to drive an animal's behavior, finds a new study. http://dlvr.it/Syx5lj

Depression is one of the most common mental illnesses in the world, but current anti-depressants have yet to meet the needs of many patients. Neuroscientists recently discovered a small molecule that can effectively alleviate stress-induced depressive symptoms in mice by preventing aversive memory formation with a lower dosage, offering a new direction for developing anti-depressants in the future. http://dlvr.it/Syx5ch

With the rise of new drugs that can target the amyloid-beta plaques in the brain that are an early sign of Alzheimer's disease, new ways are needed to determine whether memory loss and thinking problems are due to Alzheimer's disease or another neurodegenerative disorder. A new study shows that shrinkage in the hippocampus area of the brain is associated with cognitive decline, even in people who don't have amyloid plaques in the brain. The hippocampus plays a role in memory. http://dlvr.it/Syx5SY

Researchers have shown how the tau protein, known for its role in dementias, behaves where communication in the brain takes place. http://dlvr.it/SytQ9m

Monitoring brain injury biomarkers and glucose variation in patients who have suffered an acute cranial injury during the entire first week of hospitalization can provide a more accurate picture of the pathological process. http://dlvr.it/SytPwr

When we engage in social interactions, like shaking hands or having a conversation, our observation of other people's actions is crucial. But what exactly happens in our brain during this process: how do the different brain regions talk to each other? Researchers provide an intriguing answer: our perception of what others do depends more on what we expect to happen than previously believed.  http://dlvr.it/SyshxL

Hormonal contraceptives taken by adolescents may influence development of the brain in a way that alters the recognition of risks, a new study in rats suggests. http://dlvr.it/Syqgh2

A new element of the catastrophic impacts of climate change is emerging -- how global warming is impacting the human brain. http://dlvr.it/SynnSF

A surprising thing happened when researchers began exploring whether early-life stress compounds the effects of a childhood head injury on health and behavior later in life: In an animal study, stress changed the activation level of many more genes in the brain than were changed by a bump to the head. http://dlvr.it/SynnHJ

Research and treatment of psychiatric disorders are stymied by a lack of biomarkers -- objective biological or physiological markers that can help diagnose, track, predict, and treat diseases. In a new study, researchers use a very large dataset to identify predictive brain imaging-based biomarkers of mental illness in adolescents. http://dlvr.it/SylRFW

A new study shows that the delivery of drugs into the brain, and especially into glial cells, can be enhanced with prodrugs that temporarily incorporate thyroxine or a thyroxine-like molecule. http://dlvr.it/Syl4Dm

Results from a new clinical trial suggest that a group of brain regions known as the 'salience network' is activated after a drug is taken intravenously, but not when that same drug is taken orally. When drugs enter the brain quickly, such as through injection or smoking, they are more addictive than when they enter the brain more slowly, such as when they are taken orally. However, the brain circuits underlying these differences are not well understood. This study offers new information that helps explain what may be causing this difference. http://dlvr.it/Syl43z

To expand the understanding of memory, a research team has developed a technology called LCD-eGRASP (local circuit dual-eGRASP) that can label synapses of neural circuits within a specific brain region. The team applied this new technology to identify the local synaptic connections between inhibitory interneurons and engram cells, shedding light on the role of inhibitory interneurons in memory expression. http://dlvr.it/SykZHQ

Researchers discovered the cerebellum coordinates the brain network essential for social recognition memory.  http://dlvr.it/SyjwSj

There is a general understanding that pets have a positive impact on one's well-being. A new study found that although pet owners reported pets improving their lives, there was not a reliable association between pet ownership and well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic.  http://dlvr.it/SyhwKf

Physical fitness since childhood is associated with cerebellar grey matter volume in adolescents. Those who were stronger, faster and more agile, in other words, had better neuromuscular fitness since childhood, had larger Crus I grey matter volume in adolescence. http://dlvr.it/SyhBYZ

Researchers have found that the human brain can distinguish between an outcome caused by human error and one in which the person's decision-making is blameless. The brain takes just one second to separate the outcomes, and in cases involving human error, extra time to catalog the mistake. http://dlvr.it/Syh23n

A team of researchers has found that slightly higher, but mild anxious or depressive symptoms in fathers were associated with fewer behavioral difficulties in the first years of elementary school and better scores on a standardized IQ test in their children. http://dlvr.it/Syb0Kn

Researchers have identified a new neural circuit in the brain which produces a strong sense of discomfort when activated. The discovery also allows them to show for the first time that the subthalamic nucleus, a structure in the brain that controls voluntary movements, may also play a role in the development of depression. The results could lead to better treatments for Parkinson's disease. http://dlvr.it/SyZmxg

Researchers show why only a subset of individuals exposed to trauma develop posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The research, centered on the body's stress hormone response, could pave the way for more targeted treatments for PTSD. http://dlvr.it/SyXNJ0

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a widespread mental health condition that for many is disabling. It has long been appreciated that MDD has genetic as well as environmental influences. In a new study researchers identify a gene that interacted with stress to mediate aspects of treatment-resistant MDD in an animal model. http://dlvr.it/SyXN5Q

A speech prosthetic developed by a collaborative team of Duke neuroscientists,  neurosurgeons, and engineers can translate a person's brain signals into what they're trying to say. The new technology might one day help people unable to talk due to neurological disorders regain the ability to communicate through a brain-computer interface. http://dlvr.it/SyTm1D