Lifeboat Foundation

Northwestern Medicine scientists have discovered for the first time that the rhythm of breathing creates electrical activity in the human brain that enhances emotional judgments and memory recall.

These effects on behavior depend critically on whether you inhale or exhale and whether you breathe through the nose or mouth.

In the study, individuals were able to identify a fearful face more quickly if they encountered the face when breathing in compared to breathing out. Individuals also were more likely to remember an object if they encountered it on the inhaled breath than the exhaled one. The effect disappeared if breathing was through the mouth.

Scientists hoping to get a glimpse of molecules that control brain activity have devised a new probe that allows them to image these molecules without using any chemical or radioactive labels.

Currently the gold standard approach to imaging molecules in the brain is to tag them with radioactive probes. However, these probes offer low resolution and they can’t easily be used to watch dynamic events, says Alan Jasanoff, an MIT professor of biological engineering.

Jasanoff and his colleagues have developed new sensors consisting of proteins designed to detect a particular target, which causes them to dilate blood vessels in the immediate area. This produces a change in blood flow that can be imaged with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or other imaging techniques.

Continue reading “A radiation-free approach to imaging molecules in the brain” »

Great.

Research published in Acta Neuropathologica, identified alterations in a protein known as ATRX in human brain tumours; researchers might also be able to target microRNAs directly, altering their levels to make cancer cells less likely to form tumours.

A recent study suggests that two recently discovered genetic differences between brain cancer cells and normal tissue cells could offer clues to tumour behaviour and potential new targets for therapy.

Continue reading “Research sets new target for brain cancer therapy” »

Hmmmm.

Sam Gussman arrived four years ago at Stanford University hoping to eventually parlay an engineering degree into a product manager job at Google or Facebook.

Working for the National Security Agency or other intelligence bureaus never crossed his mind. For Gussman, the government didn’t seem like the place for the most exciting, cutting-edge research in human computer interaction — his area of interest. Plus, it did no on-campus recruiting, unlike the many tech startups that e-mailed him daily about job opportunities and happy hours.

Continue reading “Should tech grads pick defense over Silicon Valley?” »

You know that feeling when you’re awake but still unable to process anything around you? There’s a scientific reason for it.

A huge discovery has just been made about Parkinson’s disease that scientists may have been looking for answers in the wrong place all along. Scientists have found that there is a strong correlation between symptoms of Parkinson’s and bacteria in the gut, not the brain, based on examinations of mice.

Parkinson’s disease is the second most common debilitating brain disorder in the world after Alzheimer’s. It is a neurodegenerative disease that involves a type of protein that builds up around brain cells and then causes the patient to lose motor function. Naturally, scientists had been looking at the brain for answers in dealing with it, but a new study finds that perhaps the answer was in the gut bacteria all along, according to an Axial Biotherapeutics statement.

The finding could lead to a new generation of probiotics that are far more sophisticated than typical brands currently available to the public.

Continue reading “Massive Parkinson’s discovery could change everything” »

Researchers have connected gut bacteria to the brain changes in Parkinson’s.

Correction:
Fluid intelligence is just the ability to think and reason abstractly. The higher your fluid intelligence, in theory, the faster and more efficient you become at thinking abstractly.

One study shows that people with very high fluid intelligence have closer connections between neurons which allows them to reach conclusions faster. Another shows that the brain organizes itself in a more efficient manner allowing them to use less brain power to reach the same conclusions someone of lower intelligence would take longer to come to.

In Brief

• Scientists are developing new ways to bridge the gap between our bodies and electronics by mimicking the connections between neurons.
• Countless individuals stand to gain increased functionality and quality of life by these new developments in bio-hybrid devices like prosthetics and brain implants.