ScienceDaily: Mind & Brain News

By scanning the genomes of nearly 6,000 stroke patients, researchers have identified two genes associated with recovery. Both are involved in regulating neuronal excitability, suggesting that targeting overstimulated neurons may help promote recovery in the pivotal first 24 hours.

Abnormalities in a type of brain cell called astrocytes may play a pivotal role in causing some behavioral symptoms of autism spectrum disorders, according to a preclinical study.

In a novel set of experiments with mice trained to do a sequence of movements and 'change course' at the spur of the moment, scientists report they have identified areas of the animals' brains that interact to control the ability to perform complex, sequential movements, as well as to help the mice rebound when their movements are interrupted without warning.

With a comprehensive map of the wiring, researchers can now discern what information flows into the circuit to enable a key brain function.

A new study has found that after a severe stroke treated with mechanical clot removal, about one third of stroke survivors resumed work three months later. Women were about half as likely to return to work three months after a severe stroke compared to men. The likelihood of returning to work for both men and women after a severe stroke was higher if they were treated with combined mechanical clot removal and clot-busting stroke medications as compared to mechanical clot removal alone.

In a study that offers hope for human dieters, rats on a 30-day diet who exercised intensely resisted cues for favored, high-fat food pellets. The experiment was designed to test resistance to the phenomenon known as 'incubation of craving,' meaning the longer a desired substance is denied, the harder it is to ignore signals for it. The findings suggest that exercise modulated how hard the rats were willing to work for cues associated with the pellets, reflecting how much they craved them.

People may forgo displaying luxury brands and other signals of status when they want to convince others that they will collaborate well with a team, as people who signal their wealth and social status could be perceived as uncooperative, according to new research.

People with type 2 diabetes who have cognitive impairment could be at greater risk for stroke, heart attack or death than other individuals with diabetes, according to a new study.

Researchers recently created a mouse model to represent premature infants of very low birthweight and to find treatment options for GMH, which currently has no treatment and is often fatal or debilitating. By inhibiting the complement system at a specific site within the brain immediately after a hemorrhage, many of the permanent and temporary deficits that accompany hydrocephalus and stroke can be prevented, according to a new article.

Black women are disproportionately affected by poor sleep, which is associated with increased risk of adverse outcomes such as cardiovascular disease, depression and worse quality of life. The gold standard treatment for insomnia is cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I), which specifically targets the individual's problematic sleep behaviors and beliefs.

Immune cell responses to bacteria affect the intrinsic excitability of rat neuronal subtypes differently. Calcium-activated SK channels in pyramidal cells were modulated by microglia and upregulated, while they were downregulated in Purkinje cells.