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Category: neuroscience

Psilocybin shows greater potential than cannabinoids for obsessive-compulsive disorder treatment

In a review of previous studies, McMaster University researchers observe a stronger signal for psilocybin as a treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder than cannabinoids.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder involves persistent, intrusive thoughts and repetitive mental or physical behaviors, and requires long-term treatment to alleviate symptoms. The ethology of the disorder appears complex, involving multiple biological pathways. Imbalances in central serotonin, dopamine, and glutamate activities are widely thought to play a causative role, placing neurochemistry at the center of many treatment strategies.

First-line treatment includes selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and cognitive behavioral therapy using exposure and response prevention. Roughly 40–60% of patients remain unresponsive to psychotherapy or pharmacotherapy, alone or combined, placing many people in the category of treatment-resistant OCD.

Not everyone reads the room the same: Some brains perform a complicated assessment—while others take a shortcut

Are you a social savant who easily reads people’s emotions? Or are you someone who leaves an interaction with an unclear understanding of another person’s emotional state?

New UC Berkeley research suggests that those differences stem from a fundamental way our brains compute facial and contextual details, potentially explaining why some people are better at reading the room than others—sometimes, much better.

30,000 Brain Scans Reveal a Hidden Danger in Ultra-Processed Foods

Brain imaging of 30,000 people revealed that ultra-processed foods are associated with structural differences in the brain that could fuel overeating.

The study suggests that additives like emulsifiers may influence these effects. While some processed foods are beneficial, ultra-processed products pose a clear risk.

Brain imaging study reveals concerning links to ultra-processed foods.

Scientists Discover Why Losing a Tiny Patch of Brain Insulation Can Disrupt Thought

A mouse study reveals that losing a small but critical segment of myelin can disrupt how the brain encodes and transmits information. Nerve cells are wrapped in a protective coating called (myelin), which enables electrical signals to travel rapidly through the brain. Scientists have long known t

Psilocybin Breaks Depressive Cycles by Rewiring The Brain, Study Suggests

Scientists have used a specially engineered virus to help track the brain changes caused by psilocybin in mice, revealing how the drug could be breaking loops of depressive thinking.

This may explain why psilocybin keeps showing positive results for people with depression in clinical trials.

“Rumination is one of the main points for depression, where people have this unhealthy focus, and they keep dwelling on the same negative thoughts,” says Cornell University biomedical engineer Alex Kwan.

Altered regional brain activity underlying the higher postoperative analgesic requirements in abstinent smokers: A prospective cohort study

New in JNeurosci from Wei, Tao, Bi et al: Smokers who have quit their nicotine use have altered brain activity linked to heightened pain sensitivity and a need for more postoperative pain relief.

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Perioperative abstinent smokers experience heightened pain sensitivity and increased postoperative analgesic requirements, likely due to nicotine withdrawal-induced hyperalgesia. However, the underlying neural mechanisms in humans remain unclear. To address this issue, this study enrolled 60 male patients (30 abstinent smokers and 30 nonsmokers) undergoing partial hepatectomy, collecting clinical data, smoking history, pain-related measures, and resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI). Compared to nonsmokers, abstinent smokers showed lower pain threshold and higher postoperative analgesic requirements. Neuroimaging revealed altered brain function in abstinent smokers, including reduced fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (fALFF, 0.01 – 0.1 Hz) in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC), increased regional homogeneity (ReHo) in the left middle occipital gyrus, and decreased functional connectivity (FC) between the vmPFC to both the bilateral middle temporal gyrus and precuneus. Preoperative pain threshold was positively correlated with abstinence duration and specific regional brain activities and connectivity. Further, the observed association between abstinent time and pain threshold was mediated by the calcarine and posterior cingulate cortex activity. The dysfunction in vmPFC and left anterior cingulate cortex was totally mediated by the association between withdrawal symptoms and postoperative analgesic requirements. These findings suggest that nicotine withdrawal might alter brain functional activity and contribute to hyperalgesia for the abstinent smokers. This study provided novel insights into the supraspinal neurobiological mechanisms underlying nicotine withdrawal-induced hyperalgesia and potential therapeutic targets for postoperative pain in abstinent smokers.

Significance statement Abstinent smokers experienced heightened pain and require more analgesics after surgery, yet the underlying neural mechanisms remain poorly understood. This prospective cohort study identified altered regional brain activity associated with reduced pain thresholds and increased postoperative analgesic requirements in abstinent smokers. We found specific brain regions that were functionally altered and correlated with pain-related outcomes, which mediated the relationship between abstinence and pain-related behaviors. These findings provided novel insights into the supraspinal mechanisms of nicotine withdrawal-induced hyperalgesia and point to potential therapeutic targets for improving postoperative pain management in abstinent smokers.

The Neural Basis of Altruistic Punishment

New brain research reveals why we’re willing to go out of our way to punish people who break the rules, even when it costs us time, money, or friends. This behavior, which researchers call “altruistic punishment,” has been essential for human cooperation since ancient times. It’s the invisible glue that keeps societies fair: we enforce the rules not just for ourselves, but for everyone.

Many people voluntarily incur costs to punish violations of social norms. Evolutionary models and empirical evidence indicate that such altruistic punishment has been a decisive force in the evolution of human cooperation. We used H2 15 O positron emission tomography to examine the neural basis for altruistic punishment of defectors in an economic exchange. Subjects could punish defection either symbolically or effectively. Symbolic punishment did not reduce the defector’s economic payoff, whereas effective punishment did reduce the payoff. We scanned the subjects’ brains while they learned about the defector’s abuse of trust and determined the punishment. Effective punishment, as compared with symbolic punishment, activated the dorsal striatum, which has been implicated in the processing of rewards that accrue as a result of goal-directed actions.

Scientists reversed brain aging and memory loss in mice

Cedars-Sinai researchers created “young” immune cells from human stem cells that reversed cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s symptoms in mice. The treated animals showed better memory and healthier brain structures. The cells seemed to protect the brain indirectly, possibly through anti-aging signals in the blood. The findings suggest a new, personalized path to slowing brain aging.

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