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Category: neuroscience

MRI reveals cerebrospinal fluid shifts after mild brain injury

Researchers at University of Tsukuba have found that cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) microdynamic motion shows region-specific alterations after mild traumatic brain injury (TBI). Using a specialized magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique, the team noninvasively visualized these CSF changes, which have been difficult to quantify with conventional imaging. The approach is expected to advance the understanding of the relationship between post-traumatic brain conditions and cognitive function. The study is published in Frontiers in Neuroscience.

The brain contains cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), which protects neural tissue and helps clear metabolic waste. Rather than being static, CSF exhibits continuous subtle motion, and this motion is thought to be closely linked to brain health. However, little has been known about how CSF motion is altered after a mild head injury.

The researchers employed a specialized magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique known as intravoxel incoherent motion (IVIM) MRI to evaluate CSF microdynamic motion through the incoherent movement of water molecules. The results showed that, after mild traumatic brain injury (TBI), CSF motion increased in some brain regions and decreased in others.

Epilepsy ‘brain blips’ can be predicted a full second early with neuron-level probes

Epilepsy is best known for seizures, but many people with the condition also experience much more frequent and subtler disruptions. These brief bursts of abnormal brain activity, called interictal epileptiform discharges (IEDs), can happen thousands of times a day, interfering with attention, memory, language, and sleep.

Scientists at UC San Francisco have discovered that these “brain blips” are not random events, as had been believed. Rather, they unfold in a predictable pattern that can be detected a full second before they occur — raising new possibilities to ward them off altogether.

The researchers used a high-resolution technology recently adapted for humans that can record the activity of individual neurons. They tracked more than 1,000 neurons in four patients undergoing surgery for epilepsy.

Reality is a dream not a simulation

Most physicists are materialists who believe the world consists of physical particles at the fundamental level. Others have argued reality is a simulation or a hallucination of the brain. But Andrew T. Jaffe challenges all of these views, proposing an alternative consciousness-first theory where space and time arise as within a dream.

These 80-year-olds have the memory of 50-year-olds. Scientists now know why

These individuals consistently perform on memory tests at levels similar to people at least 30 years younger, challenging the long-standing belief that cognitive decline is unavoidable with age.

Over decades of research, scientists have noticed some lifestyle and personality traits that set SuperAgers apart from their peers, including being highly social and outgoing. Still, the most surprising discoveries have come from examining their brains. “It’s really what we’ve found in their brains that’s been so earth-shattering for us,” said Dr. Sandra Weintraub, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and neurology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

By identifying both biological and behavioral patterns linked to SuperAging, researchers hope to develop new approaches to strengthen cognitive resilience and reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.

“An Update from the Sparks Brain Preservation” — April 30th Service

Our speaker this month is Jordan Sparks with the Sparks Brain Preservation organization in Oregon. Our event is in ZOOM Only, no in person meeting this month, meeting ins ZOOM on Thursday, April 30th, opening at 6:00 PM for our social hour, with the main event starting at 7:00 PM Eastern Time Jordan will tell us about his project, which was formerly the Oregon Brain Preservation, and before that Jordan formed Oregon Cryonics. This is an entirely different type of bio-stasis then cryonics. Their stated goal is to preserve the structure of the entire brain at a fine ultrastructural level. This includes the synaptic architecture as well as detailed molecular information such as protein post-translational modifications, cellular epigenetic patterns, and subcellular distributions of molecules.

Mapping Gene Variants Reveals New Neurodevelopmental Condition

By mapping all the possible variations in a single gene, researchers have uncovered a previously hidden neurodevelopmental condition.

ReNU syndrome is a rare, inherited neurodevelopmental disorder identified in 2024 that affects brain function, development, and motor skills and is predicted to affect tens of thousands of individuals worldwide.

Not all Alzheimer’s leads to dementia

One possible explanation is that resilient brains are better at repairing themselves during Alzheimer’s. “Perhaps they can add new brain cells to a network that is degenerating”, the author says.

This idea is linked to a process called adult neurogenesis, which refers to the birth of new brain cells (neurons) in the adult brain. It has been well-established in other animals, but its existence in humans has been debated for years.

To study this, the team used human brain tissue from the Netherlands Brain Bank, which collects and stores donated brain samples for research. They included brains from control donors with no brain pathology, Alzheimer’s patients, and individuals with Alzheimer’s pathology who remained resilient to developing dementia.

The team focused on a small part of the brain’s memory center, likely one of the few areas where these new brain cells could form. “These cells are extremely rare, so we had to develop new ways to find them,” the author says. “We really zoomed in on the exact spot where we expected them to be.”

The team found what they were looking for: so-called “immature” neurons. These cells resemble young, not fully developed neurons. “Even at an average age of over 80, we still found these immature neurons in all groups,” the author says.

But the biggest surprise came next. While the team had expected to find much more of these cells in the resilient group than in the Alzheimer’s patients, the difference was not as big as expected.

Surprisingly, the team found that the key difference lies in how the immature neurons behave. “In resilient individuals, these cells seem to activate programs that help them survive and cope with damage,” the author says. “We also see lower signals related to inflammation and cell death.”

Continue reading “Not all Alzheimer’s leads to dementia” | >

How the architecture of the prefrontal cortex shapes our creativity

When a writer comes up with a striking metaphor, when an engineer solves a tricky problem by combining seemingly unrelated tools, or when a child invents the rules of a new game, what happens in the brain? In cognitive neuroscience, creativity is defined as the ability to produce ideas that are both original and relevant within a given context.

For several years, one hypothesis has gained traction in this field of research: Creativity involves two major brain networks. On the one hand, the default mode network (DMN), associated with the spontaneous generation of ideas and free associations. On the other hand, the executive control network (ECN) comes into play when we deliberately control our thinking in order to achieve a goal.

“Creativity is, in a sense, the result of dynamic cooperation between these two networks,” explains Emmanuelle Volle, neurologist and co-leader of the FrontLab team at the Paris Brain Institute. “We believe that creative ideas do not emerge from nothing, but result from the synthesis and reorganization of existing knowledge stored in semantic memory.”

A Popular Senolytic Treatment Causes Brain Damage in Mice

A new study calls for caution in using the well-known senolytic treatment of dasatinib and quercetin (D+Q), showing that it causes damage in certain regions of the brain, similar to what is observed in multiple sclerosis [1].

Stem cell senescence prevents brain repair

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a brain disorder in which the patient’s own immune system attacks oligodendrocytes: cells in the nervous system that provide a myelin coating for neurons, which is essential for their function and survival. MS is much more common in older patients, who are also more likely to have progressive disease and a worse response to treatment.

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