The axon initial segment (AIS) is where nerve signals begin, and its adaptability is key to brain function. Scientists have found that the AIS changes in response to activity levels, helping neurons maintain balance. By using advanced imaging techniques, they have observed these changes live for the first time, deepening our understanding of brain plasticity.
Summary: Delayed rapid eye movement (REM) sleep may be an early indicator of Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers found that participants with delayed REM sleep had higher levels of toxic proteins associated with Alzheimer’s and reduced levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), which supports memory.
Delayed REM sleep disrupts memory consolidation and increases stress hormone levels, which can impair the hippocampus, a critical brain region for learning and memory. The findings emphasize the importance of healthy sleep habits and suggest that treatments targeting sleep patterns may influence Alzheimer’s progression.
Summary: New research highlights a functional hierarchy in the brain’s processing of space and time. In posterior areas, like the occipital cortex, space and time are tightly linked and processed by the same neurons.
In anterior regions, such as the frontal cortex, space and time are processed independently, with distinct neural populations forming “time maps” for specific durations. Intermediate regions, like the parietal cortex, display mixed processing mechanisms, bridging spatial and temporal integration.
This study offers fresh insights into how the brain integrates two fundamental dimensions of human experience and reveals the unique coding strategies across cortical regions.
Researchers at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus have found a promising drug candidate that could help restore vision in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS) and other neurological conditions that damage neurons.
The study was published this week in the journal Nature Communications.
The drug, LL-341070, enhances the brain’s ability to repair damaged myelin — the protective sheath around nerve fibers. Damage to myelin is a hallmark of diseases like MS, as well as a natural consequence of aging, often resulting in vision loss, loss of motor skills, and cognitive decline.
The divide between their lineage and ours narrowed even further in 2010, when researchers published the first Neandertal genome sequence. Comparison of that ancient DNA with modern human DNA showed that the two species had interbred and that people today still carry the genetic fingerprint of that intermixing. Since then, numerous studies have explored the ways in which Neandertal DNA affects our modern physiology, revolutionizing our understanding not only of our extinct cousins but of ourselves as a hybrid species.
This area of research, clinical paleogenomics, is still in its infancy, and there are many complexities to unravel as we explore this new frontier. We therefore must take the findings from these studies with a grain of salt. Nevertheless, the research conducted to date raises the fascinating possibility that Neandertal DNA has wide-reaching effects on our species—not only on general health but on brain development, including our propensity for conditions such as autism. In other words, DNA from our extinct relatives may, to some extent, shape the cognition of people today.
This old talk by Daniel Dennett touches on a lot of topics we’ve discussed recently. Dennett explains why it’s wrong to regard phenomenal consciousness (the “what it’s likeness” or “raw experience” version) as separate from access consciousness (the cognitive access of information for decision making, memory, report, etc).
Note that Dennett doesn’t deny the existence of phenomenal consciousness here, just the idea that it’s something separate and apart from access. He even passes up opportunities to dismiss qualia, although he does provide a reduction of them.
This video is about 66 minutes long. Unfortunately the video and sound quality aren’t great, and the camera operation is annoying, but the talk is worth powering through.
Attention schema theory has some plausibility.
Lately I’ve been reading up on global workspace theory (GWT). In a survey published last year, among general consciousness enthusiasts, integrated information theory (IIT) was the most popular theory, followed closely by GWT. However, among active consciousness researchers, GWT was seen as the most promising by far (although no theory garnered a majority). Since seeing those results, I’ve been curious about why.
One reason might be that GWT has been around a long time, having first been proposed by Bernard Baars in 1988, with periodic updates all recently republished in his new book. It’s received a lot of development and has spawned numerous variants. Daniel Dennett’s multiple drafts model is one. But perhaps the one with the most current support is Stanislas Dehaene’s global neuronal workspace, which I read and wrote about earlier this year.
All of the variants posit that for an item to make it into consciousness, it has to enter a global workspace in the brain. This is most commonly described using a theater metaphor.
New research from the Academy of Military Medical Sciences in Beijing has uncovered a rather intriguing finding: natural melanin nanozymes (NMNs) derived from octopus ink may potentially slow ageing, protect against neurodegenerative diseases, and extend lifespan. Published in ACS Omega, the study reveals how these nanozymes work at the cellular level to mitigate oxidative stress, improve gut health, and enhance brain function, offering a new frontier in anti-ageing and neurological research.
What are Melanin Nanozymes?
Melanin, best known as the pigment responsible for skin and hair colour, has also been recognized for its potent antioxidant properties. Nanozymes created from natural melanin, like those extracted from octopus ink, mimic the activity of antioxidant enzymes such as superoxide dismutase (SOD). These nanozymes neutralize free radicals, reduce oxidative stress, and improve cellular health—processes that are critical in mitigating ageing and the onset of neurodegenerative diseases.
Daniel Dennett might be closer to truth on consciousness.
Full Episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kMxTS7eKkNM
Title: “Michael Levin: What Is The Field Of Diverse Intelligence (DI)? All Possible Intelligent Agents”
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Participants underwent fMRI while completing a monetary incentive delay task. This task is commonly used to assess reward system activation, as it separates the anticipation of a reward from the receipt of the reward. During the task, participants viewed visual cues signaling whether they could win money or not. They were then required to press a button quickly in response to a target, with feedback indicating whether they had succeeded in earning the reward.
The study focused on two key brain regions: the ventral striatum, which is involved in reward anticipation, and the orbitofrontal cortex, which processes reward outcomes. Psychological resilience was measured using the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, while PTSD severity was assessed with the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale. Metabolic syndrome was diagnosed based on established clinical criteria, including elevated blood pressure, abnormal cholesterol or triglyceride levels, elevated blood sugar, and increased waist circumference.
The researchers observed distinct patterns of reward system activation in individuals with PTSD, influenced by the severity of depressive symptoms. Among PTSD participants with lower depression severity, activation in the ventral striatum during reward anticipation was reduced, while activation in the orbitofrontal cortex during reward outcomes was heightened.