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Distinct neuron types in the auditory organ are necessary for encoding different features of sound and relaying them to the brain. Researchers at Karolinska Institutet provide evidence of an early, neuronal activity-independent, emergence of the different subtypes of auditory neurons, prior to birth in mice. The findings have recently been published in Nature Communications.

Previous studies have provided ambiguous results on whether the different subtypes of auditory neurons emerge during prenatal or postnatal development, with in the latter case, a possible role of neuronal activity in generating their diversity. In this new study, researchers demonstrate that the fate of auditory neuron subtypes is under genetic control in the prenatal period, and reveal the complex molecular networks controlling their genesis.

At present, our brains are mostly dependent on all the stuff below the neck to turn thought into action. But advances in neuroscience are making it easier than ever to hook machines up to minds. See neuroscientists John Donoghue and Sheila Nirenberg, computer scientist Michel Maharbiz, and psychologist Gary Marcus discuss the cutting edge of brain-machine interactions in “Cells to Silicon: Your Brain in 2050,” part of the Big Ideas series at the 2014 World Science Festival.

This program is part of the Big Ideas Series, made possible with support from the John Templeton Foundation.

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Remission of depression with new magnetic therapy:3.

Although she’d tried medications and therapy, Chase felt her symptoms get worse over the course of a few months. And she knew things were really getting serious when thoughts of suicide crept in.

That’s when her mother found research about a new type of treatment for depression called Stanford neuromodulation therapy, which uses magnetic fields to stimulate the brain. (It was previously referred to as Stanford accelerated intelligent neuromodulation therapy or SAINT.)

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Brain-machine interfaces (BMIs) are devices that enable direct communication/translation between biological neuronal networks (e.g. a brain or a spine) and external machines. They are currently being used as a tool for fundamental neuroscience research and also for treating neurological disorders and for manipulating neuro-prosthetic devices. As remarkable as today’s BMIs are, however, the next generation BMIs will require new hardware and software with improved resolution and specificity in order to precisely monitor and control the activities of complex neuronal networks. In this talk, I will describe my group’s effort to develop new neuroelectronic devices enabled by silicon nanotechnology that can serve as high-precision, highly multiplexed interface to neuronal networks. I will then describe the promises, as well as potential pitfalls, of next generation BMIs. Hongkun Park is a Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology and a Professor of Physics at Harvard University. He is also an Institute Member of the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT and a member of the Harvard Center for Brain Science and Harvard Quantum Optics Center. He serves as an associate editor of Nano Letters. His research interests lie in exploring solid-state photonic, optoelectronic, and plasmonic devices for quantum information processing as well as developing new nano-and microelectronic interfaces for living cells, cell networks, and organisms. Awards and honors that he received include the Ho-Am Foundation Prize in Science, NIH Director’s Pioneer Award, and the US Vannevar Bush Faculty Fellowship, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation Fellowship for Science and Engineering, the Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellowship, and the Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community.

Summary: In mice, photoreceptor cells drive vision and non-vision functions using distinct circuits in the eye.

Source: NIH/NEI

The eye’s light-sensing retina taps different circuits depending on whether it is generating image-forming vision or carrying out a non-vision function such as regulating pupil size or sleep/wake cycles, according to a new mouse study from the National Eye Institute (NEI) and the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).

Everything we know, think and feel—everything!—comes from our brains. But consciousness, our private sense of inner awareness, remains a mystery. Brain activities—spiking of neuronal impulses, sloshing of neurochemicals—are not at all the same thing as sights, sounds, smells, emotions. How on earth can our inner experiences be explained in physical terms?

Free access to Closer to Truth’s library of 5,000 videos: http://bit.ly/376lkKN

Continue reading “Peter Tse — What Makes Brains Conscious?” »

The search for a way to treat Alzheimer’s disease has puzzled scientists for decades. This may be why some researchers are shifting their focus slightly, investigating whether treating the systems affected by Alzheimer’s (as opposed to the causes) may better help them find a treatment.

This is exactly what researchers of a new study have shown – finding that drugs normally used to treat ADHD may actually show promise in managing symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease.

The researchers conducted a systematic review which looked at how noradrenergic drugs (commonly used for ADHD) work for managing Alzheimer’s disease symptoms. The review found that taking these drugs improved certain brain functions and other symptoms, such as apathy, in patients with Alzheimer’s disease.

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Although rare, people become infected by Naegleria fowleri when water containing the amoeba enters the body through the nose. It then travels to the brain, where it destroys brain tissue. This infection cannot spread from one person to another, and it cannot be contracted by swallowing contaminated water.

“These situations are extremely rare in the United States and in Missouri specifically, but it’s important for people to know that the infection is a possibility so they can seek medical care in a timely manner if related symptoms present,” Dr. George Turabelidze, Missouri’s state epidemiologist, said in a statement.

Symptoms can include severe headaches, fever, nausea, vomiting, stiff neck, seizures, altered mental state and hallucinations. Anyone who experiences these symptoms after swimming in a warm body of water should contact their health care provider immediately.

Continue reading “Rare Brain-eating amoeba puts Missouri resident; 1st in 35 years” »

How does the human brain work and how is it different from computers? If you think this is too complex to explain in a few minutes, you will be surprised. In this energetic and insightful talk, neuro-scientist Dr. Henning Beck gives insights into thought processes and tells you how you can create new ideas.

Dr. Henning Beck, neuroscientist and author, supports businesses to use brain-based approaches in order to develop innovative and efficient workflows. He studied biochemistry in Tübingen from 2003 to 2008. After his diploma thesis, he started his research at the Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research and intensified his work at the Institute of Physiological Chemistry at the University of Ulm. Supported by a PhD scholarship granted by the Hertie Foundation he did his doctorate at the Graduate School of Cellular & Molecular Neuroscience in Tübingen. He expanded his scientific expertise by an International Diploma in Project Management at the University of California, Berkeley in 2013. Until 2014, he worked for start-ups in the San Francisco Bay Area to develop creative workspace designs and advanced communication styles based on neuroscientific principles.

Continue reading “What is a Thought? How the Brain Creates New Ideas | Henning Beck | TEDxHHL” »