The study revealed genes and cellular pathways that haven’t been linked to Alzheimer’s before, including one involved in DNA repair. Identifying new drug targets is critical because many of the Alzheimer’s drugs that have been developed to this point haven’t been as successful as hoped.
Working with researchers at Harvard Medical School, the team used data from humans and fruit flies to identify cellular pathways linked to neurodegeneration. This allowed them to identify additional pathways that may be contributing to the development of Alzheimer’s.
Anti-inflammatory drug JAK inhibitors (JAKi) reduces pain in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) but the mechanism is not clear.
To figure out if JAKi directly acted on human sensory neurons, the authors found they expressed JAK1 and STAT3.
The show that RA synovial fluid addition to human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived sensory neurons led to phosphorylation of STAT3 (pSTAT3), which was completely blocked by the JAKi tofacitinib.
The researchers also discovered that RA synovial fluid was enriched for the STAT3 signalling cytokines IL-6, IL-11, LIF, IFN-alpha and IFN-beta, and their requisite receptors present in peripheral nerves post-mortem.
They observed upregulation of pain-relevant genes with STAT3-binding sites, an effect which was blocked by tofacitinib in cytokine treated iPSCs. LIF also induced neuronal sensitisation, highlighting this molecule as a putative pain mediator.
Researchers at UC Davis have fiddled with LSD at the atomic level and may have unlocked a potential game-changing treatment for schizophrenia. The new compound, known as JRT, might be able to repair the brain without making you trip balls.
The scientists, who posted their findings in the scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, were toying with LSD atoms when they decided to, in their own words, do a “tire rotation.” This meant swapping the position of two atoms in LSD’s molecular structure.
That tiny change turned it from a powerful hallucinogen into something that can regrow brain cells in mice and mend neural pathways without launching your consciousness into the cosmos.
Is your mind more than just your brain? Does the soul actually exist? These questions have been pondered for millennia. What does the latest scientific research suggest? On this episode of the ID The Future podcast, renowned neurosurgeon Dr. Michael Egnor begins a conversation with host @Andrew_McDiarmid about his new book The Immortal Mind: A Neurosurgeon’s Case for the Existence of the Soul. Egnor makes a powerful case that our capacity for thought, reason, and free will points to something beyond mere brain function.
After defining terms, Egnor begins exploring the compelling evidence he has gathered across four decades of practice in neurosurgery. He recounts the remarkable results of split-brain surgery, where patients whose brain hemispheres are functionally disconnected still feel like one person and can process information presented separately to each hemisphere. This implies a part of their mind is not solely located in their brain. You’ll also hear about conjoined twins who share brain parts but maintain distinct intellects and free will, highlighting which aspects of the soul are not brain-based and cannot be shared.
Along the way, Dr. Egnor also boldly challenges the Darwinian view of the mind’s evolution, arguing that abstract thought and free will are immaterial and could not have arisen through natural selection. Learn why Dr. Egnor believes nature is not a closed system and that science alone cannot fully interpret its own findings. Drawing on ancient philosophers like Aristotle and Thomas Aquinas, he presents arguments for a cause outside of nature.
This is Part 1 of a two-part interview. In Part 2, we’ll explore Dr. Egnor’s personal journey from atheism to theism and more evidence for the immortality of the mind and the existence of the soul.
The Synchron BCI system is designed to measure electrical brain activity corresponding with a person’s intention to move a body part, such as their arm, regardless of the body’s ability to move. This signal is then converted into a digital action, such as a click or scroll, on a smartphone, tablet, or computer.
