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Category: neuroscience – Page 637

One group of mice received regular doses of the Yamanaka factors from the time they were 15 months old until 22 months, approximately equivalent to age 50 through 70 in humans. Another group was treated from 12 through 22 months, approximately age 35 to 70 in humans. And a third group was treated for just one month at age 25 months, similar to age 80 in humans.

LA JOLLA—(March 7, 2022) Age may be just a number, but it’s a number that often carries unwanted side effects, from brittle bones and weaker muscles to increased risks of cardiovascular disease and cancer. Now, scientists at the Salk Institute, in collaboration with Genentech, a member of the Roche group, have shown that they can safely and effectively reverse the aging process in middle-aged and elderly mice by partially resetting their cells to more youthful states.

“We are elated that we can use this approach across the life span to slow down aging in normal animals. The technique is both safe and effective in mice,” says Juan Carlos Izpisua Belmonte, co-corresponding author and a professor in Salk’s Gene Expression Laboratory. “In addition to tackling age-related diseases, this approach may provide the biomedical community with a new tool to restore tissue and organismal health by improving cell function and resilience in different disease situations, such as neurodegenerative diseases.”

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Research published in the journal Depression & Anxiety provides evidence that neurocognitive abnormalities are related to difficulties in social connection among people with posttraumatic stress disorder. The findings suggest that those with PTSD are more likely to struggle with managing multiple pieces of social information.

Approximately 7% of the population will have PTSD at some point in their lives, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. The disorder is characterized by persistent and intrusive memories of traumatic events, disrupted sleep, and other symptoms. PTSD has also been tied to social isolation and feelings of loneliness.

The researchers behind the new study sought to better understand whether the link between PTSD and isolation was related to specific impairments in neurocognitive mechanisms that support social cognition. They were particularly interested in social working memory, which describes the ability to maintain and manipulate information about people’s mental states, personalities, and relationships.

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Summary: 3,6’-dithiopomalidomide (DP), an anti-inflammatory drug candidate, protected mouse models of Alzheimer’s disease against cognitive decline by reducing neuroinflammation.

Source: NIH

An anti-inflammatory drug candidate, known as 3,6’-dithiopomalidomide (DP), designed by researchers at the National Institute on Aging (NIA), protected lab mice against cognitive decline by reducing brain inflammation.

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A study published in Frontiers in Computational Neuroscience has revealed that the human brain’s structures operate in up to 11 dimensions.

The dimensions are not understood as the classic definition of a dimension, which most of us understand, the Blue Brain Project explains.

Conducted by the Blue Brain Project, scientists discovered fascinating new details about the human brain’s complexity.

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Could 2 B vitamins help those suffering with Huntington’s Disease?

T he Huntington’s disease (HD) community has recently experienced setbacks, but a new research report may reignite hope, from an unexpected source: the vitamin thiamine (B1), with help from biotin (B7). The investigators, from several institutions in Spain and UCLA, write in Science Translational Medicine, “Together, these results demonstrate a thiamine deficiency in HD brain and suggest that individuals with HD might benefit from thiamine and/or biotin supplementation therapy.”

Health care providers may suggest certain supplements for HD patients, based perhaps on a deficiency (vitamins C, B12, E) in the blood, or for general health. But the new findings are different. The researchers didn’t set out to detect a vitamin deficiency, but instead probed the messaging within cells in the HD brain, which led them to a biochemical juncture that revealed the thiamine/biotin connection.

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According to the research program’s abstract:

“The specific aim of the research program was to examine the feasibility of controlling the behavior of a dog, in an open field, by means of remotely triggered electrical stimulation of the brain. The report describes such a system which depends for its effectiveness on two properties of electrical stimulation delivered to certain deep lying structures of the dog brain: the well-known reward effect, and a tendency for such stimulation to initiate and maintain locomotion in a direction which is accompanied by the continued delivery of stimulation. Experiments on the parameters of stimulation are described, in addition to an experiment on the ability of a conventional reinforcer, food, to disrupt ongoing, free field behavior under the control of rewarding brain stimulation. Finally, supporting research employing albino rats is summarized. (Author)”

One document was released by the CIA in late 2018 after a FOIA request by The Black Vault. The document, redacted in some parts with details missing, highlighted the research of creating remote control dogs using implants on the brain. The record’s release was specifically highlighted by Newsweek, which as a result, was picked up by many other outlets.

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Circa 2021

It sounds like a party trick: scientists can now look at the brain activity of a tiny worm and tell you which chemical the animal smelled a few seconds before. But the findings of a new study, led by Salk Associate Professor Sreekanth Chalasani, are more than just a novelty; they help the scientists better understand how the brain functions and integrates information.

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