Smartwatches commonly use heart rate variability to monitor stress. Columnist Helen Thomson explores what this metric actually tells us, and whether it could also predict and diagnose depression – and help improve your mental health more generally.
Category: neuroscience – Page 79
Frontiers: Introduction:
Alzheimer’s disease, a progressive neurodegenerative disorder, is marked by beta-amyloid plaque accumulation and cognitive decline. The limited efficacy and significant side effects of anti-amyloid monoclonal antibody therapies have prompted exploration into innovative treatments like focused ultrasound therapy. Focused ultrasound shows promise as a non-invasive technique for disrupting the blood–brain barrier, potentially enhancing drug delivery directly to the brain and improving the penetration of existing therapeutic agents.
What is biocomputing? | BBC News
A group of scientists in Switzerland are trying to create computing power using brain cells, in a field called biocomputing.
One day, they hope we could see data centres full of \.
🧠 The Emotional Brain Under Stress: How the Amygdala Connects Chronic Stress to Chronic Disease
We often think of stress as something that just “gets on our nerves,” but what if it’s actually reshaping our brain — and our long-term health?A recent scientific review published in Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy by Juhyun Song (2023) highlights a fascinating and urgent connection between the brain’s emotional hub — the amygdala — and our rising burden of metabolic diseases, dementia, and mental health disorders. This tiny almond-shaped structure deep in our brain does more than generate fear or
Scientists Reveal The Optimal Amount of Sleep to Lower Dementia Risk
A lack of good quality sleep has long been linked to an increased risk of developing dementia, but new research goes further – giving us an optimal amount of overnight slumber to minimize dementia risk later in life.
Using data gathered and pooled from 69 previous studies, a team from York University in Canada ran a statistical analysis to look for associations with dementia for three different factors: physical activity, time spent sitting, and sleep duration.
These are all variables we can control ourselves, up to a point, and the number crunching showed that between 7 and 8 hours of slumber each night was the sweet spot when it came to minimizing dementia risk.
Microfluidic device tracks cell ‘squishiness’ faster and more reliably than standard methods
Researchers from Brown University and their collaborators have developed a new way to measure the properties of cells—an important development, they say, because accurate measurements of changes in cell elasticity can be used to better understand diseases, diagnose patient symptoms and provide more accurate prognoses.
For example, cancer cells from tumors typically soften as they become more dangerous and likely to spread, while blood diseases like malaria and sickle cell can cause red blood cells to stiffen. Mechanical changes on a cellular level are also seen in neurodegenerative, cardiovascular and chronic inflammatory illnesses.
As detailed in a study in the journal Lab on a Chip, the researchers developed what they call a “mechanophenotyping cytometer”—a microfluidic device designed to measure a cell’s physical size and squishiness, known as its mechanical phenotype.
HEPA air purifiers may boost brain power in adults over 40
Using an in-home HEPA purifier for one month spurs a small but significant improvement in brain function in adults age 40 and older. That’s the result of a new study we co-authored in the journal Scientific Reports.
HEPA purifiers—HEPA stands for high efficiency particulate air— remove particulate matter from the air. Exposure to particulate matter has been connected to respiratory and cardiovascular illnesses as well as neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. Environmental health researchers increasingly recommend that people use HEPA air purifiers in their homes to lower their exposure to particulate matter, but few studies have examined whether using them boosts mental function.
We analyzed data from a study of 119 people ages 30 to 74 living in Somerville, Massachusetts. Somerville sits along Interstate 93 and Route 28, two major highways, resulting in relatively high levels of traffic-related air pollution. This makes it an especially good location for testing the health effects of air purifiers.
MicroRNAs as Biomarkers in Spinal Muscular Atrophy
Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a severe neurodegenerative disease caused by the loss of the survival motor neuron (SMN) protein, leading to degeneration of anterior motor neurons and resulting in progressive muscle weakness and atrophy. Given that SMA has a single, well-defined genetic cause, gene-targeted therapies have been developed, aiming to increase SMN production in SMA patients. The SMN protein is likely involved in the synthesis of microRNAs (miRNAs), and dysregulated miRNA expression is increasingly associated with the pathophysiology of SMA. Currently, there is a lack of reliable biomarkers to monitor SMA; therefore, the search for novel SMA biomarkers, including miRNAs, is crucial as reliable tools are needed to track disease progression, predict the response to therapy and understand the different clinical outcomes of available treatments.
Mitochondria in Alzheimer’s Disease Pathogenesis
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive and incurable neurodegenerative disorder that primarily affects persons aged 65 years and above. It causes dementia with memory loss and deterioration in thinking and language skills. AD is characterized by specific pathology resulting from the accumulation in the brain of extracellular plaques of amyloid-β and intracellular tangles of phosphorylated tau. The importance of mitochondrial dysfunction in AD pathogenesis, while previously underrecognized, is now more and more appreciated. Mitochondria are an essential organelle involved in cellular bioenergetics and signaling pathways. Mitochondrial processes crucial for synaptic activity such as mitophagy, mitochondrial trafficking, mitochondrial fission, and mitochondrial fusion are dysregulated in the AD brain. Excess fission and fragmentation yield mitochondria with low energy production.