Lifeboat Foundation: Safeguarding Humanity
Toggle light / dark theme

Blog

Category: neuroscience – Page 834

Horizontal gene transfer from mother to infant influences gut microbiome assembly, neurodevelopment, and immune maturation in infants

In a recent study published in Cell, researchers used a multi-omics approach to profile the gut microbiomes and metabolomes of mothers and infants to determine the vertical and horizontal transmission of bacterial species and strains as well as individual genes and understand the dynamics of the gut microbiome assembly that shape the development of the infant before and after birth.

The vertical transmission of gut bacteria from mother to fetus during pregnancy and the horizontal transfer of microbes through breast milk plays a vital role in the physical and cognitive development of the infant long after birth. Studies have shown associations between the gut microbiota composition of breastmilk and the development of the infant’s immune system, as well as autoimmune conditions and allergies. Furthermore, allergies and autoimmune disorders have also been linked to exogenous proteins in infant formula.

Metabolites produced by gut microbiota are also associated with the infant’s cognitive development. However, the development of gut microbiomes and metabolomes in the perinatal stage and their role in infant development remains unclear.

The hidden world of animal consciousness — with David Peña-Guzmán

Do animals dream? Join David Peña-Guzmán as he explores behavioural and neuroscientific research on animal sleep with philosophical theories of dreaming. Watch the Q&A here: https://youtu.be/LpI7zNHUFRQ

David’s latest book ‘When animals dream: the hidden world of animal consciousness’ is available now: https://geni.us/YW7arw6
Subscribe for regular science videos: http://bit.ly/RiSubscRibe.

Are humans the only dreamers on Earth? Dreams provide an invaluable window into the cognitive and emotional lives of nonhuman animals, giving us access to a seemingly inaccessible realm of human experience. From suggestions that many animals run ‘reality simulations’ while asleep to the profound implications for contemporary debates about animal cognition, ethics, and rights.

In this talk, discover a convincing case for animals as conscious beings and examine the thorny scientific, philosophical and ethical questions it raises.

This livestream was recorded on 28 July 2022.

David Peña-Guzmán received his PhD in Philosophy from Emory University in 2015. His dissertation, ‘The rational turn in continental philosophy: Bachelard, Canguilhem, Foucault’, is an interrogation of the school of historical epistemology that appeared in France sometime between the 1920s and the 1950s.

Continue reading “The hidden world of animal consciousness — with David Peña-Guzmán” | >

Psychedelics Are Fueling a Mental Health Revolution

Once deemed dangerous and illegal, psychedelic compounds have been rediscovered by the scientific, medical and psychiatric communities as research reveals their capacity to help patients with a range of maladies. With investors beginning to flood this new market with capital, will Big Pharma join in, or try to squash a nascent revolution of the mind?

#Moonshots #Psychedelics #BloombergQuicktake.
——-
“Moonshot” introduces you to the scientists and thinkers chasing humanity’s wildest dreams. The series takes a deeper look into how science is solving the world’s most complex problems in order to create a better tomorrow. The first season explores major breakthroughs from scientists including plastic eating bacteria, asteroid hunting and oceanic exploration. Watch every episode: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLqq4LnWs3olXYh0FhU2KgOg1Mzleojbie.

Like this video? Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/Bloomberg?sub_confirmation=1
Become a Quicktake Member for exclusive perks: https://www.youtube.com/bloomberg/join.

QuickTake Originals is Bloomberg’s official premium video channel. We bring you insights and analysis from business, science, and technology experts who are shaping our future. We’re home to Hello World, Giant Leap, Storylines, and the series powering CityLab, Bloomberg Businessweek, Bloomberg Green, and much more.

Subscribe for business news, but not as you’ve known it: exclusive interviews, fascinating profiles, data-driven analysis, and the latest in tech innovation from around the world.

Visit our partner channel QuickTake News for breaking global news and insight in an instant.

Continue reading “Psychedelics Are Fueling a Mental Health Revolution” | >

Mental Health Meets Psychedelics | Burton Tabaac | TEDxUCLA

NOTE FROM TED: Please do not look to this talk for mental health advice. This talk represents the speaker’s personal views and interpretation of psychedelics and mental health, which remains an emerging field of study. We’ve flagged this talk because it falls outside the content guidelines TED gives TEDx organizers. TEDx events are independently organized by volunteers. The guidelines we give TEDx organizers are described in more detail here: http://storage.ted.com/tedx/manuals/tedx_content_guidelines.pdf.

Psychedelics as medicine to treat mental health disease has had a recent resurgence of attention and dedicated research, with encouraging results. Could this class of drugs serve as a paradigm shift in the way mindfulness therapy and mental health is approached? Compounds like LSD, DMT, psilocybin, and MDMA are investigated as treatments for states of anxiety, depression, PTSD, and addiction. Listeners are challenged to question their preconceived notions and judgements as it pertains to this group of restricted therapeutics in the psychedelic class. Burton J. Tabaac, MD FAHA

Burton is an associate professor of neurology at the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine, dedicated to the cutting-edge treatment and prevention of cerebrovascular diseases. He is a graduate of the fellowship program in vascular neurology at Johns Hopkins University Hospital in Baltimore, MD (2019). After graduating from AUC School of Medicine, where he earned his MD (2014), Tabaac completed a neurology residency at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson in New Brunswick, NJ. There, he was humbled to have been selected as a three-time recipient of The Arnold P. Gold Foundation’s Humanism and Excellence in Teaching Award (2016, 2017, and 2018). This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community.

Breakthrough Test for Alzheimer’s: New Biomarker Can Detect Neurodegeneration in Blood

A group of neuroscientists developed a test to detect a novel marker of Alzheimer’s.

Alzheimer’s disease is a disease that attacks the brain, causing a decline in mental ability that worsens over time. It is the most common form of dementia and accounts for 60 to 80 percent of dementia cases. There is no current cure for Alzheimer’s disease, but there are medications that can help ease the symptoms.

Good and bad feelings for brain stem serotonin

New insights into the opposing actions of serotonin-producing nerve fibers in mice could lead to drugs for treating addiction and major depression.

Scientists in Japan have identified a nerve pathway involved in the processing of rewarding and distressing stimuli and situations in mice.

The new pathway, originating in a bundle of stem nerve fibers called the median raphe , acts in opposition to a previously identified reward/aversion pathway that originates in the nearby dorsal raphe nucleus. The findings, published by scientists at Hokkaido University and Kyoto University with their colleagues in the journal Nature Communications, could have implications for developing drug treatments for various mental disorders, including addiction and .

Serotonin Deficiency Directly Linked With Depression in Groundbreaking Study

New research in Biological Psychiatry offers the first direct evidence of diminished 5-HT release cements “serotonin hypothesis.”

Researchers have postulated since the 1960s that major depression stems from disruptions in the serotonin neurotransmitter system. However, the evidence for that idea, though plentiful, was indirect. In fact, a recent comprehensive analysis of existing studies concluded that there was not strong evidence to support the “serotonin hypothesis.” In its wake, some in the field have called for a reexamination of the hypothesis. Not so fast, says a new study that provides direct evidence of disrupted serotonin release in the brains of individuals with depression.

The study was published recently in the journal Biological Psychiatry.

Quantum Physics Lets Researchers See “Things” Without Looking At Them

As a general rule, if you want sight, you need light. You’re only reading this right now thanks to the light from your screen being beamed onto your retinas, converted into electrical signals, and sent up the optic nerve for your brain to interpret as a bunch of words and images.

But what if you could see things without all that rigamarole? It might sound impossible – perhaps even counter to the very definition of sight – but thanks to the bizarre world of quantum mechanics, it’s actually perfectly possible.

“Since the inception of quantum mechanics, the quest to understand measurements has been a rich source of intellectual fascination,” notes a new paper published this month.

Brain area necessary for fluid intelligence identified

A team led by UCL and UCLH researchers have mapped the parts of the brain that support our ability to solve problems without prior experience—otherwise known as fluid intelligence.

Fluid intelligence is arguably the defining feature of human cognition. It predicts educational and professional success, social mobility, health, and longevity. It also correlates with many such as memory.

Fluid intelligence is thought to be a key feature involved in “active thinking”—a set of complex mental processes such as those involved in abstraction, judgment, attention, strategy generation and inhibition. These skills can all be used in everyday activities—from organizing a dinner party to filling out a tax return.

/* */