All posts tagged: brain

Could Humans Have a Brain Microbiome?

Could Humans Have a Brain Microbiome?

Published by skeptic

The human gut microbiome plays a critical role in the body, communicating with the brain and maintaining the immune system through the gut-brain axis. So it isn’t totally far-fetched to suggest that microbes could play an even larger role in our neurobiology. Fishing for Microbes For years, Irene Salinas has been fascinated by a simple physiological fact: The distance between the nose and the brain is quite small. The evolutionary immunologist, who works at the University of New Mexico, studies mucosal immune systems in fish to better understand how human versions of these systems, such as our intestinal lining and nasal cavity, work. The nose, she knows, is loaded with bacteria, and they’re “really, really close” to the brain—mere millimeters from the olfactory bulb, which processes smell. Salinas has always had a hunch that bacteria might be leaking from the nose into the olfactory bulb. After years of curiosity, she decided to confront her suspicion in her favorite model organisms: fish. Salinas and her team started by extracting DNA from the olfactory bulbs of trout …

This neuroscientist looks at how your brain plans for the future

This neuroscientist looks at how your brain plans for the future

Published by skeptic

attention: The phenomenon of focusing mental resources on a specific object or event.  behavior: The way something, often a person or other organism, acts towards others, or conducts itself.  cognitive: A term that relates to mental activities, such as thinking, learning, remembering and solving puzzles.  colleague: Someone who works with another; a co-worker or team member.  core: Something — usually round-shaped — in the center of an object.   data: Facts and/or statistics collected together for analysis but not necessarily organized in a way that gives them meaning. For digital information (the type stored by computers), those data typically are numbers stored in a binary code, portrayed as strings of zeros and ones.  disorder: (in medicine) A condition where the body does not work appropriately, leading to what might be viewed as an illness. This term can sometimes be used interchangeably with disease.  electrode: A device that conducts electricity and is used to make contact with the non-metal part of an electrical circuit, or that contacts something through which an electrical signal moves. (in electronics) Part …

Blinking may give your brain a micro break during cognitive tasks

Blinking may give your brain a micro break during cognitive tasks

Published by skeptic

Blinking may do more than just keep our eyes healthy gaiamoments/Getty Images Blinking serves a crucial physiological function, by clearing debris from our eyes and keeping them lubricated. But now, scientists have found it may also have a cognitive role. In 1945, Arthur Hall at the University of Sheffield in the UK reported on the frequency of blinking as people read aloud, finding that it mostly coincided with gaps in the print. He suggested that blinking may help people take pauses as they read. To expand on… Source link

“Brain Rot” Is Poisoning Our Minds

“Brain Rot” Is Poisoning Our Minds

Published by José

It turns out that the slang “brain rot” may not be an inaccurate description of what’s actually going on in our domes while we endlessly scroll TikTok. As Spanish newspaper El País reports, a growing body of scientific evidence over the past decade suggests that consuming mind-numbing content, from sources ranging from algorithmically driven social media junk to sensationalist news, can literally reduce the physical gray matter in our brains. That’s along with wreaking other pernicious effects like shortened attention spans and weakened memory. The nefarious thing? These symptoms are often by design. The most infamous example is the implementation of infinite scrolling in apps, which is intended to feed our compulsive desire to endlessly consume content, or “doomscroll.” “This can significantly impair attention and executive functions by overwhelming our focus and altering the way we perceive and respond to the world,” Michoel Moshel, lead author of a 2023 meta-analysis documenting the neuropsychological impacts of disordered screen use, told El País. According to Moshel, who is a researcher at Macquarie University, doomscrolling is a consequence …

Neuroimaging uncovers brain connectivity patterns linked to online shopping addiction

Neuroimaging uncovers brain connectivity patterns linked to online shopping addiction

Published by José

A recent study published in Neuropsychologia has identified specific patterns of brain connectivity that can predict an individual’s tendency toward online shopping addiction. Using advanced brain imaging and predictive modeling techniques, researchers found that certain connections between key brain networks, such as the frontal-parietal network and default mode network, played significant roles. These findings provide insights into the neurobiological underpinnings of this growing behavioral addiction. As online shopping becomes increasingly ingrained in modern life, especially following the surge in e-commerce during the COVID-19 pandemic, some individuals exhibit problematic behaviors described as online shopping addiction. This behavioral addiction is characterized by excessive and compulsive online shopping that disrupts daily life and social functioning. Despite its growing prevalence, the neural mechanisms underlying this addiction have remained largely unexplored. The researchers aimed to address this gap by identifying brain connectivity patterns, or a “connectome,” specific to online shopping addiction. Such findings could help differentiate online shopping addiction from other related behavioral disorders, such as generalized internet addiction, and guide the development of clinical diagnostic tools and interventions. The …

Ketamine’s rapid antidepressant effects traced to overlooked brain cells

Ketamine’s rapid antidepressant effects traced to overlooked brain cells

Published by José

A new study has uncovered a surprising player in ketamine’s rapid antidepressant effects: astrocytes, the star-shaped support cells of the brain. By studying larval zebrafish, researchers found that ketamine reduces behavioral passivity by altering astrocytic activity in response to futile conditions. Their findings have been published in the journal Neuron. Ketamine is a medication traditionally used as an anesthetic, but in recent years, it has gained attention for its rapid and long-lasting antidepressant effects at low doses. Unlike conventional antidepressants, which often take weeks to produce noticeable results, ketamine can alleviate symptoms of depression within hours. This fast-acting property makes it especially promising for conditions like treatment-resistant depression. However, the exact mechanisms behind ketamine’s antidepressant effects remain only partially understood, particularly its influence on non-neuronal brain cells such as astrocytes. Researchers were interested in larval zebrafish as a model for studying ketamine because of the fish’s unique biological characteristics. Zebrafish are small, transparent, and genetically modifiable, allowing scientists to observe brain-wide activity in real-time. “We were originally studying a behavior in which larval zebrafish ‘gave …

You’ll Laugh When You Hear How Many Bits Per Second the Human Brain Processes… Once Your Sluggish Human Brain Finally Comprehends It, That Is

You’ll Laugh When You Hear How Many Bits Per Second the Human Brain Processes… Once Your Sluggish Human Brain Finally Comprehends It, That Is

Published by José

Image by Getty / Futurism Researchers at Caltech have calculated how fast the human brain processes information — and the number turned out to be hilariously low. As detailed in a new study published in the journal Neuron, the team concluded that the speed of human thought is a measly ten bits per second. “This is an extremely low number,” said team lead and Caltech biological sciences professor Markus Meier in a statement. While that may indeed sound agonizingly slow, the team also found that our bodies’ sensory systems also process many orders of magnitude more bits per second of other information about our environment. “Every moment, we are extracting just 10 bits from the trillion that our senses are taking in and using those ten to perceive the world around us and make decisions,” Meister explained. “This raises a paradox: What is the brain doing to filter all of this information?” Scientists have estimated that our brains have 85 billion neurons, a third of which are used for high-level thinking. But since our brain …

Brain implants and AI restored the ‘voice’ of a man silenced by paralysis

Brain implants and AI restored the ‘voice’ of a man silenced by paralysis

Published by skeptic

activate: (in biology) To turn on, as with a gene or chemical reaction. amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS: A disease that attacks and progressively kills motor nerve cells over time. These cells control the movements of many muscle groups. As the motor nerve cells die, people with ALS lose their ability to speak, walk and swallow. ALS sometimes is also called Lou Gehrig’s disease after the 36-year-old baseball player who was stricken with this disease in 1939. average: (in science) A term for the arithmetic mean, which is the sum of a group of numbers that is then divided by the size of the group. climate: The weather conditions that typically exist in one area, in general, or over a long period. computer program: A set of instructions that a computer uses to perform some analysis or computation. The writing of these instructions is known as computer programming. context: The setting or circumstances that help explain an event, some statement or some conclusion. decode: To convert a hidden or secret message into a language that …

Neuroscientists uncover how the brain maps behavioral sequences

Neuroscientists uncover how the brain maps behavioral sequences

Published by José

A new study published in Nature has identified brain cells that act like “map makers,” helping animals track their position within sequences of behaviors. These neurons, located in the medial frontal cortex, can encode abstract patterns of progress, enabling the brain to manage complex tasks such as planning, reasoning, and decision-making. The researchers found that these neurons function similarly to a music box, capable of flexibly organizing sequences of actions to adapt to changing goals. Human behavior is highly structured, often involving elaborate sequences of actions to achieve specific goals. Whether it’s cooking a meal or solving a complex problem, these sequences require careful coordination. When tasks share common elements, the brain forms generalized frameworks called schemata, allowing it to adapt and learn new behaviors more efficiently. While past research has implicated the medial frontal cortex in mapping task structures, forming schemata, and switching between tasks, the precise biological algorithms behind these functions have remained unclear. The researchers aimed to uncover how neurons encode abstract progress in complex, multi-goal tasks, helping to explain how the …

Davina McCall makes emotional public appearance after brain surgery | Ents & Arts News

Davina McCall makes emotional public appearance after brain surgery | Ents & Arts News

Published by skeptic

Davina McCall has become emotional during her first public appearance since undergoing brain surgery, speaking at a Brain Tumour Research Campaign (BTRC) event on Thursday. The 57-year-old presenter took to the podium at All Saints Church in Fulham, sharing her personal story with the audience. Earlier this month she had an operation to remove a benign brain tumour called a colloid cyst after a company offered her a health scan in return for giving a menopause talk. She was introduced to the stage by BTRC chairman Kevin O’Neill, the neurosurgeon who performed her surgery. After giving him a long hug, McCall stepped up, saying: “I’m not going to cry… I’m crying already. That didn’t go well”. She went on: “I know lots of you here are on your own brain tumour journey and many of you have lost loved ones to a brain tumour. “I lost my sister to a brain tumour in 2012, and my ex-father-in-law a year ago.” McCall’s sister Caroline Baday died from lung and bone cancer in 2012 at the age …