Summary: Neurological illnesses such as Parkinson’s disease, dementia and epilepsy do more than alter physical function; they can erode memory, communication and the sense of who a person is. A new paper argues that because these conditions attack the core of identity, routine spiritual assessment and care should be integrated into neurological practice. The authors … Read more

Summary: Managing insomnia in people who also have obstructive sleep apnea (OSA)—a condition often called COMISA (comorbid insomnia and sleep apnea)—requires careful balancing. Sedative-hypnotic medications can help patients fall and stay asleep, but clinicians have long worried they might relax airway muscles too much, worsening apneas and lowering blood oxygen levels. A comprehensive systematic review … Read more

Summary: Our eyes make rapid, flicking movements called saccades several times per second. Despite these frequent jumps, the world appears stable. A recent study used afterimages—the faint ghost images that linger after looking at a bright flash—to reveal how the brain preserves visual stability. By tracking afterimages in total darkness, the researchers showed the brain … Read more

Summary: Simple for humans, the game of “fetch” exposes a hard problem for robots: identifying a specific object inside a cluttered space. Researchers at Brown University found inspiration in an unexpected place — dogs. By studying how dogs use human gaze and pointing, the team developed a multimodal AI framework called LEGS-POMDP that combines spoken … Read more

Summary: Hyperarousal is a core feature across many mental health conditions — from insomnia and ADHD to depression, anxiety and PTSD — yet the term has often been used loosely. New research shows that hyperarousal is not a single uniform state but consists of seven distinct dimensions. Identifying these dimensions enables more precise assessment and … Read more

Summary: Evolutionary adaptations that help animals such as yaks and Tibetan antelopes survive at extreme altitudes may point to new ways to repair nerve damage in human diseases. A new study identifies a mutation in the Retsat gene—common in high-altitude species—that protects the brain from low oxygen and stimulates regeneration of the myelin sheath. Researchers … Read more

Summary: Have you ever felt disoriented under stress? It’s not just mental fog—stress hormones can interfere with the brain’s internal navigation system. New imaging research shows that cortisol directly blurs the activity of grid cells in the entorhinal cortex, the neurons responsible for mapping space and tracking position. In an MRI-monitored virtual navigation task, participants … Read more

Summary: “Chemo brain” — the cognitive fog, memory lapses, and mental fatigue that affect as many as 75% of people undergoing cancer treatment — has no established single treatment. A nationwide Phase 3 clinical trial now identifies a practical, low-cost intervention that helps protect thinking skills during chemotherapy: a personalized home-based exercise program called EXCAP. … Read more

Summary: Researchers have uncovered a surprising new regulator of reproductive development: microglia, the brain’s resident immune cells. The study shows that microglia influence the neurons that trigger puberty and maintain fertility by expressing the RANK protein. Disruption of this immune–brain signaling prevents puberty and causes infertility in animal models, and mutations in the RANK gene … Read more

Summary: New research challenges the idea that aging is a slow, continuous decline. By observing African turquoise killifish continuously throughout their adult lives, scientists found that aging proceeds as a sequence of rapid, discrete shifts. In particular, behavioral patterns in early midlife can predict an individual fish’s overall lifespan. Despite controlled genetics and environment, some … Read more