Researchers at MIT have shown that altering specific neural connections in mice can change the emotional meaning attached to a memory, turning a negative memory into a positive one and vice versa. In work led by Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator Susumu Tonegawa at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, scientists demonstrated that the connections between … Read more

Summary: A controlled clinical study from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) shows that switching to either a vegan or a ketogenic (keto) diet produces rapid, distinct changes in the immune system, metabolism, and gut microbiome. Over a one-month period, 20 diverse participants alternated between two-week periods on each diet while researchers collected blood, urine … Read more

Summary: By combining machine learning with brain scans, researchers reveal how people reconstruct the meaning of objects from a few clues. Source: Aalto University What is an S-shaped, scaly animal with no legs? What has large ears, a trunk and tusks? What makes a ‘woof’ and chases cats? Researchers at Aalto University used brain imaging … Read more

Researchers have found that different kinds of memory shape the way we direct attention in future situations. Their work shows that separate brain systems that support distinct memory types also steer attention when we encounter new visual environments. “We have long known that memory is not a single unified process, but these findings clarify how … Read more

EPFL researchers demonstrate that daytime light intensity improves alertness and cognitive performance into the early evening Scientists at EPFL’s Solar Energy and Building Physics Laboratory (LESO) have shown that the intensity of light we experience during the day affects how alert we feel and how well we perform on cognitive tasks, with benefits that persist … Read more

Baylor College of Medicine researchers report that when female mice voluntarily exercise during pregnancy, their offspring become more physically active as adults. The findings are published in The FASEB Journal. Robert A. Waterland, PhD, associate professor of pediatrics – nutrition and of molecular and human genetics at the USDA/ARS Children’s Nutrition Research Center at Baylor … Read more

Summary: Evolutionary inheritance shaped by millions of years of sexual selection appears to favor traits that promote early male reproductive success, sometimes at the cost of later-life health. This imbalance helps explain why men are more susceptible to a range of physical and mental disorders, while women tend to live longer and resist certain conditions. … Read more

Inside Hippocampal Ripples: How CA1 Neurons Fire during Memory Events Caltech neuroscientists have peeked inside individual brain cells as they take part in rapid bursts of activity known as hippocampal “ripples,” events widely implicated in memory consolidation. Hippocampal ripples are brief, high-frequency oscillations during which a small subset of neurons in area CA1 fire nearly … Read more

Summary: Researchers have developed a neuron-labeling method that captures which cells are active at a precise moment. The new technique offers minute-scale temporal precision and could reveal fast neural dynamics that longer-term labeling methods miss. Source: MIT. FLARE technique can reveal which cells respond during different tasks Cognitive processes such as decision-making or rapid sensory … Read more

Summary: A large, randomized, double-blind clinical trial found that repeated low-dose ketamine infusions provided no additional benefit over standard inpatient care for people hospitalized with major depression. When compared with an active psychoactive placebo (midazolam), ketamine produced no meaningful advantages on clinician-rated or self-reported depression scales, cognition, healthcare costs, or quality of life. Investigators warn … Read more