Summary: Rates of suicide attempts by self-poisoning among adolescents and young adults in the United States have risen sharply since 2011, with girls and young women showing the largest increases, according to researchers. Source: Nationwide Children’s Hospital Key finding: A new analysis from Nationwide Children’s Hospital and the Central Ohio Poison Center shows that self-poisoning … Read more

Two patients experienced lasting relief from severe, disabling dystonia after deep brain stimulation (DBS), and their symptom improvement persisted for months even after their devices were accidentally turned partly or completely off, according to a report published in the journal Movement Disorders. “Conventional wisdom holds that dystonia symptoms worsen within hours or days after stimulation … Read more

Summary: A replication study in psychology has found clear experimental evidence linking a person’s abstract psychological identity with their bodily awareness. Using the classic rubber hand illusion, researchers show that people with a fragile, less coherent sense of self have more malleable physical boundaries and are more likely to misattribute external objects as part of … Read more

Max Ortiz Catalan, a researcher at Chalmers University of Technology, has developed a new approach to treating phantom limb pain (PLP) following amputation. The method combines myoelectric pattern recognition, augmented reality and interactive gaming, and has been evaluated in an initial case study of a patient who suffered severe phantom limb pain for 48 years. … Read more

A simple computer-based training task can rewire the brain to better regulate emotional reactions, according to a study published in NeuroImage by researchers at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU). Dr. Noga Cohen, who led the study as part of her Ph.D. work at BGU’s Cognitive Neuropsychology Lab under Prof. Avishai Henik, explains that the … Read more

Summary: By combining neuroimaging data with deep learning methods, researchers have created a brain model that reproduces patterns of neurological impairment more realistically than previous approaches. Source: University at Buffalo “I call it my ‘chocolate and peanut butter moment.’” A University at Buffalo neuroimaging researcher has developed a computational model that more closely mirrors real-world … Read more

Summary: Researchers observed contagious yawning and rest-related behaviors in chimpanzees after an android—designed to mimic human facial expressions—displayed a yawning face. The study provides the first evidence that an inanimate humanoid model can trigger yawn contagion, and it suggests that yawning may act not only as an automatic social reflex but also as a contextual … Read more

Summary: P-glycoprotein (P-gp), a key cellular toxin pump, can remove amyloid plaques from the brain. Researchers report that boosting P-gp activity at the blood–brain barrier in people at risk for Alzheimer’s disease might delay or prevent the condition’s onset. Source: Southern Methodist University Researchers in the SMU Department of Biological Sciences have confirmed that P-glycoprotein … Read more

Small amounts of lead in the blood may increase ADHD symptoms in children who carry a specific gene variant, according to research published in Psychological Science. Lead researcher Joel Nigg, professor of psychiatry and behavioral neuroscience at the OHSU School of Medicine, emphasizes the importance of connecting genetic susceptibility and environmental exposure. “This work helps … Read more

Summary: Daily exposure to bright, artificial light may reduce symptoms of bipolar depression and appears safe when used as an adjunct treatment. Source: University of British Columbia Overview: Light therapy — daily exposure to bright, artificial light — is an established, evidence-based treatment for seasonal and some nonseasonal depressive disorders. Its effectiveness for bipolar disorder … Read more