Summary: A new study reports that a blood-based metabolic test can identify roughly 17% of young children on the autism spectrum. Source: UC Davis Researchers at the UC Davis MIND Institute, in collaboration with NeuroPointDX (a division of Stemina Biomarker Discovery), have identified a set of blood metabolites that may help detect a subset of … Read more

In the first study of its kind, researchers report that even modestly low maternal iron intake during pregnancy produces measurable changes in newborn brain organization. The findings appear in the journal Pediatric Research. The study was led by Bradley S. Peterson, MD, director of the Institute for the Developing Mind at The Saban Research Institute … Read more

Summary: Researchers report that six plant extracts previously identified can slow aging by targeting distinct cellular signalling pathways. Source: Concordia University. Montreal researchers clear an important hurdle in the pursuit of healthy longevity Hearing loss, brittle bones, sagging skin and cognitive decline are among the many challenges associated with aging. For centuries people have sought … Read more

Understanding how blank-slate stem cells choose their adult identities — whether to become muscle, bone, neuron, or another cell type — has been a major challenge for researchers. Human pluripotent stem cells are undifferentiated cells with the capacity to become any of the roughly 220 specialized cell types in the human body. In laboratory settings, … Read more

Summary: Scientists have mapped two distinct neural circuits within the retrosplenial cortex (RSC) that play separate but complementary roles in spatial navigation and memory. One pathway, projecting to the secondary motor cortex (M2), translates spatial information into action. The other, projecting to the anterodorsal thalamus (AD), supports the storage and recall of location-specific memories. Using … Read more

New mouse models enable testing of vaccines and therapies and clarify Zika virus effects during pregnancy Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have developed two mouse models that reproduce key aspects of Zika virus infection during pregnancy. In both models, the virus moves from the mother’s bloodstream into the placenta, multiplies … Read more

San Antonio’s Cancer Therapy & Research Center led Phase 2 testing of new agent. An experimental gene therapy has nearly doubled overall survival for patients with recurrent glioblastoma compared with the current standard of care, according to results presented Oct. 1 at the Cancer Therapy & Research Center (CTRC) at The University of Texas Health … Read more

Summary: A combination of personality traits and childhood circumstances helps explain why some older adults experience greater loneliness than others. The study found that adults aged 50 and over who rarely or never had close, comfortable friendships in childhood were 1.24 times more likely to report loneliness, while those who had a poor relationship with … Read more

Summary: New research clarifies how neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s can spread through the brain by moving toxic protein aggregates from one neuron to another. Source: VIB Flanders. Synapses—the contact points where neurons communicate—play a central role in transmitting toxic protein aggregates, a process that helps explain how neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s propagate across brain … Read more

Stanford Study Finds Genetic Basis for Synchronized Brain Networks Imaging studies have long shown that discrete brain regions operate together as functional networks. New research from Stanford now demonstrates that these synchronized networks are supported by coordinated gene expression. Researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine report that synchronized physiological interactions between distant brain … Read more