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Category: neuroscience – Page 110

The Tbx1 gene influences brain volume and social behavior in autism and schizophrenia, with its deficiency linked to amygdala shrinkage and impaired social incentive evaluation.

A study published in Molecular Psychiatry has linked changes in brain volume to differences in social behavior associated with psychiatric conditions like autism spectrum disorder and schizophrenia.

The research, led by Noboru Hiroi, Ph.D., a professor in the Department of Pharmacology at the Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long School of Medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UT Health San Antonio), revealed that a deficiency in a specific gene was connected to social behavior differences in mice. These behavioral differences are similar to those often observed in psychiatric disorders.

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Researchers have developed a method using viruses to track neuronal development in frogs, shedding light on the evolution of vertebrate nervous systems and offering comparative insights with mammals.

Although viruses are typically associated with illnesses, not all viruses are harmful or cause disease. Some are instrumental in therapeutic treatments and vaccinations. In scientific research, viruses are often used to infect certain cells, genetically modify them, or visualize neurons in the organism’s central nervous system (CNS)—the command center made up of the brain, spinal cord, and nerves.

The highlighting process has now been successfully applied to amphibians, which are crucial for understanding the brain and spinal cord of tetrapods—four-limbed animals, including humans. This has been shown in a new study by an international EDGE consortium jointly led by the Sweeney Lab at the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) and the Tosches Lab at Columbia University.

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Scientists have discovered that cosmic filaments, the largest known structures in the universe, are rotating. These massive, twisting filaments of dark matter and galaxies stretch across hundreds of millions of light-years and play a crucial role in channeling matter to galaxy clusters. The finding challenges existing theories, as it was previously believed that rotation could not occur on such large scales. The research was confirmed through both computer simulations and real-world data, and it opens up new questions about how these giant structures acquire their spin.

After reading the article, a Reddit user named Kane gained more than 100 upvotes with this comment: “What if galaxy clusters are like neuron and glial clusters in a brain. And dark matter is basically the equivalent of a synapse. It connects galaxies and matter together and is responsible for sending quantum information back and forth like a signal chain.”

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Though Elon Musk’s Neuralink put wireless brain implants in the spotlight — in early 2024, Musk announced his company’s first implant was successful — the research and development of these devices has spanned decades. The BrainGate clinical trials have been underway for 20 years, and the consortium’s wireless implant marks the first time a person has used an implant with high bandwidth capabilities.

Wireless technologies are opening doors in neuroscience, enabling new capabilities in communication, treatment, and research. Because wireless implants can monitor the brain for long periods of time, they offer a unique opportunity to examine neural dynamics, increasing our understanding of the human mind. Their cord-free design also benefits people hoping to use these devices outside a research setting and improve their quality of life.

The first brain implant is credited to neurologist Phil Kennedy, who had the device surgically affixed to his brain. Today, wired implants are less invasive and widely used. They can help prevent seizures, manage OCD symptoms, and treat movement disorders.

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Dr. Marta di Forti: “Our study indicates that daily users of high potency cannabis are at increased risk of developing psychosis independently from their polygenic risk score for schizophrenia.”

Is there a connection between cannabis use and developing psychosis? This is what a recent study published in Psychological Medicine hopes to address as an international team of researchers investigated how frequent cannabis use combined with a genetic predisposition for schizophrenia could lead to developing psychosis later in life. This study holds the potential to help researchers, medical professionals, and the public better understand how to identify the signs of psychosis in cannabis users and take necessary steps to address them as soon as possible.

For the study, the researchers conducted an observational study by obtaining data records of almost 150,000 individuals registered in United Kingdom and European Union medical databanks, one of which was the European Network of National Schizophrenia Networks Studying Gene-Environment Interactions (EU-GEI), to examine records regarding patients who self-reported use and psychosis diagnoses. In the end, the researchers discovered a connection between individuals who self-reported lifetime frequent cannabis use and psychosis diagnoses, specifically regarding high potency cannabis which contains 10 percent or greater Delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).

“These are important findings at a time of increasing use and potency of cannabis worldwide,” said Dr. Marta di Forti, who is a Professor of Drug use, Genetics, and Psychosis at King’s College London and a co-author on the study. “Our study indicates that daily users of high potency cannabis are at increased risk of developing psychosis independently from their polygenic risk score for schizophrenia. Nevertheless, the polygenic risk score for schizophrenia might, in the near future, become useful to identify those at risk for psychosis among less frequent users to enable early preventative measures to be put in place.”

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And it’s not from Neuralink.

Recently, Semafor received an extraordinary iMessage. It was from Rodney Gorham, a paralyzed ALS patient, and he had sent it directly from his brain. Gorham has a brain implant called Stentrode. Unlike previous generations of brain-computer interfaces, the Stentrode, from the neurotechnology company Synchron, can be implanted without invasive brain surgery. But… what *are* brain-computer interfaces? How do they work? And where is this novel technology going?

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A specific brain mechanism modulates how animals respond empathetically to others’ emotions. This is the latest finding from the research unit Genetics of Cognition, led by Francesco Papaleo, Principal Investigator at the Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT – Italian Institute of Technology) and affiliated with IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino in Genova. The study, recently published in Nature Neuroscience, provides new insights into psychiatric conditions where this socio-cognitive skill is impaired, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), autism, and schizophrenia.

Psychological studies have shown that the way humans respond to others’ emotions is strongly influenced by their own past emotional experiences. When a similar emotional situation—such as a past stressful event—is observed in another person, we can react in two different ways. On one hand, it may generate empathy, enhancing the ability to understand others’ problems and increasing sensitivity to others altered emotions. On the other hand, it may induce self-distress resulting into an avoidance towards others.

The research group at IIT has demonstrated that a similar phenomenon also occurs in animals: recalling a negative experience strongly influences how an individual responds to another who is experiencing that same altered emotional state. More specifically, animals exhibit different reactions only if the negative event they experienced in the past is identical to the one they observe in others. This indicates that even animals can specifically recognize an emotional state and react accordingly even without directly seeing the triggering stimuli.

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The use of antidepressants during pregnancy significantly increased the risk of a child experiencing functional constipation—a common DGBI that may be painful—during their first year of life. “After adjusting for covariates, SSRI/SNRI exposure was associated with an over 3-fold increased risk for functional constipation,” the investigators wrote.

“We found that, at the age of one, 63% of children exposed to antidepressants during pregnancy experienced constipation, compared with 31% of children whose mothers did not take medication,” said study co-author Larissa Takser, MD, professor of pediatrics at the Université de Sherbrooke in Québec. “This finding suggests a potential connection between serotonin levels in utero and gut development, and opens new doors to examine SSRI properties not previously studied.”

The investigators’ collective findings point to a promising avenue of future studies: the gut epithelium as a new and potentially safer target for treating mood disorders, particularly for pregnant women. “Together, these data define a novel potential mechanism for gut-brain communication and identify intestinal epithelial 5-HT as a new and potentially safer therapeutic target for mood regulation,” the authors stated.

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Quantum sensors, a cutting-edge technology capable of detecting subtle signals from the human body, could soon transform how diseases are diagnosed and monitored, according to a report from the Quantum Economic Development Consortium (QED-C).

The report outlines how quantum sensing tools — ranging from diamond-based detectors to optically pumped magnetometers — offer unprecedented sensitivity compared to traditional medical devices. These sensors could enable earlier diagnoses for diseases like Alzheimer’s, provide better imaging of fetal development, and even analyze the microbiome in real time.

“Improved sensors could impact diverse aspects of biomedicine,” the report states. “For example, quantum sensors offer the possibility of significantly more efficient and accurate medical diagnoses for patients, thanks to their increased sensitivity and novel options for form factor. These attributes could enable quantum sensors to collect vast amounts of data about patients and medical conditions, and thus facilitate drug and treatment development and earlier diagnosis of disease. The advantages of quantum sensors encourage new ideas about solutions, quantum use cases, and business models across the biomedical industry — from prenatal care to cancer detection and treatment.”

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