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Study Identifies Brain Mechanism Behind Pregnancy-Related Food Cravings

Study Identifies Brain Mechanism Behind Pregnancy-Related Food Cravings

Study Identifies Brain Mechanism Behind Pregnancy-Related Food Cravings
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Preschoolers' Blink Rate Linked to Stronger Self-Control and Brain Activity, Study Finds

Preschoolers' Blink Rate Linked to Stronger Self-Control and Brain Activity, Study Finds

A new study involving 113 preschoolers, aged approximately 3 to 6 years old, has found a correlation between a higher blink rate during a cognitive task and stronger self-control. Children who blinked more often while playing a card-sorting game, which tests mental flexibility, also scored better on the task. This link remained significant even after accounting for age differences. Brain imaging, using a light-based technique (fNIRS), revealed that faster blinkers exhibited greater activity in a specific region of the right, upper forehead—an area associated with self-control and executive function. As children aged, brain activity in this region became more concentrated, suggesting a specialization of prefrontal activity. The researchers hypothesize that dopamine, a brain chemical involved in motivation and focus, may be the underlying biological factor connecting blink rate and executive function, drawing parallels to adult studies and conditions like Parkinson's disease where dopamine signaling is disru...
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University of Pennsylvania Researchers Uncover White Matter Tracts' Role in Brain Function and Development

University of Pennsylvania Researchers Uncover White Matter Tracts' Role in Brain Function and Development

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania, the Lifespan Brain Institute (LiBI), and Children's Hospital of Philadelphia have published findings in Nature Human Behaviour detailing how white matter tracts support distinct brain functions. The study moves beyond traditional broad anatomical categories for white matter, instead examining its role within the brain's cortical organization. They found that certain white matter tracts act as 'bridges,' connecting primary sensorimotor regions with higher-order association areas, thereby supporting a broader range of cognitive functions. These 'bridge' tracts also exhibit more pronounced developmental changes during childhood and adolescence. The research involved analyzing large, publicly available datasets using tractography to reconstruct white matter pathways and mapping 52 established tracts to understand their connections and the functions of the regions they link. This approach allowed them to determine how a tract's position in the cortical hierarchy in...
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Arkansas Department of Health to Host Maternal Health Events in Pine Bluff and Springdale

Arkansas Department of Health to Host Maternal Health Events in Pine Bluff and Springdale

The Arkansas Department of Health is organizing free maternal health events in Pine Bluff and Springdale to connect expectant and new mothers and their families with health services and community resources. The Southeast Arkansas event will take place on November 7 at Saracen Landing in Pine Bluff from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., requiring no registration. A similar event for Northwest Arkansas communities, including Marshallese and Hispanic families, is scheduled for October 10 at The Jones Center in Springdale, also from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. These regional events are extensions of the department's annual MOM Block Party and Women's Health Expo, which was held in Little Rock in May. Attendees will have access to information on maternal and postpartum health, the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), immunizations, breastfeeding support, and family planning services available through Arkansas health units and community organizations. Arkansas Secretary of Health Renee Mallory em...
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Stanford Medicine Research Overturns Brain Development Model, Identifies Two Parallel Progenitors

Stanford Medicine Research Overturns Brain Development Model, Identifies Two Parallel Progenitors

Recent research by Stanford Medicine, published in Nature Neuroscience, has overturned a long-standing model of brain development. The study, led by senior author Kyle Loh and co-first authors Carolyn Dundes and Rayyan Jokhai, reveals that the developing brain is formed from two distinct and parallel neural ectoderm progenitors, rather than a single progenitor cell. This means that hindbrain neurons arise from a different progenitor than forebrain and midbrain neurons. The researchers discovered that the anterior neural ectoderm (future forebrain and midbrain) and posterior neural ectoderm (future hindbrain) possess fundamentally different chromatin configurations, which effectively lock each progenitor cell into its specific developmental path. This finding explains why previous attempts to generate hindbrain neurons in laboratories by trying to coax forebrain and midbrain progenitors were unsuccessful. The study also found that this two-origin brain pattern is ancient, observed in chickens, zebrafish, an...
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Scientists Identify Cortical Cells Capable of Initiating Sleep, Challenging Traditional Brain Sleep Theories

Scientists Identify Cortical Cells Capable of Initiating Sleep, Challenging Traditional Brain Sleep Theories

New research published in Nature by neuroscientists Geoffrey Terral and Renata Batista-Brito at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York has identified a specific population of cortical cells capable of initiating sleep. These cells, known as Sst-Chodl neurons, constitute approximately one percent of the cortex's inhibitory neurons. Traditionally, sleep research has posited that the cerebral cortex passively responds to sleep signals originating from deeper brain regions. However, the study demonstrates that activating these Sst-Chodl neurons in mice is sufficient to induce sleep. This finding suggests that the cortex can not only perceive sleep rhythms but also actively initiate them, challenging the long-held assumption that subcortical regions are solely responsible for controlling sleep onset.
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Study Links Better Fitness to Healthier Brain Structure in Older Adults, Not Improved Memory

Study Links Better Fitness to Healthier Brain Structure in Older Adults, Not Improved Memory

A recent study published in the journal npj Aging investigated the associations between objectively measured aerobic and muscular fitness and brain structure, pathology, and cognition in cognitively unimpaired older adults aged 60-94 years. Researchers found that higher muscular capacity was significantly associated with lower basal ganglia perivascular space (PVS) volume, an indicator linked to cerebral small vessel disease and impaired brain homeostasis. Additionally, higher aerobic fitness was associated with greater total gray matter (GM) volume and a thicker medial temporal lobe (MTL) cortex, suggesting better brain health. However, the study did not find a direct association between physical fitness and baseline global cognition or episodic memory. The findings were more consistent with the concept of 'brain maintenance'—resisting declines in neural resources—rather than 'cognitive reserve'—coping with pathology while maintaining cognitive function.
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Cat's out of the bag. Meet the newly discovered cat species

Cat's out of the bag. Meet the newly discovered cat species

Researchers hope the discovery could help free resources to conserve populations.
ReutersReuters
Trump says his son told him he will repay Russian oligarch for wedding parties

Trump says his son told him he will repay Russian oligarch for wedding parties

By Jacob Bogage and Steve Holland WASHINGTON, Sept 18 (Reuters) - US President Donald Trump said on Friday his son, Donald Trump Jr., has told him he would pay back a Russian oligarch who bankrolled wedding celebrations for him in the Bahamas in May.
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Aromachology Explores Scent's Impact on Mood and Behavior, Distinguishing Itself from Aromatherapy

Aromachology Explores Scent's Impact on Mood and Behavior, Distinguishing Itself from Aromatherapy

Aromachology Explores Scent's Impact on Mood and Behavior, Distinguishing Itself from Aromatherapy
ReutersReuters
Father of murdered Spanish student arrives in Mexico after suspect detained

Father of murdered Spanish student arrives in Mexico after suspect detained

MEXICO CITY, Sept 18 (Reuters) - The father of a Spanish exchange student killed in Mexico arrived in the Mexican state of Morelos on Friday to identify his daughter's body, a day after authorities detained a suspect in her murder.
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USC Bioengineer Ellis Meng Develops Open-Source Implantable Neurostimulation Device, OpenNerve

USC Bioengineer Ellis Meng Develops Open-Source Implantable Neurostimulation Device, OpenNerve

Ellis Meng, the Shelly and Ofer Nemirovsky Chair in Convergent Bioscience and professor at USC Viterbi School of Engineering and Keck School of Medicine, has developed OpenNerve, a wireless, modular implantable pulse generator for the nervous system. This device is capable of recording neural signals and delivering stimulation, configurable as a closed-loop system. Meng announced at the Alfred E. Mann Department of Biomedical Engineering’s 50th anniversary symposium that OpenNerve is nearing its first fully implanted animal study, after which it will be made freely available to researchers worldwide for use, modification, and building upon. The initiative aims to address a critical gap in medical device research, where customizable tools for a wide range of research questions are scarce, as the medical device industry typically focuses on purpose-built devices for specific conditions. This project aligns with broader efforts like the NIH’s Human Open Research Neural Engineering Technology (HORNET) initiati...