Brain Development Is Guided by Junk DNA that Isn’t Really Junk
Researchers discover a role for long noncoding RNA in brain development and neurodegenerative diseases.
BPA May Affect the Developing Brain by Disrupting Gene Regulation
New research suggests environmental exposure to bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical commonly found in plastics and resins, could suppress a gene critical to nerve cell function and the development of the central nervous system. Exposure to BPA could predispose humans to a number of neurodevelopmental and other health disorders.
Signaling Pathway Linked to Fetal Alcohol Risk
Research have identified a signaling pathway that might determine genetic susceptibility for the development of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD).
Shedding New Light on Infant Brain Development
Researchers find the infant brain does not control its blood flow in the same way as the adult brain. The findings could change the way researchers study brain development in infants and children.
Early Music Lessons Boost Brain Development
A new study suggests early musical training has a significant effect on the development of the brain. Practicing instruments before the age of seven boosts the normal maturation of connections between motor and sensory regions of the brain, researchers suggest.
Chance Finding Reveals New Control on Blood Vessels in Developing Brain
New research demonstrates how developing glia and neural cells help control the growth of blood vessels.
Findings on Potential to Prevent, Reverse Serious Disabilities Affecting Children Born Prematurely
Researchers report that low blood and oxygen flow to the developing brain does not, as previously thought, cause an irreversible loss of brain cells, but rather disrupts the cells’ ability to fully mature.
Scientists Show Biological Mechanism Can Trigger Epileptic Seizures
Researchers at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center report that molecular disruptions in small neurons called granule cells – located in the dentate gyrus region of the brain – caused brain seizures in mice similar to those seen in human temporal lobe epilepsy.
Neuroscientists Find Brain Stem Cells that May Be Responsible for Higher Functions, Bigger Brains
A neuron’s fate was thought to be determined by the timing of its birth date. Neuroscientists recently showed that there is a distinct stem cell progenitor that gives rise to upper layer neurons, regardless of birth date or place.
Fishing for Answers to Autism Puzzle
Biologists take a new approach to deciphering the roles of genes associated with autism. Fish cannot display symptoms of autism, schizophrenia or other human brain disorders. However, a team of MIT biologists has shown that zebrafish can be a useful tool for studying the genes that contribute to such disorders. Led by developmental biologist Hazel [...]
