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brain research

Research articles and news stories tagged with brain research

·May 7, 2025·5 min read

Gut Microbiome Reveals Chronic Pain Risk, AI Study Finds

New research shows that AI can identify complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) with over 90% accuracy by analyzing gut microbiome patterns. Despite differences in geography and diet, a shared "microbiome signature" was detected across patients from Israel and Canada.

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Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·May 7, 2025·4 min read

Social Drinking, Not Solitary, Drives Most Alcohol-Related Harm

New research challenges the stereotype of the solitary drinker, showing that social drinking plays a central role in the development and consequences of alcohol use disorder. Studies reveal people consistently drink more in social settings, where heavy drinking often leads to serious harms like violence, risky sex, and traffic fatalities.

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Autism Featured Genetics Neuroscience

·May 7, 2025·6 min read

Can Genetics Predict Autism Intellectual Disabilities?

A new predictive model combining genetics with developmental milestones may help forecast which autistic children are at risk of developing intellectual disabilities. In a large study of over 5,600 children, researchers were able to correctly predict 10% of such cases and differentiate between low and high-risk groups twice as well as current methods.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·May 7, 2025·5 min read

Robot Gender and Design Influence Customer Choices

New research reveals that service robots’ gendered characteristics can shape customer decisions in the hospitality industry. Robots with male-associated traits were more persuasive with women who had a lower sense of personal power, while customers with higher power felt less influenced.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·May 7, 2025·4 min read

Psychedelics Rewire Brain-Immune Circuits

New research reveals that psychedelics like psilocybin do more than alter brain activity — they reshape how the brain and immune system communicate. Scientists identified a pathway where chronic stress disrupts amygdala signaling, triggering immune responses that increase fear and anxiety.

Auditory Neuroscience Featured Neuroscience

·May 7, 2025·5 min read

Why Noisy Rooms Are Harder for Some Brains to Handle

New research reveals that the insula, a key brain region, shows altered connectivity in people who struggle to understand speech in noisy environments. Using resting-state MRI, scientists found that the left insula works harder even when the brain is not actively processing sound, suggesting a permanent rewiring linked to hearing difficulties.

Featured Neurology Neuroscience

·May 7, 2025·9 min read

Want to Know Your Alzheimer’s Risk? Many Change Their Minds

New research reveals a striking gap between people’s theoretical desire to know their Alzheimer’s disease risk and their real-life decisions when results are actually offered. In a study of cognitively normal volunteers, only 60% chose to learn their estimated risk when given the chance, despite 81% expressing prior interest.

Featured Neuroscience

·May 7, 2025·7 min read

Western Diet Blocks Gut Microbiome Recovery After Antibiotics

New research shows that a Western-style diet rich in processed foods disrupts the gut microbiome’s ability to recover after antibiotic treatment. In mice, this diet prevented the regrowth of a healthy, diverse microbiome, leaving them more vulnerable to infections like Salmonella.

Featured Neurology Neuroscience Pain Psychology

·May 6, 2025·8 min read

Emotional Regulation Offers a New Path to Relief

A new study shows that improving emotional processing can significantly reduce chronic pain and improve quality of life. Researchers developed Pain and Emotion Therapy, an online intervention teaching emotional regulation, which led to notable pain reduction in participants.

Featured Neuroscience

·May 6, 2025·6 min read

Neural Processing Gaps Explain Other-Race Face Blindness

Researchers have combined artificial intelligence and EEG brain activity data to better understand the Other-Race Effect (ORE), where people recognize faces of their own race more accurately than others. Studies revealed that participants processed other-race faces with less neural detail, seeing them as more average, younger, and more expressive.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·May 6, 2025·8 min read

Teens With Mental Health Conditions Use Social Media Differently

Adolescents with mental health conditions report distinct and often more negative experiences on social media compared to their peers. Those with internalising conditions like anxiety and depression were more likely to compare themselves to others, struggle with self-control, and experience mood changes tied to likes and comments.

Autism Featured Neuroscience

·May 6, 2025·4 min read

Finger Movements Offer New Clues for Autism Detection

Subtle hand movements during grasping tasks may help diagnose autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with high accuracy. Using machine learning, researchers analyzed how autistic and non-autistic individuals used their fingers to grasp objects, achieving approximately 85% classification accuracy.