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environmental neuroscience

This shows a child reaching to touch neurons.

·December 3, 2025·6 min read

Early-Life Stimulation Switches On a Molecular Code for Memory

New research shows that childhood environments shape lifelong memory through a single molecular switch that controls learning-related gene activity. In animal models, enriched early experiences activated this switch, strengthening neural circuits involved in memory and cognition, while deprived environments suppressed it.

Featured Neurology Neuroscience

·November 5, 2025·6 min read

Your Neighborhood Could Influence Your Risk of Dementia

Researchers found that living in a socioeconomically deprived neighborhood can harm brain health as early as midlife. People from these areas showed more signs of small-vessel brain damage, slower thinking skills, and poorer control of lifestyle factors such as blood pressure, obesity, and sleep.

Featured Neuroscience Visual Neuroscience

·September 23, 2025·4 min read

Cleaner Air May Protect Children’s Eyesight and Slow Myopia

New research reveals that cleaner air may protect children’s eyesight and help slow the rise of myopia, especially in younger children. Using machine learning, scientists found that children living in less polluted areas had better vision, even after accounting for genetics and screen time.

This shows a brain made up of clouds and smoke stacks.

Featured Neurology Neuroscience

·September 6, 2025·8 min read

Air Pollution Linked to Toxic Protein Clumps Driving Lewy Body Dementia

A new study reveals a molecular link between fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) and Lewy body dementia, a devastating neurodegenerative condition. By combining human epidemiological data and animal experiments, researchers showed that PM2.5 exposure triggers toxic clumps of alpha-synuclein in the brain, similar to those seen in patients.

This shows a pregnant woman in a field surrounded by "danger" signs.

Featured Neuroscience

·August 18, 2025·6 min read

Prenatal Pesticide Exposure Linked to Lasting Brain Damage in Children

A new study provides the strongest evidence yet that prenatal exposure to the insecticide chlorpyrifos (CPF) disrupts brain development, leaving children with structural abnormalities and impaired motor control well into adolescence. Using brain imaging and behavioral assessments of over 270 New York City children, researchers found that higher CPF exposure levels were directly linked to widespread changes in brain structure, function, and metabolism.

This shows a child's head, a brain and smoke stacks.

Featured Neuroscience

·June 14, 2025·6 min read

Air Pollution Alters Fetal Brain Structures

A new study reveals that prenatal exposure to common air pollutants like NO₂, PM2.5, and black carbon is associated with subtle but measurable changes in fetal brain structure during the second and third trimesters. Using specialized ultrasound scans, researchers found increased volumes in brain cavities, including the lateral ventricles and cisterna magna, and changes in areas related to motor coordination and sensory processing.

Featured Genetics Neuroscience Psychology

·June 10, 2025·6 min read

Genetic Sensitivity to Environment May Shape Mental Health Traits

A large international study of over 21,000 identical twins has identified genetic variants that influence how individuals respond to life experiences, affecting traits such as anxiety, depression, and autistic traits. By analyzing genetic differences in identical twins, researchers discovered that certain genes make people more or less sensitive to environmental exposures.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·May 5, 2025·5 min read

Stressful Neighborhoods May Numb Kids’ Brains to Joy and Loss

Children raised in disadvantaged neighborhoods may show blunted brain responses to rewards and losses, especially if they have a family history of depression. New research reveals that community-level stress, not just personal trauma, can dampen neural reactions tied to motivation and emotional engagement.

This shows the outline of a person, a brain and smoke stacks.

Featured Neuroscience

·April 7, 2025·5 min read

Air Pollution May Impair Language Skills, Brain Health

Long-term exposure to nitrogen dioxide and fine particulate matter may harm cognitive health, particularly language ability, in older adults. In a new study of individuals aged 65 and over, those living in England’s most polluted areas consistently scored lower on cognitive assessments, especially in language-based tasks.

This shows an older woman doing a crossword.

Featured Neurology Neuroscience

·January 13, 2025·5 min read

Indoor Temperatures Affect Cognitive Function in Older Adults

A new study reveals that older adults experience the least attention difficulties when home temperatures remain between 68–75 ˚F (20–24 ˚C). Deviations beyond this range double the risk of attention lapses, highlighting how even current climate conditions may harm cognitive health.

This shows a brain and a bottle of herbicide.

Featured Neurology Neuroscience

·December 4, 2024·9 min read

Herbicide Exposure Linked to Long-Term Brain Inflammation, Alzheimer’s

New research reveals that glyphosate, a widely used herbicide, can cause lasting brain inflammation and accelerate Alzheimer’s-like pathology in mice. Even short-term exposure resulted in persistent inflammatory markers and neurological damage, including anxiety-like behaviors and premature death. The study found that glyphosate’s metabolite, aminomethylphosphonic acid, accumulates in brain tissue, raising concerns about its long-term safety for humans.

This shows gas pumps, a person and a brain.

Featured Genetics Neuroscience Psychology

·December 4, 2024·3 min read

Leaded Gas Exposure Linked to Mental Illness

A new study estimates that childhood lead exposure, peaking between 1960 and 1990 due to leaded gasoline, caused 151 million excess cases of mental illness by 2015. Researchers linked historic lead exposure data to mental health symptoms, finding that personality changes and mental health disorders were most pronounced among Generation X.