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neurodevelopment

·June 1, 2024·5 min read

Early Autism Diagnosis Enhanced by Eye-Tracking Technology

Eye-tracking biomarkers can improve autism diagnosis in children. Combining eye-tracking with primary care evaluations increased diagnostic accuracy to 91% sensitivity and 87% specificity. This approach could reduce the long wait times for autism evaluations, enabling timely interventions. The research marks a significant step toward faster, more accurate autism diagnosis.

Featured Neuroscience

·May 31, 2024·5 min read

Infants Hear More Speech Than Music At Home

A new study compared the amount of music and speech infants hear at home. Researchers found that infants are exposed to more speech than music, with the gap increasing as they grow.

Neuroscience

·May 31, 2024·5 min read

Training AI Like Babies Boosts Performance

Researchers developed a human-inspired AI training method that improves object recognition by incorporating spatial data, leading to a 14.99% performance boost. This novel approach mimics how infants learn from their environment, training AI systems more efficiently. The findings could advance AI for extreme environments or space exploration.

Featured Genetics Neuroscience

·May 31, 2024·3 min read

Stem Cells Choose Role in Early Human Embryo Development

A new study using stem cell-based models reveals how early human embryo cells decide between forming the fetus or the supporting yolk sac. Understanding this decision is crucial as the yolk sac is essential for later development in the womb and could improve IVF treatments.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·May 30, 2024·3 min read

How Sleep and Social Media Shape Teen Brain Function

A new study links shorter sleep duration in teens to higher social media usage, involving brain regions crucial for executive control and reward processing. The inferior frontal gyrus and middle frontal gyrus are key in how adolescents regulate engagement with social media and manage decisions related to sleep.

Featured Neuroscience

·May 30, 2024·4 min read

Prenatal Amphetamine Exposure Impacts Brain Development

A new study used C. elegans to study the long-term effects of amphetamine exposure during embryogenesis, finding significant alterations in dopamine-related genes and proteins. These changes lead to increased sensitivity to amphetamines in adulthood, highlighting potential risks for humans. The study emphasizes the need for careful consideration of amphetamine use during pregnancy due to its lasting impact on brain function.

Featured Neuroscience Open Neuroscience Articles

·May 29, 2024·4 min read

Babies’ Squeals and Growls Show Early Vocal Practice Patterns

Infants' vocalizations, like squeals and growls, appear in significant clusters, suggesting active noisemaking play and sound practice. Researchers analyzed recordings from 130 infants and found 40% of squeals and growls clustered significantly.

Featured Genetics Neuroscience

·May 25, 2024·4 min read

Maternal Immune Response Affects Fetal Brain Development

Immune responses during pregnancy can alter gene regulation in the developing brain of mice embryos. Researchers found that maternal immune reactions are detected by microglia, brain cells that then affect surrounding neurons.

Autism Featured Genetics Neuroscience

·May 24, 2024·7 min read

Study Links Genetic Risk of Autism to Brain Cell Activity

revealed the most detailed view yet of the biological mechanisms underlying autism, linking genetic risk to cellular and genetic activity in the brain. Researchers used single-cell assays to analyze over 800,000 nuclei from post-mortem brain tissue of individuals with autism and neurotypical controls.

This shows the shadow of a teenage girl.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·May 23, 2024·5 min read

Teen Social Networks Influence Mental Health Disorder Spread

Researchers found that mental disorders can spread within school social networks. By analyzing data from over 700,000 Finnish ninth-graders, they discovered that having classmates with mental disorders increased the risk of being diagnosed with similar conditions later in life.

Autism Featured Neuroscience

·May 23, 2024·6 min read

Key Brain Differences in Autistic Boys and Girls Identified

Researchers discovered significant sex-specific differences in brain development between autistic boys and girls aged 2-13. The study found that autistic girls have a thicker cortex at age 3 and faster cortical thinning into middle childhood compared to boys.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·May 23, 2024·5 min read

School Readiness at 4 Predicts Teen Outcomes

A new study finds that children not deemed "school ready" at age 4 are significantly more likely to be unemployed or out of education by 16. This early disadvantage also predicts lower GCSE achievement. Researchers used data from over 8,000 Bradford young people to identify this link. This highlights the need for early intervention in schools to reduce later disadvantage.