A new study finds that a brain rhythm (alpha) considered the hallmark of wakefulness not only persists inconspicuously during sleep, but also signifies an individual's vulnerability to disturbance by the outside world. The electroencephalography (EEG)-based study results were published on March 3 in the open access journal, PLoS One; check the end of this report for a download link. ...

A brain imaging study at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory reveals a subtle difference between ordinary obese subjects and those who compulsively overeat, or binge: In binge eaters, but not ordinary obese subjects, the mere sight or smell of favorite foods triggers a spike in dopamine - a brain chemical linked to reward and motivation. The findings - published online on Fe ...

A study conducted at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory demonstrated that drug addicted individuals who have a certain genetic makeup have decreased gray matter density – and therefore fewer neurons – in areas of the brain that are essential for decision-making, self-control, and learning and memory. The research, conducted by scientists from Brookhaven Lab, Stony Brook Uni ...

How well the brain functions is largely based on our family's genetic makeup, according to a University of Melbourne led study. The study published in the international publication the Journal of Neuroscience provides the first evidence of a genetic effect on how 'cost-efficient' our brain network wiring is and sheds light on some of the brain's make up. ...

Tobacco smoking is the leading preventable cause of death and disease in the U.S., with more than 400,000 deaths each year attributable to smoking or its consequences. And yet teens still smoke. Indeed, smoking usually begins in the teen years, and approximately 80 percent of adult smokers became hooked by the time they were 18. Meanwhile, teens who do not take up smoking usually never do. A new study from ...

When your brain encounters sensory stimuli, such as the scent of your morning coffee or the sound of a honking car, that input gets shuttled to the appropriate brain region for analysis. The coffee aroma goes to the olfactory cortex, while sounds are processed in the auditory cortex. That division of labor suggests that the brain’s structure follows a predetermined, genetic blueprint. However, evidence is m ...

Results from a new study contribute to growing evidence that if one of your parents has Alzheimer’s disease, the chances of inheriting it from your mother are higher than from your father. The study is published in the March 1, 2011, print issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. ...

Mothers who are depressed respond differently to their crying babies than do non-depressed moms. In fact, their reaction, according to brain scans at the University of Oregon, is much more muted than the robust brain activity in non-depressed moms. The results were published online in advance of publication in the journal Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience. ...

Using a sophisticated imaging test to probe for higher-level cognitive functioning in severely brain-injured patients provides a window into consciousness; but the view it presents is one that is blurred in fascinating ways, say researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College in the Feb. 25 online edition of the journal Brain. ...

A non-invasive brain imaging technique gives new hope to patients with Parkinson's disease in finding new and better treatment plans and tracking the disease progression, a new University of Michigan study shows. The technique uses an MRI to measure resting state brain activity oscillations, said Rachael Seidler, associate professor in the School of Kinesiology and the Department of Psychology, and study au ...