Nervous System News and Research

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The nervous system is an organ system containing a network of specialized cells called neurons that coordinate the actions of an animal and transmit signals between different parts of its body. In most animals the nervous system consists of two parts, central and peripheral. The central nervous system contains the brain and spinal cord.

Identifying the Genetic Variant That Increases Disease Severity in MS

Research of over 22,000 patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) has for the first time discovered a genetic variant linked with speedier progression of the disease, a buildup of disability that can deprive patients of their mobility and independence over time.

29 Jun 2023

New Breakthrough of Genetic Marker Improves Treatment for Multiple Sclerosis

A study of more than 22,000 people with multiple sclerosis has discovered the first genetic variant associated with faster disease progression, which can rob patients of their mobility and independence over time.

29 Jun 2023

Probiotic Bacteria may Help Maintain Brain Function in Aging Nematodes

A group from Nagoya University in Japan has discovered that when the diet of nematodes, tiny worms measuring about a millimeter or less in length, includes the bacteria Lactobacillus reuteri, the weakening of associative learning ability caused by aging does not occur.

28 Jun 2023

New Technology can Help Probe the Connections Between the Brain and Gut

The brain and the digestive tract are in constant communication, relaying signals that help to control feeding and other behaviors.

23 Jun 2023

Rescue Treatment Found From Plant Extracts for People With Ataxia

A University of California, Irvine-led team of researchers have discovered that extracts from plants used by the Kwakwaka'wakw First Nations peoples in their traditional botanical medicine practices are able to rescue the function of ion channel proteins carrying mutations that cause human Episodic Ataxia.

22 Jun 2023

Albino Squid Illuminates Cephalopod Brain Activity

A team of researchers at the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) has successfully engineered an albino strain of Euprymna berryi, the hummingbird bobtail squid.

21 Jun 2023

Review: Role of Alternative Splicing Defects in Major Neurodegenerative Diseases

Alternative splicing, a clever way a cell generates many different variations of messenger RNAs -; single-stranded RNAs involved in protein synthesis -; and proteins from the same stretch of DNA, plays an important role in molecular biology.

21 Jun 2023

Microglial Cells Serve as a Stable Viral Reservoir for Latent HIV

Human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV) introduces a copy of its DNA into human immune cells as part of its life cycle. Some of these newly infected immune cells can subsequently enter an inactive, latent state for an extended length of time, which is known as HIV latency.

19 Jun 2023

Can Temperature Influence the Octopus Neural Transcriptome?

Each cell has a finite set of instructions inscribed in its DNA. Life, on the other hand, is unpredictable, and when the situation changes, animals must change.

9 Jun 2023

Scientists Discover the Mechanisms of Synaptic Pruning in Brain Development

Researchers at Kyushu University have uncovered the mechanisms of a fundamental yet critically under-looked phase in brain development: synaptic pruning.

8 Jun 2023

Determining the Genome of West Nile Virus

Connecticut Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory (CVMDL) researchers from UConn’s College of Agriculture, Health, and Natural Resources determined the genetic makeup of West Nile virus strains reported in an alpaca and a crow.

7 Jun 2023

Large-Scale Phylogenomic Studies Reveal Mysteries of Primate Evolution

Researchers from Zhejiang University, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Northwest University, and Yunnan University, Aarhus University, and BGI-Research have jointly led a series of significant new studies are published in a special issue of the journal Science, and in papers in Nature Ecology & Evolution and Science Advances.

2 Jun 2023

Study Reveals Mechanisms Behind Swallowing in Detail

Sensory cells in the vagus nerve can detect and locate food in the esophagus. Their signals help transport the food onward to the stomach. Signal failure leads to swallowing disorders, say a team led by Carmen Birchmeier at the Max Delbrück Center.

29 May 2023

Breakthrough Discovery Paves Way for Understanding Downstream Cellular Applications in Human Health

Assemblies of tiny molecular proteins span the membranes that encapsulate our cells, directing cellular activities and regulating the transport of materials and information in and out.

25 May 2023

TTUHSC Professor Awarded NIH Grant for Potassium Channel Study

Each living cell has small, highly specialized conduits called potassium (K+) channels, which are responsible for the highly selective and fast transfer of K+ ions across cell membranes.

19 May 2023

Genetic Study Provides New Insights About One of the Earliest Points in Animal Evolution

A study published by MBARI researchers and their collaborators today in Nature provides new insights about one of the earliest points in animal evolution that happened more than 700 million years ago.

18 May 2023

Glycosylation Enzyme Regulates the Formation of Neurons and Astrocytes From Neural Stem Cells

The MGAT5 glycosylation enzyme plays a crucial role in brain development, according to a study by University of California, Irvine researchers, a discovery that may contribute to new therapeutic purposes for neural stem cells.

17 May 2023

Study Finds Place of Transcription Start Often Determines the Place of Transcription End

Each gene in the human DNA has a start and an endpoint. It is critical to correctly define the gene's extremities to make functional proteins. Much study has been conducted to identify what determines when, where, and at which place on the DNA a gene “starts.”

16 May 2023

Mitochondria Transfer From Astrocytes Enhances Tumorigenesis in Glioblastoma

Glioblastoma cancer cells use mitochondria from the central nervous system to grow and form more aggressive tumors, according to new Cleveland Clinic-led findings published in Nature Cancer.

12 May 2023

Experimental Model Sheds Light on Key Cellular Processes Involved in Embryogenesis

Many birth defects and spontaneous abortions occur during the embryonic development stage known as neurulation, yet we have very little insight into how this critical developmental process unfolds in humans.

9 May 2023