Cognitive Function News and Research

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Cognition is a concept used in different ways by different disciplines, but is generally accepted to mean the process of thought. For example, in psychology and cognitive science it refers to an information processing view of an individual's psychological functions.

Study Reveals How Syngap1 Gene Affects Touch-Based Perception in Mice

You may scarcely notice it, but much of what you do every day requires your brain to engage in perceptual learning.

14 Mar 2025

Protective ‘Slime’ In The Brain May Help Prevent Aging And Neurodegeneration

The study shows that boosting mucin-type O-glycosylation in aged mice reinforces the blood-brain barrier and improves memory, paving the way for new treatments.

10 Mar 2025

Mismatch Repair Genes Found to be Key Drivers of Huntington's Disease

A new UCLA Health study has discovered in mouse models that genes associated with repairing mismatched DNA are critical in eliciting damages to neurons that are most vulnerable in Huntington's disease and triggering downstream pathologies and motor impairment, shedding light on disease mechanisms and potential new ways to develop therapies.

12 Feb 2025

Research Reveals Key Mitochondrial Role in Social Recognition Memory

Virginia Tech neuroscientists have uncovered a mitochondrial process that supports the brain cells critical for learning, memory, and social recognition.

10 Feb 2025

Unveiling the Architecture of Native NMDA Receptors in the Mammalian Brain

A research team led by Shujia Zhu from the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ (CAS) Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology and Yang Li from the Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica of CAS examined the architecture and assembly of endogenous N-methyl-ᴅ-aspartate receptors (eNMDARs) in the cerebral cortex and hippocampus of adult mammals in a study published in Cell on January 23rd, 2025.

27 Jan 2025

Researchers Predict U.S. Dementia Cases Will Double by 2060

Unveiling a looming health crisis: how shifting demographics and genetic risks are driving a dramatic rise in dementia cases.

14 Jan 2025

Research Shows How Sleep Clears Brain Waste

A good night's sleep does more than just help you feel rested-it might literally clear your mind. A new study published January 8 in the Cell Press journal Cell shows how deep sleep may wash away waste buildup in the brain during waking hours, an essential process for maintaining brain health.

10 Jan 2025

Adult Neurogenesis Found to Aid Verbal Learning and Memory

Why do adults make new brain cells? A new study published in Cell Stem Cell provides the first cellular evidence that making new brain cells in adults supports verbal learning and memory, which enables people to have conversations and to remember what they hear.

6 Dec 2024

New Insights into the Mechanisms Driving Familial Alzheimer's Disease

Millions of people worldwide suffer from Alzheimer's disease, a crippling illness that gradually robs people of their memory and cognitive abilities.

4 Dec 2024

New Frontier in Protein Quality Control and Brain Health

Beyond their use as fuel during fasting, the body's production of ketones plays a part in controlling cellular functions and aging processes.

3 Dec 2024

F-Actin Accumulation Impairs Brain Function in Aging Fruit Flies

Humans aren't the only ones who grow forgetful as they age -; fruit flies do, too. But because fruit flies have a lifespan of only about two months, they can be a useful model for understanding the cognitive decline that comes with aging.

29 Oct 2024

Mutant Neurons Show Accelerated Development in Mouse Brain

The mechanisms behind intellectual disabilities and autism remain largely unknown. However, researchers from the labs of Prof. Pierre Vanderhaeghen and Prof. Vincent Bonin at the VIB-KU Leuven Center for Brain & Disease Research and NERF have identified that mutations in the SYNGAP1 gene interfere with the extended development of human neurons, a process believed to be critical for normal cognitive function.

15 Oct 2024

The Lasting Effects of COVID-19 on the Brain

In the UK’s largest study to date, novel steps have been taken to gain a better understanding of the immediate and long-term effects of COVID-19 on the brain.

25 Sep 2024

Single-Cell RNA Sequencing Reveals Cellular Changes in Early Alzheimer's Disease

An analysis of more than 1.6 million brain cells from older adults has captured the cellular changes that occur in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease, potentially revealing new routes for preventing the most common cause of dementia in older individuals.

29 Aug 2024