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Storing and retrieving memories is among the most important tasks our intricate brains must perform, yet how that happens at a molecular level remains incompletely understood. A new study from the lab of Neuroscience Professor Ronald Davis, Ph.D., at Scripps Research, Florida, sheds light on one element of that memory storage process, namely the storage and retrieval of a type […]
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Down syndrome is the most common genetic cause of intellectual disability, and currently there is no effective treatment. Memory deficits are a hallmark of this condition and a study published today in the journal Science reports that the defects in a conserved stress pathway dubbed the ‘integrated stress response,’ or ISR, could explain the cognitive deficits in a mouse model […]
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Researchers have discovered that instances in which outcomes are better than expected—finding an unexpectedly good parking spot, for example, or spotting a $20 bill on the sidewalk—improves memories of specific events. This is in addition to the long-established role that unexpectedly good outcomes have in influencing what are called integrated memories. Remembering where you parked your car this morning is […]
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A new study carried out in a collaboration between researchers from LMU and UC San Diego suggests that new sensory experiences are encoded in pre-existing patterns of neuronal activity, which are recalled, modulated and enhanced following periods of behavioral activity. Nerve cells located in the hippocampus and the neighboring medial entorhinal cortex (MEC) are crucial for the formation of memories, […]
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The old adage “use it or lose it” tells us: if you stop using your muscles, they’ll shrink. Until recently, scientists thought this meant that nuclei—the cell control centers that build and maintain muscle fibers—are also lost to sloth. But according to a review published in Frontiers in Physiology, modern lab techniques now allow us to see that nuclei gained […]
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Fungal infections are emerging as a major medical challenge, and a team led by researchers at Baylor College of Medicine has developed a mouse model to study the short-term consequences of fungal infection in the brain. The researchers report in the journal Nature Communications the unexpected finding that the common yeast Candida albicans, a type of fungus, can cross the […]
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Unlike old dogs, old adults can indeed learn new tricks thanks to a protein molecule called netrin. Netrin is known to help set up the healthy nervous system in an infant’s developing brain by directing brain cells to make appropriate connections with other brain cells. New research conducted by scientists at The Neuro has found that netrin in the adult […]
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Researchers from the University of California, Irvine School of Medicine, have found that a rare gene mutation alters brain development in mice, impairing memory and disrupting the communication between nerve cells. They also show memory problems could be improved by transplanting a specific type of nerve cell into the brain. The findings were published today in Neuron. “Mutations in hundreds […]
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People who include a little yoga or tai chi in their day may be more likely to remember where they put their keys. Researchers at the University of California, Irvine and Japan’s University of Tsukuba found that even very light workouts can increase the connectivity between parts of the brain responsible for memory formation and storage. In a study of […]
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During a depressive episode, the ability of the brain to form new brain cells is reduced. Scientists of the Ruhr-Universität Bochum examined how this affects the memory with a computational model. It was previously known that people in an acute depressive episode were less likely to remember current events. The computational model however suggests that older memories were affected as […]
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