Nervous System News and Research

Latest Nervous System News and Research

An analysis links COVID-19 to brain microvascular injury and inflammation

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome-2 (SARS-CoV-2), an RNA virus that belongs to the family Coronaviridae. According to research, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients often suffer from neurological disorders like strokes, lost taste or smell, memory loss, confusion, and delirium.

13 Jun 2021

HEPA air purifier can significantly reduce airborne COVID-19 particles

As COVID-19 restrictions ease nationwide and more people host indoor gatherings, investing in a high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) purifier might not be a bad idea, says a University of Cincinnati College of Medicine researcher.

11 Jun 2021

Compound may block COVID-19 virus from entering lung cells, study reports

Research conducted at LSU Health New Orleans Neuroscience Center of Excellence reports that Elovanoids, bioactive chemical messengers made from omega-3 very-long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids discovered by the Bazan lab in 2017, may block the virus that causes COVID-19 from entering cells and protect the air cells (alveoli) of the lung.

10 Jun 2021

Common antidepressant drugs help the immune system to attack tumors in mice

A class of drug called monoamine oxidase inhibitors is commonly prescribed to treat depression; the medications work by boosting levels of serotonin, the brain's "happiness hormone."

10 Jun 2021

Nose-to-brain: Nasal delivery of biopharmaceuticals to the brain

Placing medications as close as possible to the site of the disease: This sounds completely believable in theory, but is unfortunately not so simple in practice. While this works well for many drugs via the bloodstream or the digestive tract, it does not apply to the brain.

9 Jun 2021

Research clarifies neuron-specific DNA methylation changes and characteristics in bipolar disorder

A research collaboration based in Kumamoto University, Japan has revealed the DNA methylation status of gene transcriptional regulatory regions in the frontal lobes of patients with bipolar disorder (BD).

9 Jun 2021

New poll suggests older adults must watch their alcohol intake during pandemic

As many older adults get back to normal life across the United States thanks to high rates of vaccination and lower COVID-19 activity, a new poll suggests many should watch their alcohol intake.

9 Jun 2021

Study examines brain scans of COVID-19 patients

In a Journal of Neuroimaging analysis of data obtained from 193 patients with COVID-19 who had brain and/or spine imaging and a lumbar puncture because of neurologic symptoms, investigators found that imaging results were related to the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in the cerebrospinal fluid.

9 Jun 2021

Researchers map brain activity that flows when people learn a new skill

In a study of healthy volunteers, National Institutes of Health researchers have mapped out the brain activity that flows when we learn a new skill, such as playing a new song on the piano, and discovered why taking short breaks from practice is a key to learning.

9 Jun 2021

Cyperus rotundus medicinal plant shows promise for novel COVID-19 therapeutics

Cyperus rotundus is a plant with a history as herbal medicine, containing many chemical substances frequently found to be drug-like in character: flavonoids, terpenoids, and the like. Compounds sourced from the plant have demonstrated some inhibitory activity against HIV by modulation of the CYP3A4 enzyme, and thus in a drug lead discovery effort, Kumar et al. (July 2021) computationally screened these natural compounds against MPRO in a paper recently published to Computers in Biology and Medicine.

9 Jun 2021

High sugar intake from childhood could lead to long-term health problems

Children who consume too much sugar could be at greater risk of becoming obese, hyperactive, and cognitively impaired, as adults, according to the results of a new study of mice led by QUT and published by Frontiers in Neuroscience.

8 Jun 2021

Brain study may lead to new treatments for neuro-immune conditions

The immune system is the brain's best frenemy. It protects the brain from infection and helps injured tissues heal, but it also causes autoimmune diseases and creates inflammation that drives neurodegeneration.

8 Jun 2021

Wearable sensor shows link between blood pressure and intracranial pressure

Brazilian researchers have simultaneously demonstrated the mechanism linking high blood pressure to elevated intracranial pressure, validated a non-invasive intracranial pressure monitoring method, and proposed a treatment for high blood pressure that does not affect intracranial hypertension.

8 Jun 2021

Taking epilepsy drugs during pregnancy is not linked to cognitive problems in babies

New findings published in JAMA Neurology suggest there is no difference in cognitive outcomes at age 2 among children of healthy women and children of women with epilepsy who took antiseizure medication during pregnancy.

8 Jun 2021

COVID-19 can cause long-term consequences for the kidneys

The kidneys are a target organ of COVID-19 and are affected very early in the course. However, this is precisely where there is strong prognostic potential: As early as last spring, COVID-19-associated nephritis was identified as an early warning signal for severe courses of the infectious disease and studies to that effect were published.

7 Jun 2021

Researchers uncover molecular mechanism linking Parkinson’s disease with COVID-19

The study findings reveal that severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection results in abnormal modification of some lung proteins, which are subsequently transported to the brain via exosomes. In the brain, these modified lung proteins disrupt the normal functioning of proteins that are related to Parkinson’s disease.

7 Jun 2021

MSU research reveals how the skin's immune cells organize themselves to ward off intruders

It can be easy to forget that the human skin is an organ. It's also the largest one and it's exposed, charged with keeping our inner biology safe from the perils of the outside world.

5 Jun 2021

Alzheimer's disease increases a threefold risk of contracting severe COVID-19 and death

Neurodegenerative disorders that cause dementia increase the risk of contracting severe COVID-19 and dying from the disease.

3 Jun 2021

Study reveals how HIV prevents the maturation of myelin-making brain cells

It's long been known that people living with HIV experience a loss of white matter in their brains. As opposed to "gray matter," which is composed of the cell bodies of neurons, white matter is made up of a fatty substance called myelin that coats neurons, offering protection and helping them transmit signals quickly and efficiently.

2 Jun 2021