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Learning Process helps Survival of New Neurons: Using Brain at Optimal Levels

May 28, 2014May 31, 2014 Pooja Kashyap

In an interesting study in the field of neuroscience, researchers have postulated that learning during the early ages of life helps in the survival of brain cells. Early learning also influence the functioning of brain cells after puberty claimed the same team. An experiment on rats demonstrated that brain cells that were exposed to learning survived with respect to the brain cells in animals that were not allowed to master a particular task. In addition, it was observed that the latter set of animals died quickly too.

Internal Monitoring System Responsible for Neural Self-Regulation: The Most Complex Machinery

May 27, 2014May 31, 2014 Pooja Kashyap

Parts of any machinery can be replaced, modified or tampered with only when the machine is in an off mode. It is nearly impossible to fiddle around with any operational part while it’s functioning. However, the same principle does not apply for our biological process, especially when we are talking about a nerve cell. This continuous rebuilding without affecting the overall operations has always been neuroscience’s biggest questions. Many theories have been put forward but none of them has ever reached any concrete census. Lately, Eve Marder, the Victor and…

Stimulating Neurons can modify Human Learning: Curbing the Addictive Behaviors

May 14, 2014May 31, 2014 Pooja Kashyap

Neuroscientists at the University of Pennsylvania have put forth a research as per which excitation of a set of dopamine-sodden neurons within the brain has substantial chances of altering the learning process. These neurons are present in substantia nigra, the grey matter in the midbrain. Stimulating this patch of the brain has resulted in altered learning by swaying people to reiterate physical actions leading to positive reinforcement producing immediate reward. For the experiment, eleven individuals who were going through deep brain stimulation (DBS) treatment for Parkinson’s disease were taken into…

Right Enzymes Replicated the Semi-Synthetic DNA: Expanded-DNA Biology

May 9, 2014 Pooja Kashyap

Scientists always dig deeper into the functioning of nature in order for their better understandings. At times, these trials and errors have given rise to serendipity or accidental discoveries in science, amongst others, recent being how sliding saltwater over graphene generated electricity. While at other times, these experiments go beyond the natural order of workings even at the miniscule level.

High Fiber Diet helps in Combating Overeating Problems: Acetate for Eating Disorders

May 6, 2014 Neha Shukla

Researchers from the Medical Research Council (MRC) and Imperial College London have discovered an anti-appetite molecule named as acetate. These acetate molecules are discharged when our body digests fibre. The released acetate molecules carried to the brain, which then signals our body to stop consuming more food.

Recombination Leads to Evolution of Drug Resistant Lineage: Bacterial Genomics

May 3, 2014May 3, 2014 Neha Shukla

Researchers have always wanted to know the process by which bacteria become drug or vaccine resistant over the time. They have now an answer to this mystery. To get genetic material that could make bacteria drug resistant, bacteria use recombination method, which is in other words a substitute for sex.

Predictive Power of Brain: Similar Activity Patterns are Exhibited amid Speakers and Listeners

May 1, 2014September 18, 2020 Neha Shukla

At times, won’t we experience that while conversing with someone, the other person just say what were thinking or were about to spill out the same topic. And then we mutter, “what a coincidence” or as I say, “great minds thing alike” 🙂 well, this actually is not the case, neuroscientists have discovered new findings about the role of the brain during a communication. They say that people often predict what the speaker is about to say, because the brain activity of the listener is similar to the speaker.

Caffeine Consumption Averts Type 2 Diabetes: Nutritional Beverage

April 29, 2014 Neha Shukla

If you are coffee addict and cannot cut down on your daily caffeine intake, there is a good news for you. According to a latest study, moderately scaling up coffee consumption can avert the risk of type 2 diabetes. As per Dr Frank Hu and Dr Shilpa Bhupathiraju from the department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, who led the research team, showed that by increasing the daily coffee intake by just one and a half cups (360 ml, approximately) over a four year span proves beneficial in cutting…

Laughter Sets Off Waves Akin to Meditation: The Brain’s Workout

April 29, 2014May 31, 2014 Neha Shukla

“Laughter is the best medicine” is a very well known saying and is now scientifically proven by researchers. According to a study, researchers have found that laughter in humans can set off brain waves, which are very similar to those related to meditation. The study also reveals that other kinds of incitement can generate various diverse types of brain waves.

Heatmaps Reveal Correlation Between Emotions and Body Sensations

April 28, 2014April 28, 2014 Wa'd Abuzurayk

Science has proven times and times again that emotions cannot be separated from our physical well-being. Various emotional conditions play an important role in our biology. Brain activity and hormones and examples of things that are affected by one’s various emotional states. A recent study demonstrated that different emotions are judged to correlate with different body parts. The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, was conducted by a team of bio-medical engineers, with 700 participants from three countries, those being Finland, Sweden and Taiwan. The…

Selfies Linked to Mental Disorders

April 26, 2014December 20, 2022 Wa'd Abuzurayk

We all have this annoying high school facebook friend who posts selfies more regularly than we tend to check our facebook accounts. Well, this old friend is no longer labeled as just annoying, as scientists are exploring tagging this behavior as a mental disorder. Scientists interested in this subject are describing this common obsession with selfies as a compulsive behavior that could be linked to narcissism, addiction and mental illness.Narcissists chase satisfaction from vanity, or others’ recognition of their looks or mental characteristics (Wikipedia)- this definition seems to somewhat fit…

Genes Responsible for High Tolerance for Pain: Ache’s Genetic Basis

April 22, 2014 Neha Shukla

Every person is unique and is different from others. Even identical twins have different taste and behave differently. Likewise, every person has a different threshold level of bearing pain. Researchers working on the topic have found four important genes that determine the pain tolerance threshold in an individual. And therefore, it varies from person to person depending upon the key gene expression.

X-Ray Triggered Nanoparticle Photosensitizer: Photodynamic Therapy

April 19, 2014April 18, 2014 Pooja Kashyap

While working upon new security-related radiation detection, researchers at the University of Texas, Arlington discovered an advance in photodynamic cancer therapy. Wei Chen, professor of physics at the UT Arlington, noticed an odd luminescence emitted by copper-cysteamine (Cu-Cy) nanoparticles when while working on an experiment where he was exposing the nanoparticles to X-rays. Upon further investigation, he found out that the luminescence was the byproduct of lost energy that the particles were diffusing. The same byproduct is also utilized in photodynamic cancer therapy to destroy cancer cells.

Production of Blood Now on an Industrial Level: Artificial Blood from Stem Cells

April 17, 2014April 17, 2014 Neha Shukla

The advancement in science and technology have made possible for humans to tackle life-threatening diseases to highly intricate surgeries. Medical science has reached a mark where it has potential to create artificial organs for transplant, saving millions of lives. And now researchers have discovered a way to create human blood, using stem cells.

Avoid Hunger to Maintain Dynamics of a Relationship: Starvation causes Marital Squabble

April 16, 2014April 16, 2014 Neha Shukla

We have heard that an empty mind is a devil’s home, but have you ever heard that empty stomach can even turn you into a devil? “Hangry” is the word that describes the situation even better, which is being hungry to an extend that it makes one angry. A new study conducted on married couples suggests that hunger makes couples aggressive and angry.