Brain
- Animals
Bugs may have made us brainy
Finding and eating bugs when other food was scarce helped primates — including our ancestors — evolve bigger and better brains. At least that’s the conclusion of a new study in Costa Rica.
- Health & Medicine
Young blood: The elixir of youth?
Old mice show improved memory when blood from young mice circulated through their brains, a new study finds. Other studies suggest one ingredient in that young blood might be all it takes to deliver benefits.
- Brain
Hunger’s little helpers
Astrocytes were thought to be nothing more than support cells for neighboring nerve cells. A new study suggests they do much more. These brain cells may help control appetite, too.
- Brain
Football hits the brain hard
The brain’s hippocampus helps store memories. It is smaller in college football players — especially if they have suffered concussions.
- Brain
The scent of a woman — or a man
Animals unwittingly signal things about themselves by giving off subtle scents. A new study claims the same is true for people.
- Brain
Ghosts in your head
Many people see, feel and hear things that aren’t really there — despite how much their brain tries to convince them otherwise.
- Brain
Loneliness can breed disease
Everyone experiences loneliness from time to time. But when allowed to persist, loneliness can damage your health and steal years from your life.
- Brain
Getting a head start on autism
Early diagnosis followed by early treatment may reduce autism’s impact on kids — and help them to communicate better.
- Brain
Understanding Autism
Genetics appears to play some role in this disorder, which affects more than one percent of all Americans.
- Brain
Autism unlocked
Experts are learning how to diagnose this brain disorder in infancy. That may be early enough to allow nerve cells in the brain to develop new connections — ones that form detours around autism-affected areas.
- Brain
Mapping the brain’s highways
A new map may explain why some brain injuries are worse than others. Even relatively minor injuries that disrupt message superhighways may have a more devastating impact than some seemingly catastrophic injuries.
- Brain
Why boys face higher autism risk
Boys develop autism at four times the rate seen in girls. Girls’ genes are better protected from the mutations linked to this brain disorder, data now suggest.
