All Stories by Claudia López Lloreda
- Neuroscience
Two distinct neural pathways may make opioids like fentanyl so addictive
A study in mice looked at how feelings of reward and withdrawal that opioids trigger play out in two separate circuits in the brain.
- Neuroscience
Lampreys have ‘fight or flight’ cells, challenging ideas about nervous system evolution
The discovery of sympathetic nervous system cells in lampreys draws a closer tie between the animal and complex vertebrates — such as humans.
- Neuroscience
Handwriting may boost brain connections more than typing does
Students asked to write words showed greater connectivity across the brain than when they typed them, suggesting writing may be a better boost for memory.
- Animals
Here’s how high-speed diving kingfishers may avoid concussions
Understanding the genetic adaptations that protect the birds’ brains when they dive for food might one day offer clues to protecting human brains.
- Neuroscience
Bone marrow in the skull could be used to monitor Alzheimer’s, MS and more
New observations of skull cell signals and skull tunnels suggest bone marrow there could be used to monitor neurological diseases.
- Neuroscience
Neuroscientists decoded a Pink Floyd song using people’s brain activity
The technique could be used to improve devices that allow communication from people unable to speak.
- Neuroscience
Adult mouse brains are teeming with ‘silent synapses’
Nerve cell connections thought to be involved mainly in development could explain how the brain keeps making new memories while holding onto old ones.
- Animals
‘Wonderful nets’ of blood vessels protect dolphin and whale brains during dives
Complex networks of blood vessels called retia mirabilia that are associated with cetaceans’ brains and spines have long been a mystery.
- Health & Medicine
A music therapist seeks to tap into long-lost memories
Alaine Reschke-Hernández is partnering with neuroscientists to figure out how music improves Alzheimer’s patients’ lives.
