All posts tagged: brain imaging

Low doses of lithium may slow verbal memory decline from Alzheimer’s

Low doses of lithium may slow verbal memory decline from Alzheimer’s

Published by Jenni Sidey

A once-daily dose of a medication, which averaged 195 mg, produced blood levels significantly lower than those typically pursued by psychiatrists. However, it succeeded in generating a weak signal concerning the potential influence on memory performance. This is the essence of a two-year placebo-controlled clinical trial studying the effects of low-dose lithium therapy on memory performance in older adults who have mild cognitive impairment. The University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine conducted the study, which utilized repeated cognitive assessments, neuroimaging data, and blood-based biomarkers to monitor participants over time. The results were published in JAMA Neurology. Lithium has been used for many years as a medication for patients with bipolar disorder. This study examined a different question. It asked how effective long-term therapy with low doses of lithium might be in slowing the decline of memory and cognitive function in individuals diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment, which is often identified before the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. An Existing Medication But with an Alternate Purpose Ariel Gildengers, PhD, was the principal investigator of this clinical trial. …

What happens in your brain when you spend time in nature

What happens in your brain when you spend time in nature

Published by Jenni Sidey

A few minutes beside trees or water can shift the brain into a calmer state. That change is not just a feeling. It shows up in brain scans. A comprehensive review of 108 neuroimaging studies could provide additional insight into how our interaction with nature can create changes in our brains. The review was led by researchers from McGill University and Adolfo Ibáñez University in Chile and compiled data from neuroimaging studies including EEG, fMRI, MRI, and near-infrared spectroscopy. Their review produced the most complete picture of how our connections with nature can affect attention, stress, and emotional regulation. “We can intuitively understand that being in Nature is good for us, however, through neuroscience, we are able to provide a way to quantify and validate the way in which we think about Nature when it comes to health policy and the spaces we build,” stated Mar Estarellas, the study’s co-author and a research associate in McGill University’s Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry. How The Brain Works In Relation To Nature Across …

New bioluminescent tool lets scientists watch live neural activity for hours

New bioluminescent tool lets scientists watch live neural activity for hours

Published by Jenni Sidey

Deep inside the brain, every thought and memory begins with a burst of electrical activity. For years, scientists have tried to watch that activity in real time by shining lasers into the brain. Now a new tool lets brain cells light themselves from within, turning them into tiny living lanterns. Lighting Up the Brain From Within About a decade ago, a team of neuroscientists started asking a bold question: “What if we could light up the brain from the inside?” said Christopher Moore, a professor of brain science at Brown University. Instead of blasting tissue with outside light, they wondered if neurons could make their own glow. That idea led to the launch of the Bioluminescence Hub at Brown’s Carney Institute for Brain Science in 2017, supported by a major National Science Foundation grant. The hub brought together Moore, institute director Diane Lipscombe, Ute Hochgeschwender at Central Michigan University and molecular engineer Nathan Shaner at the University of California San Diego. CaBLAM architecture and Ca2+ affinity. (CREDIT: Nature Methods) Their shared goal was simple to …