Memory mission explores new territory in neuroscienceNovember 21, 2008Astrophysicists peer into the far corners of deep space for dark matter, but for neuroscientists at the Queensland Brain Institute (QBI) exploring the unknown is much closer to home. They have discovered a mechanism vital to the development of the hippocampus * - a region of the brain crucial to the formation of memories, and the lifelong production and integration of new nerve cells. To say the hippocampus is important is a bit like saying breathing is optimal.
According to QBI's Associate Professor Linda Richards, despite the crucial role performed by the hippocampus throughout life, knowledge of this region's early development remains surprisingly scant. Her research team is looking at how the brain forms during embryonic and foetal development. Dr Richards and her colleagues have identified a gene that regulates the development of glial cells in the hippocampus. Their research shows that the hippocampus contains different populations of glial cells that are essential for the structural integrity of the hippocampus. "Glial cells are an important part of the building blocks of the brain," Dr Richards said. "They provide an essential scaffold for the migration of neurons in the developing brain. It is vital we understand how glial cells provide this structural scaffold because if the hippocampus is not formed correctly it cannot perform all the functions required of it in the developing and adult brain," she said. "The hippocampus plays an integral role in spatial navigation, learning and memory, and is a major site for adult neurogenesis." Mice lacking the gene that regulates glial cell differentiation exhibit major developmental irregularities, including catastrophic structural deformities of the hippocampus. Equipped with this knowledge, researchers studying the hippocampus now have a better understanding of the genes that help control the development of this vital brain region. Fundamental scientific knowledge of this kind is an essential step in understanding brain function and repair. Research Australia Science News and Science Current Events Tag Cloud This tag cloud is a visual representation of term frequencies of random science news topics with common terms grouped together and emphasized by their display size. Spinal Cord Quantum Physics Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Cholesterol Antibiotic Cassini Liquid Crystal Combination Therapy Amblyopia Anxiety Disorders Hepatitis C Nutrition Hypertension Superconductor Embryonic Stem Cell Infection Sinkhole HIV-1 Embryos Nerve Cells Weight Management Black Holes Space Weather Plastic Surgery Inflammatory Disease
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Related Hippocampus Current Events and Hippocampus News Articles Blood stem cell growth factor reverses memory decline in mice A human growth factor that stimulates blood stem cells to proliferate in the bone marrow reverses memory impairment in mice genetically altered to develop Alzheimer's disease, researchers at the University of South Florida and James A. Haley Hospital found. Hepatic encephalopathy and prehepatic portal hypertension rat model A research article to be published June 21, 2009 in the World Journal of Gastroenterology addresses this question. The research team lead by Dr. Gabriela Beatriz Acosta, observed that the activity of GS was increased in the hippocampus in PH rats. Generation of a severe memory-deficit mutant mouse by exclusively eliminating the kinase activity of CaMKIIalpha Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II alpha (CaMKII alpha) is an enzyme that adds phosphates to a variety of protein substrates to modify their functions. Cerebrospinal fluid shows Alzheimer's disease deterioration much earlier It is possible to determine which patients run a high risk of developing Alzheimer's disease and the dementia associated with it, even in patients with minimal memory impairment. This has been shown by recent research at the Sahlgrenska Academy. Measuring brain atrophy in patients with mild cognitive impairment Scientists at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have shown that a fully automated procedure called Volumetric MRI - which measures the "memory centers" of the brain and compares them to expected size - is effective in predicting the progression from mild cognitive impairment (MCI) to Alzheimer's disease. CSHL researchers unravel how a protein helps nerve cells recycle synaptic vesicles Brain cells, or neurons, transmit electrical signals efficiently only when they recycle tiny cellular sacs that store signaling chemicals called neurotransmitters. Protein linked to mental retardation controls synapse maturation, plasticity, CSHL team finds A team of neuroscientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) has demonstrated the mechanism by which a signaling protein found throughout the brain controls the maturation and strength of excitatory synapses, the tiny gaps across which the majority of neurons communicate. Caltech scientists reveal how neuronal activity is timed in brain's memory-making circuits Theta oscillations are a type of prominent brain rhythm that orchestrates neuronal activity in the hippocampus, a brain area critical for the formation of new memories. New mouse model of depression/anxiety enhances understanding of antidepressant drugs A recent study finds that the antidepressant effects of drugs like Prozac involve both neurogenesis-dependent and -independent mechanisms, a finding that may lead to development of better treatments for depression and anxiety. Automated analysis of MR images may identify early Alzheimer's disease Analyzing MRI studies of the brain with software developed at the Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) may allow diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease and of mild cognitive impairment, a lesser form of dementia that precedes the development of Alzheimer's by several years. More Hippocampus Current Events and Hippocampus News Articles |
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