Research on the brain basis of behavior. Covers reward and pleasure signals, attention in children, taste circuitry, and adaptive AI models.
A Tulane University study reveals how the brain regulates defensive behavior and fine-tunes fear responses as perceived threats diminish. Researchers identified distinct roles for neurons in the central amygdala, which help determine whether an animal responds with intense escape behavior or freezing.
A new book by Swansea University researchers argues that attention impairments, rather than memory dysfunction, are a key aspect of dementia. The authors suggest that recognizing these changes could lead to earlier identification, improved diagnosis, and better care for those affected.
Researchers tracked mouse groups during cold exposure and found that individual brain activity influences collective behavior, leading to self-correction when one member is compromised. The study highlights the importance of considering the whole group in understanding brain function.
Lawrence Toll has been named a senior member of the National Academy of Inventors for his pioneering work on pain pathways, reward systems, and potential treatments. His research focuses on identifying new drug targets and therapeutic strategies to combat chronic pain and addiction.
Research suggests that persistent pain drives progressive changes in the hippocampus, a brain region involved in emotional regulation. This can shape whether people develop depression or remain emotionally resilient. The study's findings challenge the idea that depression is an inevitable consequence of long-term pain.
Dr. Phillips's laboratory identifies abnormalities in prefrontal-striatal-limbic circuitry as biomarkers for bipolar disorder before symptoms appear. Her team tracks neural network development from infancy through young adulthood.
Dr. Cazares co-founded Colors of the Brain and advocated for GRE removal to support students from underprivileged backgrounds. He aims to bring neuroscience to underserved communities through portable, affordable, and non-invasive methods.
In a breakthrough study, researchers successfully integrated neuronal precursor cells into biobots, resulting in the formation of functional nervous systems. This development has significant implications for neuroscience, bioengineering, and regenerative medicine, enabling the investigation of fundamental questions about the origin of ...
A new study from Dartmouth College finds that social information can significantly impact how people experience negative events, including physical pain and mentally demanding tasks. When others describe an experience as painful, individuals tend to feel it that way, even when the actual experience is low in intensity.
Researchers used diffusion MRI to study the brains of seals, sea lions, and coyotes, finding a 'brain bypass' that allows for vocal flexibility. This discovery may hold the key to understanding the evolution of human language.
Researchers have found that zebra finches' brains respond more strongly to familiar calls, with inhibitory interneurons firing more intensely and for longer when the caller is known. This neural activity influences the bird's reply, suggesting that social context plays a crucial role in vocal communication. The study sheds light on why...
Researchers mapped GLP-1 expression in 25 brain regions in each sex, uncovering striking differences in key circuits. The atlas reveals sex-biased expression in certain medullary nuclei, with higher Glp1 densities and numbers of Glp1-expressing neurons in females compared to males.
Researchers analyzed brain activity of over 570 people in game situations to understand adaptive mentalization, a process where we infer others' thoughts and adjust our behavior. The study found that brain activity in specific regions, including the temporoparietal cortex, predicts how well people adapt to changing opponent behavior.
Researchers will investigate the role of interleukin-1 receptor type 1 (IL-1R1) in brain function, behavior, and psychiatric health. The study aims to define the physiological role of IL-1R1 in the brain and explore its influence on social behaviors.
A recent study in mice has identified the brain circuits responsible for why we help others, finding a common neural basis in parenting and prosocial behavior. The research suggests that evolution may have linked the biological drive to care for offspring with the urge to comfort distressed peers.
A new study suggests that over 40% of UK adults are happy to use ChatGPT for mental health support due to long waiting times for traditional services. However, experts caution that AI should not replace human healthcare professionals and raise concerns about the potential impact on education and physical health.
Researchers found no clear link between brain structure and navigation ability in healthy young adults, challenging decades-long assumptions. The study used advanced AI tools to analyze brain scans and detect subtle patterns, but found no measurable connection between brain structure and navigation performance.
A recent study by the University of Konstanz investigated bumblebee decision-making behaviour, revealing that they take a 'shortcut' in information processing to save time. The insects primarily rely on flower colours to remember good food sources, but also recognize shapes and patterns.
Researchers developed a single-item hoarding screen to quickly identify hoarding behaviors in patients with memory and brain disorders. The tool shows promise in flagging potentially serious hoarding behavior, especially in patients with behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia.
The Society for Brain Health is a new collaborative body dedicated to enhancing cognitive capacity, longevity, and proactive health optimization through cutting-edge research and tools. Its founding members include prominent neuroscientists and experts in the field of brain health.
A team of scientists at the Indian Institute of Science discovered that disrupting a single gene alters serotonin signaling, leading to swarming behavior in worms. The study suggests that neuromodulatory control of social behavior might be evolutionarily conserved across species.
A Dartmouth study challenges the conventional view of the amygdala as a primitive 'fear center' by revealing its role in mediating between competing learning strategies. The research suggests that the amygdala favors action-based learning, promoting exploration and flexibility to overcome fear.
Researchers used computer vision and machine learning to study Drosophila melanogaster courtship. They found that males rely on specific visual cues, particularly the female's eyes, to determine her anterior-posterior body axis. This recognition shapes when and how different elements of courtship are deployed.
A study published in Molecular Psychiatry reveals that kinases MNK1 and MNK2 have distinct functions in the brain, regulating different behaviors such as social contacts and object recognition. The findings suggest that targeting each kinase individually may be more effective for treating neurological disorders.
Researchers have identified a molecular mechanism that regulates the slow and sustained release of oxytocin within the brain, which is essential for modulating social interactions. This finding provides new insights into how hormonal signaling is regulated in the brain and opens avenues for research into neuropsychiatric disorders.
Researchers at Nagoya University developed an AI system called YORU that recognizes animal behaviors with over 90% accuracy. The system combines real-time video capture with optogenetics to selectively target brain cells driving specific behaviors, offering a major breakthrough in social behavior studies.
A recent rat study identified the neural mechanism underlying chills, a cold sensation that supports the body's response to infection. The findings suggest that prostaglandin E₂ boosts cold signals from the lateral parabrachial nucleus to the central nucleus of the amygdala, triggering chills and promoting warmth-seeking behavior.
Researchers used transcranial alternating current stimulation to synchronize frontal and parietal lobes, increasing participants' ability to make altruistic choices. This study provides new insights into the neural basis of social decisions and has implications for future research on cooperation.
A new study published in Nature Communications found that people are more willing to help others when they experience poorer conditions. The researchers tested willingness to help in different contexts and found that people were more likely to stop what they were doing to help others in a poor environment than in a richer one.
The FENS Forum 2026 will be Europe's largest neuroscience congress, covering areas of basic to translational research. Journalists can register for free and attend symposia and poster sessions.
Researchers used AI to analyze brain activity of 130 two-month-old infants, discovering that they can categorize objects in their brains at just two months old. This challenges earlier thought and highlights the richness of brain function in the first year of life.
Research from City St George's University of London found self-employed individuals report 24% higher stress levels than non-self-employed counterparts over a six-year period. Cortisol levels also remained elevated throughout the day, suggesting prolonged exposure to daily stresses.
A new study from the Stowers Institute has identified a mechanism that makes fleeting moments unforgettable, revealing a critical step in forming long-lasting memories. The research discovered a specific type of chaperone protein that allows proteins to change shape and form functional amyloids that house long-term memory.
Research by Université Laval found that physical exercise and living in favorable conditions reduce depression risk by maintaining blood-brain barrier integrity. Fgf2 protein plays a key role in this mechanism and may serve as a biomarker for mood disorders.
A new study at York University found autistic adults who are right-handed demonstrate a reduced specialization of hand use and more distinctive movement patterns. Autistic participants used their right hand less often for grasping and followed highly unique, idiosyncratic paths.
Researchers at ASHBi found a 'motivation brake' in the brain's ventral striatum and ventral pallidum pathways. This circuit dampens drive to act when tasks are stressful or unpleasant, impacting daily life and social functions. The discovery sheds light on conditions like depression and schizophrenia.
A novel experimental framework captures natural complexity, revealing how human pairs settle into stable cooperative, intermediate, or competitive roles. The study integrates factors that mirror real-world behavior, predicting partners' decisions with high accuracy.
Research finds that musical improvisation involves a dynamic reconfiguration of the brain between emotion, technique, and structure. The study proposes a scalable method for exploring the neural basis of spontaneous creative behavior, highlighting the importance of interaction between networks over time.
A mouse study by Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology researchers has found that acetylcholine release is essential for breaking habits and enabling new choices to be made. The study's findings may help understand diseases such as Parkinson's disease, addiction, and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Scientists at Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience have identified a neural code that allows the brain to track distance traveled without visual cues. This ability is essential for navigation and memory formation, and may offer insight into early navigation problems in Alzheimer's disease.
A large-scale study found that individuals with ADHD are at higher risk of being convicted of crimes compared to those without ADHD. Relatives of individuals with ADHD also show increased risk, even if they themselves do not have ADHD. Early identification and treatment of ADHD in high-risk families may help mitigate these risks.
Children who spend a significant amount of time on social media platforms experience a gradual decline in their ability to concentrate. The study found no association between TV watching or video game playing and attention symptoms.
A new AI method, DISK, helps recover missing data in animal behavior recordings, enabling more accurate analysis of neuroscience experiments. This technology, developed by a team of researchers, can analyze movements at sub-second scales and provide real-time estimations of data quality.
A Rice University study found that financial worries shape bedtime behaviors and predict poor sleep quality. The research identified "stress-before-bed behaviors" as a key mechanism linking economic worry and job insecurity to declining sleep health. Practicing healthy sleep hygiene behaviors can help break the stress-sleep cycle.
Researchers at the University of Plymouth have successfully used transcranial ultrasound stimulation (TUS) to change the function of a deep region of the human brain, specifically the nucleus accumbens. This tiny element is triggered by enjoyable experiences and helps us learn behaviours that lead to rewards.
A study found that when people work together on a shared task, their brains process information in similar ways. After an initial period of synchronized neural activity, the alignment of brain activity increased as the pairs worked together and followed agreed-upon rules.
A study published in Nature Neuroscience found that the same dopamine mechanism responsible for drug addiction also controls natural behavioral fatigue. Researchers used male fruit flies to demonstrate that desensitization of D2R receptors leads to a decrease in motivation and interest.
Researchers at UTA are exploring how guided cognitive training can improve brain performance, particularly in navigation and memory. The study found that functional brain changes support behavioral differences, rather than increased brain volume.
A study from the Champalimaud Foundation found that when fruit flies are deprived of essential amino acids, their brains upregulate two olfactory receptor genes involved in smell, leading to a refined sense of smell that guides them to protein-rich yeast and gut bacteria. This interplay between smell and taste regulates feeding behavior.
A study published in Nature found that hunger can trigger aggression in female mice towards pups, especially when their reproductive cycle is in a certain stage. The researchers discovered that hunger information from the hypothalamus affects the brain's medial preoptic area, stimulating pup-directed aggression.
Scientists at the German Primate Center discovered that the brain reorganizes itself to control motor prostheses in a virtual environment. The findings suggest that different regions of the brain jointly reflect corrected movement commands, rather than separate components for expected results and error signals.
The Ebbinghaus illusion shows that perception is not a mirror of reality but a construction of the brain. Research on fish and birds reveals diverse perceptual strategies, with guppies closely mirroring human perception and ring doves showing variability in their responses.
A new MIT study found that a theta-frequency brain wave scans the mental image and a region of the cortex maps visual information. The researchers observed that performance depends on the phase of this wave when the changed square appears, and the vertical location on the screen of that target square.
A new study found that sniffer dogs' performance in real-world scenarios is highly variable and dependent on factors like region, day, and explosive type. The research suggests that limited access to explosive training materials is a primary challenge for teams, highlighting the need for wider access to improve detection performance
A new study reveals that astrocytes, a type of glial cell, are responsible for stabilizing memories through repeated engagement. The researchers found that Fos activity in astrocytes only occurs during recall, and that these cells can be activated to produce stable memories.
Researchers propose that neural activity in each animal becomes linked through perception, allowing individuals to maintain bearings towards others relative to stable features in the environment. This synchronization gives rise to spontaneous alignment and collective movement.
Researchers at UCLA have identified a type of neuron in the orbital region of the frontal cortex that is most active when a decision outcome is unknown, suggesting these neurons play a crucial role in learning and mental flexibility. The discovery could aid the development of new treatments for rigid thought patterns such as anxiety an...
Researchers have identified four distinct profiles of Nonverbal Learning Disability, each with different strengths and challenges. The study suggests that current diagnostic criteria may be too broad, highlighting the importance of individualized approaches to care for children with NVLD.
Researchers at OIST investigate the neural basis of social hierarchy in male mice, identifying brain cells involved in determining dominance. The study found that the 'loser effect' is attributed to activity of certain brain cells, called cholinergic interneurons, and has implications for understanding human social behaviors.
The Neuropixels Ultra probe overcomes technical challenges in recording individual cells across multiple brain regions. It detects twice as many brain cells and distinguishes specific subtypes, enabling scientists to decode and track brain cell performance related to visual stimuli.