Brain Releases Hidden Kinase to Supercharge Pain and Learning
Summary: New research reveals that neurons release a little-understood extracellular kinase called VLK to strengthen synaptic connections, providing a missing piece in how the nervous system adapts during learning and pain. The kinase phosphorylates EphB receptors outside the cell, which recruits NMDA receptors and amplifies synaptic signaling. Mice lacking VLK showed reduced pain hypersensitivity after […]
Shocking Disparities: Women Face Higher Risk of ECT
Summary: A large international survey of 858 electroconvulsive therapy recipients found that women are twice as likely as men to receive ECT and experience more adverse effects. Women reported higher rates of memory loss, greater feelings of coercion, and more harmful emotional outcomes, often describing the treatment as retraumatizing. They were also less likely to […]
Ultra-Thin Finger Patch Recreates Touch With Human-Level Precision
Summary: Engineers have created VoxeLite, the first wearable haptic device capable of matching the sensitivity of the human fingertip. Built as a paper-thin, flexible bandage for the finger, it uses high-density electroadhesive “pixels of touch” to recreate fine textures and directional cues with lifelike accuracy. The technology solves two long-standing barriers in haptics—spatial and temporal […]
Cannabis Blunts Alcohol Cravings – Neuroscience News
Summary: A randomized, placebo-controlled trial shows that cannabis with active THC reduces immediate alcohol cravings and lowers drinking levels in heavy-drinking young adults. After smoking THC, participants not only drank less, they waited longer before taking the first sip and reported lower urges to drink. This trial provides the clearest causal evidence to date supporting […]
Restoring Vision: Temporary Retinal Silencing Reverses Amblyopia
Summary: A new study in mice shows that briefly anesthetizing the retina of the weaker eye can restore its neural influence in the adult visual cortex. The treatment activates a specific burst-firing mode in thalamic neurons, a developmental mechanism that reopens plasticity even after the usual critical period has closed. Importantly, the effect arises when […]
Lithium Fails to Slow Cognitive Decline in Alzheimer’s
Summary: A new meta-analysis of six randomized controlled trials shows that lithium supplementation does not significantly slow cognitive decline in people with mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer’s disease. While preclinical evidence suggests lithium supports resilience against amyloid and tau pathology, these benefits failed to translate to clinical outcomes using traditional lithium salts. Researchers suggest that […]
Brain’s “Hourglass Timer” Controls the Precise Timing of Movement
Summary: Researchers have discovered how the brain keeps time for precise movements, revealing a neural “hourglass” mechanism between the motor cortex and striatum. The motor cortex sends timing signals that accumulate in the striatum until they reach a threshold that triggers action. Temporarily disrupting either region pauses or resets this internal timer, directly altering movement […]
Maternal Stress Speeds Up Baby Teething
Summary: New research shows that infants whose mothers had higher cortisol levels during late pregnancy experience significantly earlier eruption of primary teeth. Babies of mothers with the highest cortisol levels had, on average, four more teeth by six months than those of mothers with the lowest levels. The findings suggest that prenatal stress may accelerate […]
Eyes Blink in Time With Music, Revealing Hidden Brain Rhythms
Summary: New research shows that spontaneous eye blinks naturally sync to the beat of music, revealing a hidden form of auditory-motor synchronization that occurs even without conscious movement. In more than 100 participants listening to steady-tempo classical music, both blinks and brainwaves aligned with the rhythm, even when songs were played backward or replaced with […]
Night-Vision Disorders Share a Surprising Cellular Trigger
Summary: New research reveals that the loss of a single ion channel, TRPM1, is enough to produce persistent rhythmic oscillations in the retina, a feature observed in both congenital stationary night blindness and retinitis pigmentosa. By comparing Trpm1 and mGluR6 knockout mice, researchers identified a disrupted circuit between rod bipolar cells and AII amacrine cells […]