Ben Kuebrich

Author Archive for ‘Ben Kuebrich’

Most popular Neuroscience Blogs

07Jun12

I’m curious about what are the most popular blogs for neuroscience right now because I want to see what people are interested in, and learn how to write an interesting blog by example. But how exactly do you find the most popular blog? There are blog ranking lists, top results on google, and lists of expert […]

How many neurons do we really have? (And why we might have 10x fewer glia than we previously thought.)

19May12

This article is my translation of this Brazilian article by RICARDO ZORZETTO (with lots of help from google translate) Revising the Numbers Get to know the anatomy of the human brain, especially how researchers got to a figure of 86 billion neurons,instead of the 100 billions previously estimated. —- On Wednesday, January 11, researchers Casarsa Frederico Azevedo […]

Filed under: Cerebellum, Comparative, Cortex, FACS - Fluorescent Automated Cell Sorting, Glia, Human, Primate, Rat | Leave a Comment

Genoeconomics – Can genetic variation predict economic decisions?

13May12

First, experimental economists and psychologists like nobel laureates Vernon L. Smith and Daniel Kahneman taught us that we aren’t economically rational–we’re influenced by biases and we use flawed heuristics (though often in very testable, repeatable ways).(1) Then, Neuroeconomists showed that biology affects economic decisions–internasal oxytocin raises trust in risky exchanges, serum serotonin levels predict whether […]

Filed under: Anatomy, Behavior, Dorsolateral PFC, Field / Technique, fMRI, Genetics, Genoeconomics, Human, Insula, Neuroeconomics, oxytocin, Peptides, Uncategorized, Vasopressin | Leave a Comment

Using machine learning, Harvard researchers create a web-based tool to diagnose autism in minutes

08May12

Original full text of the study available from Translational Psychiatry here. Conventionally, children are diagnosed using Autism Diagnostic Interview, Revised (ADI-R) a 93-question survey, and/or the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS) which measures behavior. The two test can take up to 2.5 hours and must be administered by clinical professionals. Dennis Wall–the lead author of the paper and director […]

Filed under: Autism, Behavior, Disease, Human, Psychiatric, Uncategorized | 1 Comment

New sequencing study links autism to FMRP, the gene disrupted in fragile X syndrome and a regulator of synaptic plasticity

08May12

Scientists reported a new connection between autism and fragile x syndrome in the latest issue of neuron. They sequenced the exomes–the parts of DNA that code proteins–of 343 families that had a single child with autism and at least one unaffected sibling. Looking at de novo mutations (ones that occurred in the sperm or egg […]

Filed under: Autism, Disease, Fragile X, Genetics, Human, Plasticity, Psychiatric | Leave a Comment
Tags: ASD, de novo mutations, exome sequencing, FMRP, genetics of psychiatric disease, rare mutations, simons simplex, synaptic plasticity

Mirror Touch Synesthesia and the Genetics of Synesthesia

06May12

Imagine cold fingers creeping up someone’s calf. Now imagine that whenever you saw someone else being touched, you would feel the sensation on your own body. That is mirror-touch synesthesia. Psychologists at UCL verified mirror-touch synesthesia and further showed its linked with heightened empathy in their report in Nature Neuroscience.

Filed under: Behavior, Genetics, Human, SNPs, Uncategorized | 30 Comments

Genetics of Sleep – How much do you need?

29Nov11

Whenever I hear a friend talk about how they only sleep 6 hours a night—I feel a combination of pity (that must be rough) and annoyance (how can they do that to themselves), but reading up on the genetics of sleep maybe I should be feeling jealousy (since I need at least 8 solid hours). […]

Filed under: Channels, Drosophila, Genetics, Human, Metabolic Syndrome, Molecular, Public Health, Sleep | 1 Comment

Can THC treat Anorexia and Bulemia? – Endocannabinoid systems are altered in eating disorders

02Nov11

“The munchies” — an effect of THC causing heightened craving and enjoyment of food after taking is currently used to help HIV patients and cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy patients maintain their weight. New research indicates that THC could help anorexics and bulemics regain weight–though probably not through “the munchies.” A new PET imaging study reported […]

Filed under: Drugs, Eating Disorders, Insula, PET scan, Pharmacology, Psychiatric | Leave a Comment
Tags: Anorexia, Bulemia, CB1, endocannabinoid, mk-9470, PET Study, THC

Videos have now been uploaded from MIT’s Symposium on the Emerging Genetics and Neurobiology of Severe Mental Illness

02Nov11

http://www.broadinstitute.org/scientific-community/science/programs/psychiatric-disease/symposium/session-videos This two-day symposium, hosted by Drs. Ed Scolnick of the Broad Institute’s Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Li-Huei Tsai of MIT’s Picower Institute and Guoping Feng of MIT’s McGovern Institute, brought together leading scientists who work on the emerging genetics and biology of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, autism and other mental illnesses. These illnesses cause […]

Filed under: Genetics, Links, Psychiatric, Talks | Leave a Comment
Tags: Broad, GWAS, Mental Illness, Psychiatric, Sequencing, Stanley Center, Symposium

MPA, the Hormone used in the Depo Provera birth control shot, causes memory problems in rats

02Nov11

A new study published in Psychopharmacology shows young rats injected with medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) performed worse on behavioral memory tests. MPA’s memory impairment persisted even once it had been cleared from the blood. MPA is the active component of the Depo Provera shot but not found in other hormonal contraceptives. The finding is especially significant […]