Tag

Neuroimaging

All articles tagged with #neuroimaging

science13 days ago•7 min saved

Exhale Slowly, Decide Boldly: Breath Controls Brain Rewards

A Neuron study shows that consciously extending the exhale increases heart-rate variability and boosts reward-related brain activity, making people more likely to take risks. Brain regions like the ventromedial prefrontal cortex and precuneus showed greater activation, linking bodily state to decision-making. The findings suggest simple breathing techniques could aid self-regulation and have potential clinical use for anxiety, depression, and eating behavior.

via SciTechDaily|

#breathwork #decision-making #neuroimaging

health15 days ago•5 min saved

Tapeworms Masquerade as Brain Cancer in Spain

A 60-year-old man in Spain with persistent headaches and multiple brain lesions was initially suspected to have metastatic cancer, but MRI revealed encapsulated tapeworm larvae (neurocysticercosis) caused by Taenia solium; no cancer was found after extensive testing, and he recovered after antiparasitic treatment, underscoring that NCC can mimic metastatic disease even without travel history.

via Ars Technica|

#health #metastasis #misdiagnosis

science21 days ago•7 min saved

Vitamin C Linked to Preserved Brain Structure in Aging, Study Finds

A large cohort study of 2,044 Japanese adults aged 64+ found that lower plasma vitamin C levels were associated with reduced gray matter volume and weaker connectivity in the brain’s default mode network, suggesting nutrition may influence brain aging. The findings show associations, not causation, and the researchers call for longer-term, more diverse studies to understand underlying mechanisms.

via SciTechDaily|

#brain-aging #default-mode-network #neuroimaging

health22 days ago•49 min saved

Brain Entrapment: New Study Links Depression to Sticky Brain States

A Mount Sinai study using functional MRI found that people with major depressive disorder often get stuck in specific brain states and have difficulty transitioning between them, creating a self-reinforcing negative thought loop. This cognitive rigidity, described as mental entrapment, suggests depression may be a dynamic disorder driven by abnormal brain-state transitions rather than solely a chemical imbalance.

via Deccan Herald|

#brain-states #cognitive-rigidity #depression

neuroimaging22 days ago•27 min saved

Dopamine Keeps Stress-Reduced Courtship Alive in Fruit Flies

New research shows male Drosophila confined in tiny spaces exhibit a lasting drop in courtship after stress, and dopamine release is required to maintain this suppression. Blocking dopamine synthesis or signaling—via drugs, RNA interference, or removing receptors in the mushroom body—and silencing key dopamine neuron clusters (PAM and PPL1) prevents the prolonged reduction, though the immediate decline occurs without dopamine. Longer confinement (7–24 hours) yields suppression lasting days, highlighting a dopamine-dependent mechanism linking stress to reduced mating drive in fruit flies.

via PsyPost|

#courtship #dopamine #drosophila

science1 month ago•24 min saved

Hidden fat spots may speed up brain aging, study shows

A large UK Biobank analysis of over 18,000 middle-aged and older adults finds that fat distribution—arm, leg, trunk, and especially visceral fat around internal organs—independently shapes brain structure, connectivity, and cognitive performance beyond BMI. Arm and trunk fat are linked to sensorimotor cortex thinning and hippocampal volume loss; leg fat affects limbic networks; visceral fat shows the strongest association with white-matter deterioration and faster brain aging as estimated by a Brain Age model. These patterns persist after adjusting for BMI, but the cross-sectional design means causality cannot be established.

via PsyPost|

#adiposity #brain-aging #cognitive-function

cognitive-science1 month ago•29 min saved

Literacy Rewires How the Brain Processes Speech

New evidence shows learning to read reshapes how the brain processes spoken language: literate adults recruit the right inferior frontal gyrus to perform phonological analysis in unfamiliar speech, a pattern not seen in functionally illiterate peers, indicating literacy training alters auditory processing and relies on neural reorganization.

via PsyPost|

#brain-plasticity #cognitive-science #literacy

adhd-research-news1 month ago•30 min saved

Brain maturation patterns forecast ADHD symptom trajectories in teens

A large longitudinal study using ABCD data shows ADHD symptom paths in adolescence—persistent, remitting, emergent, and control—map to distinct brain development signs. Persistent symptoms link to faster cortical thinning in frontal areas; emergent symptoms to slower thinning in the right posterior cingulate; remitting symptoms to faster left hippocampal growth. A machine-learning model with baseline brain data predicted symptom severity three years later and was replicated in European adult samples. Medication did not reliably predict remission; findings point to brain-based biomarkers and non-pharmacological interventions like aerobic exercise, while acknowledging observational limitations.

via PsyPost|

#adhd #adhd-research-news #adolescence

science1 month ago•44 min saved

ADHD brain maturation claim debunked as data mirage, new study finds

A new analysis challenges the long-standing claim that brains of children with ADHD mature more slowly than those of their peers. By reexamining the data with more robust methods, researchers conclude that the landmark finding was likely a mirage caused by artifacts or biases in the data, suggesting ADHD brain maturation may proceed on a timeline similar to neurotypical development.

via Yahoo|

#adhd #brain-development #data-bias

cognitive-science1 month ago•31 min saved

Time Perception Unfolds Across a Three-Stage Cortical Pathway

A seven-Tesla fMRI study shows that time perception is not a single clock but a three-stage cortical process: early visual areas encode physical durations, parietal and premotor regions map durations across a topographic layout, and frontal regions translate this into a subjective boundary, revealing a distributed, hierarchical network for how the brain experiences the passage of time.

via PsyPost|

#brain #cognitive-science #cortex

science2 months ago•5 min saved

One Psilocybin Dose Triggers Lasting Brain Changes and Mood Boost

A study of 28 psilocybin-naive adults finds a single 25 mg dose can reconfigure brain activity and boost psychological well-being for up to a month. Researchers tracked brain changes with EEG, DTI, and fMRI, and found that higher brain entropy during the trip, along with greater psychological insights the next day, correlated with longer-term wellbeing improvements. The trial included a placebo session (1 mg) before the full dose, and participants could often tell which session contained the drug, which modestly limits the findings. The results help explain how psychedelic experiences may contribute to therapy, though some scientists caution that brain entropy is not a definitive biomarker and call for more sensitive measures.

via ScienceAlert|

#brain-entropy #mental-health #neuroimaging

science2 months ago•6 min saved

Tiny psilocybin study links intense trips to brain wiring changes

A small 28-participant study finds that after a 25 mg psilocybin dose, diffusion tensor imaging shows changes in water diffusion along neural fibers—especially in tracts linking the prefrontal cortex with other brain regions—with stronger trips associated with larger changes; about 70% of participants reported improved well-being 2–4 weeks later, suggesting psychedelic-induced brain plasticity, though results are exploratory and require replication in larger trials.

via NBC News|

#brain-plasticity #diffusion-tensor-imaging #neuroimaging

neuroscience2 months ago•31 min saved

Psychopathy linked to expanded cortical surface in 800 incarcerated men

A study of 804 incarcerated men finds that higher psychopathy scores are linked to an expanded cortical surface area and a compressed cortical gradient, with distinct relations between empathy types and psychopathic traits and region-specific changes in social-emotional brain regions; the authors note limitations from self-report empathy measures and the male-inmate sample, recommending broader replication and exploration of underlying cellular mechanisms.

via PsyPost|

#brain-gradients #cortical-surface-area #empathy

neuroimaging2 months ago•29 min saved

Breath timing reshapes how we read faces

Deliberately slowing or pacing breathing alters how accurately people recognize emotions in faces: slow exhale reduces accuracy while slow inhale can enhance perceptual sensitivity. MEG data suggest the breathing rhythm can desynchronize brain waves from respiration, changing communication between networks that interpret fearful versus neutral expressions. The study used paced breathing with 31 participants and blended facial images, and notes caveats like fixed breathing rates and other physiological factors. Published in European Journal of Neuroscience by Shen-Mou Hsu and Chih-Hsin Tseng.

via PsyPost|

#brain-waves #breathing #facial-expression

science2 months ago•27 min saved

Lifelong light drinking and aging jointly linked to lower brain blood flow and thinner cortex

A study published in Alcohol finds that even low-level alcohol use over a lifetime, especially as people age, is associated with reduced cerebral blood flow and thinner cortex in multiple brain regions. An MRI analysis of 45 healthy adults (with 27 undergoing perfusion scans) showed that greater lifetime drinking and older age together correlated with lower blood flow across the cortex and thinner cortical tissue, notably in the frontal, parietal, and occipital lobes. The researchers suggest oxidative stress could contribute to these changes, but caution that small sample size, limited female representation, and unmeasured lifestyle factors limit conclusions and call for replication and evaluation of real-world functional effects like balance and dexterity before revising low-risk drinking guidelines.

via PsyPost|

#aging #alcohol #brain-perfusion