Is Dancing the Kale of Exercise?

In a packed ballroom, a dapper man in a silver tuxedo swing dances with a young woman to Count Basie’s jazz classic “Shiny Stockings.” A parade of 93 other women patiently wait their turn. The man smiles wide, playfully wiggling his hips at the end of the eight count beat. He’s surprisingly spry for a…

To boldly go or anxiously hang back?

MEDIA AVAILABLE: Images of anxiety-promoting VIP interneurons available. Credit: Sohal Lab / UCSF. UC San Francisco research has identified a particular group of nerve cells in the brain that play an important role in anxiety’s influence over behavior. The researchers have found that turning off signaling from this small population of neurons in the front…

Researchers define Alzheimer’s-like brain disorder

A brain disorder that mimics symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease has been defined with recommended diagnostic criteria and guidelines for advancing future research on the condition. Researchers at Rush University Medical Center and scientists from several National Institutes of Health-funded institutions, in collaboration with international peers, described the newly-named pathway to dementia, Limbic-predominant Age-related TDP-43 Encephalopathy,…

Alumnus gives MIT $4.5 million to establish the Broderick Fund for Phytocannabinoid Research

IMAGE: MIT neuroscientists will study the effects of phytocannabinoids on dopamine-containing neurons (turquoise) in basal ganglia circuits. These deep brain circuits, which contain receptors that mediate the effects of cannabis, are… view more  Credit: Jill Crittenden, Ann Graybiel | McGovern Institute for Brain Research at MIT Charles R. Broderick, an alumnus of MIT and Harvard University,…

New 3D imaging and visualization technique provides detailed views of muscle architecture

VIDEO: In a new study, scientists in pathology and anatomical sciences in the University of Missouri’s School of Medicine have revealed a three-dimensional view of the skeletal muscles responsible for flight… view more  A new three-dimensional model of the skeletal muscles responsible for bird flight provides the most comprehensive and detailed picture of anatomy to date.…

Evolving alongside viruses impacts susceptibility to future infections

Researchers have shown that when fruit flies co-evolve with viruses, different genetic changes occur to those caused by encountering a virus for the first time, altering the insects’ susceptibility to future infection. The findings, published in eLife, help to address a fundamental question in infectious disease biology: why are some individuals genetically resistant to infection,…