memory
DCDC2 genetic variants and susceptibility to developmental dyslexia
Objective(s): Developmental dyslexia is a heritable condition, with genetic factors accounting for 44–75% of the variance in performance tests of reading component subphenotypes. Compelling genetic linkage and association evidence supports a quantitative trait locus in the 6p21.3 region that encodes a gene called DCDC2.
Opioids erase memory traces of pain
Medical researchers have discovered a previously unknown effect of opioids. The study shows that opioids not only temporarily relieve pain, but at the right dose can also erase memory traces of pain in the spinal cord and therefore eliminate a key cause of chronic pain.
Master controller of memory identified
One gene appears to regulate the brain's ability to form new memories.
New clues as to why some older people may be losing their memory
New research links 'silent strokes,' or small spots of dead brain cells, found in about one out of four older adults to memory loss in the elderly.
Sea snails help scientists explore a possible way to enhance memory
Efforts to help people with learning impairments are being aided by a species of sea snail. The mollusk, which is used by researchers to study the brain, has much in common with other species including humans. Neuroscientists have used this animal model to test an innovative learning strategy designed to help improve the brain's memory and the results were encouraging.
Memory after silent stroke: Hippocampus and infarcts both matter
Objective:
Memory decline commonly occurs among elderly individuals. This observation is often attributed to early neurodegenerative changes in the hippocampus and related brain regions. However, the contribution of vascular lesions, such as brain infarcts, to hippocampal integrity and age-associated memory decline remains unclear.
Cerebrospinal fluid markers for differential dementia diagnosis in a large memory clinic cohort
Objective:
To determine how amyloid β 42 (Aβ42), total tau (t-tau), and phosphorylated tau (p-tau) levels in CSF behave in a large cohort of patients with different types of dementia.
Methods:
Baseline CSF was collected from 512 patients with Alzheimer disease (AD) and 272 patients with other types of dementia (OD), 135 patients with a psychiatric disorder (PSY), and 275 patients with subjective memory complaints (SMC). Aβ42, t-tau, and p-tau (at amino acid 181) were measured in CSF by ELISA. Autopsy was obtained in a subgroup of 17 patients.
What determines the capacity of short-term memory?
Short-term memory plays a crucial role in how our consciousness operates. Several years ago a hypothesis has been formulated, according to which capacity of short-term memory depends in a special way on two cycles of brain electric activity. Scientists have now demonstrated this experimentally for the first time.
Potential explanation for mechanisms of associative memory
Researchers have discovered that a chemical compound in the brain can weaken the synaptic connections between neurons in a region of the brain important for the formation of long-term memories. The findings may also provide a potential explanation for the loss of memory associated with Alzheimer's.
GABAA Receptor Blockade Enhances Memory Consolidation by Increasing Hippocampal BDNF Levels
GABAA Receptor Blockade Enhances Memory Consolidation by Increasing Hippocampal BDNF Levels
Neuropsychopharmacology 37,
422 (January 2012). doi:10.1038/npp.2011.189
Authors: Dong Hyun Kim, Jong Min Kim, Se Jin Park, Mudan Cai, Xiaotong Liu, Seungheon Lee, Chan Young Shin
& Jong Hoon Ryu