Duke University

Neuroscience

Brain has natural noise-cancelling circuit

To ensure that a mouse hears the sounds of an approaching cat better than it hears the sounds its own footsteps make, the mouse's brain has a built-in noise-cancelling circuit.

Psychology & Psychiatry

Car, stroller, juice: Babies understand when words are related

The meaning behind infants' screeches, squeals and wails may frustrate and confound sleep-deprived new parents. But at an age when babies cannot yet speak to us in words, they are already avid students of language.

Genetics

Genetic variant prompts cells to store fat, fueling obesity

Obesity is often attributed to a simple equation: People are eating too much and exercising too little. But evidence is growing that at least some of the weight gain that plagues modern humans is predetermined. New research ...

Neuroscience

Star-shaped brain cells orchestrate neural connections

Brains are made of more than a tangled net of neurons. Star-like cells called astrocytes diligently fill in the gaps between neural nets, each wrapping itself around thousands of neuronal connections called synapses. This ...

Medical research

Scientists find key protein for spinal cord repair

A freshwater zebrafish costs less than two bucks at the pet store, but it can do something priceless: Its spinal cord can heal completely after being severed, a paralyzing and often fatal injury for humans.

Neuroscience

Brain connections are more sophisticated than thought

In 1959, a scientist named Edward Gray showed that the miniscule gaps between neurons where chemical messages are sent, called synapses, come in two main varieties, which researchers later dubbed "excitatory" and "inhibitory."

Genetics

CRISPR treats genetic disorder in adult mammal

Researchers have used CRISPR to treat an adult mouse model of Duchenne muscular dystrophy. This marks the first time that CRISPR has successfully treated a genetic disease inside a fully developed living mammal with a strategy ...

Medical research

Researchers learn to measure aging process in young adults

Looking around at a 20th high school reunion, you might notice something puzzling about your classmates. Although they were all born within months of each other, these 38-year-olds appear to be aging at different rates.

page 2 from 40