News tagged with brain disorders

Origin of intelligence, mental illness linked to ancient genetic accident

Scientists have discovered for the first time how humans – and other mammals – have evolved to have intelligence.

Neuroscience created Dec 02, 2012 | popularity 3.8 / 5 (33) | comments 12 | with audio podcast

Genes for autism and schizophrenia only active in developing brains

Genes linked to autism and schizophrenia are only switched on during the early stages of brain development, according to a study in mice led by researchers at the University of Oxford.

Genetics created Feb 11, 2013 | popularity 3.4 / 5 (30) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Toxoplasma gondii parasite may trigger suicide attempts

A parasite thought to be harmless and found in many people may actually be causing subtle changes in the brain, leading to suicide attempts.

Medical research created Aug 16, 2012 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (17) | comments 4 | with audio podcast

Drug treatment corrects autism symptoms in mouse model

Autism results from abnormal cell communication. Testing a new theory, researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have used a newly discovered function of an old drug to restore cell communications ...

Autism spectrum disorders created Mar 13, 2013 | popularity 5 / 5 (16) | comments 12 | with audio podcast

Body clocks of depressed people altered at cell level, researchers show

Every cell in our bodies runs on a 24-hour clock, tuned to the night-day, light-dark cycles that have ruled us since the dawn of humanity. The brain acts as timekeeper, keeping the cellular clock in sync ...

Medical research created May 13, 2013 | popularity 4 / 5 (19) | comments 4 | with audio podcast

Brain development is guided by 'junk' DNA that isn't really junk

(Medical Xpress)—Specific DNA once dismissed as junk plays an important role in brain development and might be involved in several devastating neurological diseases, UC San Francisco scientists have found.

Genetics created Apr 15, 2013 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (14) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

Researchers discover sleep mechanism critical to memory consolidation and find that Ambien enhances the process

(Medical Xpress)—A team of sleep researchers led by UC Riverside psychologist Sara C. Mednick has confirmed the mechanism that enables the brain to consolidate memory and found that a commonly prescribed ...

Neuroscience created Mar 12, 2013 | popularity 4 / 5 (13) | comments 7 | with audio podcast

Simple mathematical computations underlie brain circuits

(Medical Xpress) -- The brain has billions of neurons, arranged in complex circuits that allow us to perceive the world, control our movements and make decisions. Deciphering those circuits is critical to ...

Neuroscience created Aug 08, 2012 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (11) | comments 9 | with audio podcast

Study indicates reverse impulses clear useless information, prime brain for learning

(Medical Xpress)—When the mind is at rest, the electrical signals by which brain cells communicate appear to travel in reverse, wiping out unimportant information in the process, but sensitizing the cells ...

Neuroscience created Mar 19, 2013 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (9) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

Scientists pinpoint how deep brain stimulation eases OCD

(HealthDay)—Deep brain stimulation has helped people with severe obsessive-compulsive disorder, and new research begins to explain why.

Neuroscience created Feb 24, 2013 | popularity 5 / 5 (8) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

Mouse brain made transparent: Method enables 3-D analysis of brain's fine structure and connections (w/ video)

Combining neuroscience and chemical engineering, researchers at Stanford University have developed a process that renders a mouse brain transparent. The postmortem brain remains whole—not sliced or sectioned in any way—with ...

Neuroscience created Apr 10, 2013 | popularity 5 / 5 (8) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Scientists reveal drinking champagne could improve memory

(Medical Xpress)—New research shows that drinking one to three glasses of champagne a week may counteract the memory loss associated with ageing, and could help delay the onset of degenerative brain disorders, ...

Health created May 08, 2013 | popularity 4.4 / 5 (9) | comments 5 | with audio podcast

Is this peptide a key to happiness?

(Medical Xpress)—What makes us happy? Family? Money? Love? How about a peptide? The neurochemical changes underlying human emotions and social behavior are largely unknown. Now though, for the first time in humans, scientists ...

Psychology & Psychiatry created Mar 07, 2013 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (8) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Brain research provides clues to what makes people think and behave differently

Differences in the physical connections of the brain are at the root of what make people think and behave differently from one another. Researchers reporting in the February 6 issue of the Cell Press journal ...

Neuroscience created Feb 06, 2013 | popularity 3.9 / 5 (9) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

High levels of glutamate in brain may kick-start schizophrenia

An excess of the brain neurotransmitter glutamate may cause a transition to psychosis in people who are at risk for schizophrenia, reports a study from investigators at Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) published ...

Neuroscience created Apr 18, 2013 | popularity 5 / 5 (7) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Mental disorder

A mental disorder or mental illness is a psychological or behavioral pattern that occurs in an individual and is thought to cause distress or disability that is not expected as part of normal development or culture. The recognition and understanding of mental disorders has changed over time and across cultures. Definitions, assessments, and classifications of mental disorders can vary, but guideline criteria listed in the ICD, DSM and other manuals are widely accepted by mental health professionals. Categories of diagnoses in these schemes may include dissociative disorders, mood disorders, anxiety disorders, psychotic disorders, eating disorders, developmental disorders, personality disorders, ambulatory disorders and many other categories. In many cases there is no single accepted or consistent cause of mental disorders, although they are often explained in terms of a diathesis-stress model and biopsychosocial model. Mental disorders have been found to be common, with over a third of people in most countries reporting sufficient criteria at some point in their life. Services for mental disorders may be based in hospitals or in the community. Mental health professionals diagnose individuals using different methodologies, often relying on case history and interview. Psychotherapy and psychiatric medication are two major treatment options, as well as supportive interventions and self-help. Treatment may be involuntary where legislation allows. Several movements campaign for changes to services and attitudes.

For more information about Mental disorder, read the full article at Wikipedia.
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