Researchers examine why people remember certain things and not others

Holistic view of hierarchical processing in episodic memory. A) Proposed hierarchy of episodic memory content processing from neocortex to hippocampus, incorporating the why as context. Adapted and expanded from Eichenbaum…

Mapping the Brain’s Response to Social Rejection

Summary: A new study explores how the brain processes social acceptance and rejection, revealing how these experiences shape relationships and influence mental health. Using behavioral experiments and MRI imaging, researchers…

New Appetite Regulating Neurons Discovered

Summary: Researchers have identified a previously unknown population of neurons in the hypothalamus that play a critical role in regulating appetite. These neurons express both leptin receptors and the BNC2…

Depression Genes in Women Linked to Higher Heart Disease Risk

Summary: A new study analyzing genetic data from over 300,000 people revealed that women with a high genetic risk for depression also face a higher likelihood of developing heart disease,…

Leaded Gas Exposure Linked to Mental Illness

Summary: A new study estimates that childhood lead exposure, peaking between 1960 and 1990 due to leaded gasoline, caused 151 million excess cases of mental illness by 2015. Researchers linked…

How We Filter Out Background Sounds When Speaking

Summary: Researchers have traced how the brain filters out background noise during speech using signals between the motor and auditory cortices. These milliseconds-long electrical signals, called auditory corollary discharge, originate…

Empathy Loss in Dementia Linked to Brain Activity Changes

Summary: Frontotemporal dementia, affecting about 3% of dementia patients in Sweden, is characterized by a loss of empathy that challenges patients and their families. Using functional MRI, researchers found that…

How Alcohol Increases Pain Tolerance, and Aggression

Summary: Alcohol not only raises pain tolerance but also amplifies aggression, according to a new study. Researchers found that participants who drank alcohol had higher pain thresholds and were more…

Masculine Ideals Double Suicide Risk in Men

Summary: Men who strongly adhere to traditional masculine ideologies, such as suppressing emotions and valuing independence, are more than twice as likely to attempt suicide compared to those with more…

Flexibility demands influence motor cortex’s involvement in execution of motor sequences, rat study finds

Simplified schematic representation of the motor control system considered in this study, and the hypotheses about how it is used in response to different challenges. Credit: Mizes et al. The…