Brain responds to poetry like music
A new research has shown that the brain responds to poetry like music. Scientists at the University of Exeter used state-of-the-art functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) technology, which allows them to visualise which parts of the brain are activated to process various activities. No one had previously looked specifically at the differing responses in the brain to poetry and prose. In the research, the team found activity in a “reading network” of brain areas which was activated in response to any written material. But they also found that more emotionally charged writing aroused several of the regions in the brain which respond to music. These areas, predominantly on the right side of the brain, had previously been shown as to give rise to the “shivers down the spine” caused by an emotional reaction to music. When volunteers read one of their favourite passages of poetry, the team found that areas of the brain associated with memory were stimulated more strongly than “reading areas”, indicating that reading a favourite passage is a kind of recollection. In a specific comparison between poetry and prose, the team found evidence that poetry activates brain areas, such as the posterior cingulate cortex and medial temporal lobes, which have been linked to introspection. The research is published in the Journal of Consciousness Studies. (ANI)
Soon, pill to cure Alzheimer’s
Scientists have discovered the first chemical to prevent the death of brain tissue in a neurodegenerative disease, which has been hailed as an exciting and historic moment in medical research. Researchers, now, claim that a resulting medicine could treat Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, Huntington’s and other diseases, the BBC reported. The University of Leicester discovery showed all brain cell death from prion disease in mice could be prevented. The research team at the university’s Medical Research Council Toxicology Unit focused on the natural defence mechanisms built into brain cells. When a virus hijacks a brain cell it leads to a build-up of viral proteins. Cells respond by shutting down nearly all protein production in order to halt the virus’s spread. However, many neurodegenerative diseases involve the production of faulty or “misfolded” proteins. These activate the same defences, but with more severe consequences. The misfolded proteins linger and the brain cells shut down protein production for so long that they eventually starve themselves to death. It is the first time that any form of neurodegeneration has been completely halted, so it is a significant landmark. It shows that the process being targeted has serious potential. If this can be successfully developed, which is not guaranteed, the prize would be huge. In Parkinson’s the alpha-synuclein protein goes wrong, in Alzheimer’s it’s amyloid and tau, in Huntingdon’s it’s the Huntingtin protein. But the errant protein is irrelevant here as the researchers are targeting the way a cell deals with any misfolded protein. It means one drug could cure many diseases and that really would be something to get excited about. The study is published in the journal Science Translational Medicine. (ANI)
Pot-bellied people 3.6 times likelier to develop memory loss
Researchers including an Indian-origin scientist has suggested that people having high amounts of abdominal fat in their middle age are 3.6 times more likely to develop memory loss and dementia later in their life. Neurological scientists at the Rush University Medical Center in collaboration with the National Institutes of Health have discovered that same protein that controls fat metabolism in the liver resides in the memory center of the brain (hippocampus) and controls memory and learning. Kalipada Pahan, PhD, the Floyd A. Davis professor of neurology at Rush University Medical Centerm, said that better understanding is needed about how fat is connected to memory and learning so that effective approach to protect memory and learning can be developed. The liver is the body’s major fat metabolizing organ. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPARalpha) is known to control fat metabolism in the liver. Accordingly, PPARalpha is highly expressed in the liver. Since PPARalpha directly controls fat metabolism, people with abdominal fat levels have depleted PPARalpha in the liver and abnormal lipid metabolism. (ANI)
Men who don’t exercise have ‘dysfunctional’ good cholesterol
High levels of good cholesterol – also known as high-density lipoprotein (HDL) appears to carry cholesterol away from blood vessels to the liver, and from there the liver processes it for removal from the body.
Because exercise has the potential to protect against heart disease in a variety of ways, Christian K. Roberts and his colleagues at UCLA tested whether HDL in men who weight trained regularly behaved in a healthier way than HDL in sedentary men. They found that the men who didn’t exercise were more likely than those who weight trained to have dysfunctional HDL. Having faulty HDL was associated with numerous other risk factors for heart disease, including high triglycerides and a higher trunk fat mass. This finding held true regardless of the men’s weight, which suggests that maintaining a “healthy” weight isn’t as important for healthy cholesterol function as being active by regularly performing strength training. The study has been published in the Journal of Applied Physiology. (ANI)