Comprehensive coverage

the brain

Hadas Calderon with a picture of her son Erez who was kidnapped to Gaza together with his father Ofer and his sister Sahar. The photo was taken on October 30, 2023. Sahar and Erez were later released. Ofer is still in captivity. Photo: L.A.M

The nervous mechanism that goes wrong as a result of exposure to a severe event at a tender age

Weizmann Institute of Science scientists reveal in unprecedented detail how trauma in newborn mice shapes their brains and impairs their social functions in adulthood * A corresponding behavioral expression in humans may take the form of a high level of introversion, social anxiety and avoidant personality - behaviors known to characterize post-trauma"
The march of the kidnapped families. Photography: Yael Gadot, Thiel Stock

The Israeli abductees are expected to face a difficult task in order to regain a sense of control over their daily lives - an expert explains

  • No comments
The hostage situation can have profound psychological effects on people for many years. The psychological impact varies depending on the duration of captivity, the conditions endured, personal resilience and coping mechanisms
Pain. Illustration: depositphotos.com

Pain on the spectrum

A multidisciplinary study conducted by researchers from the Technion, Tel Aviv University and Haifa University refuted the notion that people with autism spectrum disorder do not experience pain
Immunofluorescence of the mouse inner ear. The spiral structure of the inner ear consists of hair cells and supporting cells, which together allow us to hear. Each cell type is shown in a different color. Image: Dr. Shahar Tiber

The long and winding route of sound

Researchers examined DNA samples of 1,200 deaf Israeli-Jews, in order to understand the damage caused to the structure of the proteins in the hearing system
Care of bears. Photo: Bar Ilan University Spokesperson

Take care of the bears and strengthen the children

Collaboration between the Faculty of Medicine, the Department of Psychology and the School of Social Work at Bar Ilan University resulted in the project - "Strength Center for Bears" - to reduce stress and anxiety and increase personal resilience among children
A war with iron swords Kibbutzim in the Gaza Strip Reim parking lot at the place where a mass party took place and about 260 young people were murdered Photo by Kobi Gideon / GPO

How to deal with a routine of war and how to preserve the children's optimism?

The surprise and speed with which things happened, and the ignorance regarding the fate of many people, arouses tension and distress in all of us. Bar-Ilan University's mental support team offers several ways to help us deal with the situation
Post Trauma. Photo 137131154 © Designer491 | Dreamstime.com

Post trauma in the Gaza Envelop

  • 16 תגובות
In 2009, at Sapir College, a seminar was held about the consequences of continuous exposure to the trauma of terrorism, among citizens in the settlements of Sderot and the Gaza Strip * The findings of Prof. Avi Besar from Sapir College, Prof. Beatrice Friel from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and Prof. Yuval Neria from Columbia University in New York USA, the concerns are confirmed
Capsule secret. Illustration: depositphotos.com

What does our voice say?

On the way in which vocal expressions can convey emotional information, especially in powerful experiences, and on the importance of the visual context
scientific picture. A XNUMXD model system of human neurons in a dish. In green and purple: nerve cells expressing a protein that is defective in the ubiquitin system. As a result of this expression, the pathology that characterizes Alzheimer's patients is created - the formation of amyloid clusters (in red) outside the cells

Technion researchers have identified the mechanism leading to the formation of protein aggregates involved in the development of Alzheimer's disease

  • One response
Toxic proteins accumulate in the brains of Alzheimer's patients. In the familial Alzheimer's patients, the accumulation mechanism is clear since there is a circumstantial relationship between the mutations and the identity of the defective proteins. In the random disease, on the other hand, the reason for the accumulation of the defective proteins was unknown
eye movements Illustration: depositphotos.com

See a world

A study examined the way in which different subjects - healthy, with depression or attention disorder - choose to look at the world
On the right: sperm cell of a healthy mouse. On the left: the product (protein) of the SCAPER gene (colored in red). The photograph shows that SCAPER is located at the head of the sperm cell, including in the nucleus

Between the retina, brain and fertility

On the spectrum of disorders caused by a defect in one gene
Cellular "garbage bags" are built using optineurin (in green) around damaged mitochondria (in red). Credit: WEHI

An old mystery solved: New findings change our understanding of the course of Parkinson's disease

  • No comments
Researchers at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute (WEHI) in Melbourne have solved a long-standing mystery regarding the role of a protein in removing damaged mitochondria from the body. These findings may pave the way for potential new treatments for Parkinson's disease
neurons. Illustration: depositphotos.com

The genetic phenomenon that worsens the signs of autism

  • One response
bipolar disorder. Illustration: depositphotos.com

With a simple blood test it is possible to identify people dealing with bipolar disorder and whether they will respond to lithium treatment

  • No comments
One of the most common treatments for bipolar disorder today is the drug lithium - a drug to which only about a third of patients respond. The research aims to understand what causes this
Credit - the research group of Prof. Aviv Metzer and Dr. Tal Shahar

MRI scans can provide information about the iron balance in the brain to help monitor and diagnose various diseases, in a non-invasive manner

  • One response
This new measurement method, developed by PhD student Shir Filo and Prof. Metzer, will allow the extraction of precise biological values ​​on the brain, so that it will be possible to derive from an MRI test similar indicators to those obtained from a blood test or from a brain biopsy
The molecule that carries with it a message of regeneration You are here Homepage > Publications > Science news in a friendly language > There is something new under the nerve Share tags Michael Feinzilbermike Feinzilber molecular neurobiology biomolecular sciences nervous system nerve cells communication between nerve cells Like geckos regrowing their tails, the nerve cell extensions in the peripheral nervous system also know how to regenerate after an injury. Unfortunately, the nerve cells of the central nervous system, i.e. the brain and spinal cord, have a much more limited ability to regenerate. Accordingly, diseases that lead to the degeneration and death of nerve cells in the brain, such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and ALS, are irreversible and incurable. What exactly gives the peripheral system - the one that connects the brain and the spinal cord to the body's organs - an increased capacity for regeneration? A new study by Weizmann Institute of Science scientists reveals that a protein, which until now has only been observed during embryonic development, has a key role in the regeneration of mature nerve cells of the peripheral nervous system. When embryonic cells differentiate into adult cells, the composition of the proteins they produce changes. In the case of nerve cells, it was common to think that a decrease in the levels of a protein called PTBP1 in embryonic cells is a key part of their transformation into mature cells of the nervous system. Previous studies have even shown that upon completion of the differentiation process and the transformation of the embryonic cells into mature nerve cells of the central nervous system, the production of the protein stops altogether. In recent years, these findings have led research groups to try to reproduce this process in the laboratory: to lower the PTBP1 protein levels in cells that are not nerve cells and thus produce mature nerve cells from them. The hope was that it would be possible to apply this method to patients with neurodegenerative diseases and to produce new nerve cells for them. From the right: Dr. Rinat Nebo, Dr. Natalya Okladnikov, Dr. Agustina Di Physio, Philip Freund, Dr. Ida Rischel, Prof. Michael (Mike) Feinzilber and Pierluigi Di Matteo However, in a new study, led by the researcher PhD candidate Dr. Stephanie Alber and doctoral student Pierluigi Di Matteo from the research group of Prof. Michael (Mike) Feinzylver in the Departments of Biomolecular Sciences and Molecular Neurobiology at the institute, it was surprisingly discovered that the PTBP1 protein is expressed not only in embryonic cells that have not yet undergone differentiation, but also in mature nerve cells - although not nerve cells of the central nervous system, but yes of the peripheral one. The researchers discovered this completely by accident, while studying processes in the sciatic nerve of mice, nerves that leave the spine and reach the foot. The original experiment carried out by the researchers was aimed at finding molecules that regulate the rate of production of another protein called KPNB1 - "postcarriage" - responsible for carrying most of the messages transmitted from the distant extensions of the nerve cells to the cell nucleus. Among its other functions, the KPNB1 protein is responsible for signaling to the cell nucleus that a nerve branch is injured, so that the cell can regenerate it. However, before the mail car can set off and carry messages from the branches to the nucleus, the cell is required to launch messenger RNA molecules that contain the "recipe" for the production of the mail car in the opposite path (from the nucleus to the branches). On the way or when arriving at the destination, other molecules may bind to the messenger, delaying or speeding it up and thus controlling the rate of production of the mail car. The surprising discovery in the new study was that not only was PTBP1 present in the mature cells, but it also bound tightly to the messenger RNA of the mail car. But does and how does it affect its production and the regeneration of nerve cells? "Tens of millions of people around the world suffer from diseases that lead to the degeneration and death of nerve cells in the brain. In order to understand why the central nervous system fails in its attempt to regenerate after an injury, we must first understand how the peripheral nervous system succeeds in doing so." To answer this question, the scientists followed the nerve cells' response to the injury and noticed that after three days the levels of PTBP1 in the cell began to rise and within A week they reached record levels. With the increase in PTBP1 levels, the researchers noticed that the nerve cell extensions begin to regenerate. Sequencing the messenger RNA molecules that bound to PTBP1 after the injury revealed that the protein binds not only to the messenger RNA molecules of the mail car, but also to other proteins that play a role in nerve regeneration. Dr. Stephanie Alber To continue investigating the activity of PTBP1 in adult cells, the researchers removed it from the cells through genetic engineering, and showed that as a result, the regeneration of nerve cells of the "alarm receptor" type - cells whose role is to transmit a sensation of pain in response to a harmful stimulus that could damage the tissue - was impaired. The scientists also examined whether silencing the gene had additional effects and discovered that it increased the sensitivity to mechanical stimuli and heat. In an attempt to deepen the understanding of how PTBP1 affects the regeneration of nerve cells, the researchers examined whether it also affects another protein, RHOA - an important "control switch" in the process of differentiation and regeneration of nerve cells. When the RHOA protein is produced at high levels, it acts as a sort of off switch that inhibits cell growth. The researchers discovered that PTBP1 suppresses the production of the control switch in the extensions of the nerve cells, thus enabling their growth and regeneration. These findings strengthen the possibility that the production of PTBP1 in peripheral nerve cells is what enables their efficient regeneration, unlike in the central nervous system. Sensory neurons of the peripheral nervous system in culture.

There is a new one under the sadness

The molecule that carries with it a message of regeneration
Brain stimulation using electrodes. Illustration: depositphotos.com

Electrical recording from deep within the brain

Abnormal electrical activity in the brain triggers OCD and Parkinson's symptoms
Prof. Stephen Hawking and the computer he used for his mouth. Illustration: depositphotos.com

Read melodies from the brain with Pink Floyed

A new study, published in mid-August in the prestigious journal PLOS Biology, reveals a way to decipher the songs playing inside the brain. In doing so, he also provides an explanation about the way in which different areas of the brain perceive and respond to acoustic elements
social anxiety. Illustration: depositphotos.com

Those suffering from social anxiety are prone to depression

Dr. Reot Tsbag, a graduate of the psychology department at Bar Ilan researches the relationship between social anxiety and depression as part of a post-doctorate at Yale University in the USA
Damage to the motor nerves in Duchenne patients. Illustration: depositphotos.com

Improving the function of the heart muscle in Duchenne patients

Producing heart cells from skin cells made it possible to discover defects that lead to heart failure
A parent in a messy house with children around him

What do today's parents need but psychologists struggle to provide?

  • 4 תגובות
In June, the first international congress on evidence-based support in parenting ended. And this is an excellent opportunity to reflect on the thing that parents need the most, in order to be good parents - parental space.
Smoking rehab. Illustration: depositphotos.com

at the top of their concerns

  • No comments
Significant progress towards personalized medicine in the field of psychiatry, with the help of a helmet that induces electromagnetic stimulation of the brain.
An oligodendrocyte-type cell with many of its branches (in yellow) in a mouse brain section. Reacts to stress quite differently in males and females

Exposure to chronic stress activates different cells in the brains of females and males

From depression and anxiety to diabetes - health conditions resulting from chronic stress affect women and men differently. New study in mice maps at the single-cell level molecular differences in the stress response in the brains of females and males, and may pave the way for personalized treatments
Fetal Development. Illustration: depositphotos.com

Accelerated development of neurons even in the embryonic stage can be the one that affects the development of autism

  • 7 תגובות
After the accelerated development, a rapid deterioration of the neurons was noted, which was manifested, among other things, in low connectivity. The study found the recurrence of the phenomenon in children with autism originating from four different types of genetic mutations
Left: cells with a mutant FUS protein that causes accumulations (in green) and leads to ALS disease. Right: the cells with the protein/chaferon (in pink) that manages to prevent the accumulations

fight degenerative diseases

The proteins and mechanisms required to fight the protein accumulations that lead to neurodegenerative diseases have been identified
Science website logo
SEARCH